Every question, answered with numbers.

Yes. Seven SMT lines run Panasonic NPM-D3 modular placers rated at 84,000 CPH with 25 µm placement accuracy, covering 01005 imperial / 03015 metric chip parts up to 100 × 90 mm and 28 mm tall, with PoP support. Fine-pitch work needs a laser-cut stainless stencil with a nano coating: area ratio ≥0.66. Reflow is a ten-zone forced-air oven running SAC305, with optional nitrogen at O₂ ≤1000 ppm.

Both. Cable and harness assembly, box build and cabinet integration are done in-house on the same site. Bare boards are a different matter: we are an assembly house, so bare boards are sourced from audited partner fabs, with incoming inspection and full lot traceability.

Yes. IC programming is USD 50–200 offline or in-line. Two functional test lines run FCT with fixture and programme development, alongside bed-of-nails ICT with fixture design, flying probe for small batches and high mix, burn-in in a temperature-controlled oven, and Hi-Pot testing. Fixture NRE is USD 2,000–10,000+ for a general fixture and USD 2,000–50,000+ for an ICT bed-of-nails fixture.

Yes: array panelisation, V-CUT or perforated tabs. Breakaway rails are ≥5 mm, V-CUT requires board thickness ≥0.8 mm, and perforated tab spacing runs 0.5–1.0 mm. Mirror-image (front-and-back) panels must be labelled explicitly, otherwise the panel can be built upside down.

Conformal coating in acrylic, silicone or polyurethane is applied to IPC-CC-830 in an ISO Class 8 clean area. Parylene is outsourced. Potting is possible, but note that a potted assembly cannot be reworked, so this is flagged at the DFM stage rather than after the fact.

Yes. 1–10 pcs ship in 3–7 working days and 10–1,000 pcs in 5–10 working days, all as assembly lead time ex-components. Unit price carries a +30–40% premium at 5–20 pcs, falling to +5–15% at 101–499 pcs. Prototype quantities are quoted per project rather than forced up to a production minimum.

First-article inspection is USD 100–300 and the report carries SPI and AOI data plus the appearance criteria it was judged against. The broader NRE engineering fee is commonly USD 0–150 and is waived on most projects.

1–10 pcs take 3–7 working days; 10–1,000 pcs take 5–10 working days; 5,000 pcs take approximately 3 weeks; and production runs take 3–4 weeks ex-works once components are in hand. Every one of these is an assembly lead time ex-components.

It means the assembly clock starts when the BOM is complete and released for build, not when the purchase order is raised. Long-lead semiconductors can add 12–26 weeks on top (industry data). Every incoming BOM gets a risk scan covering lifecycle status, single-source parts, long-lead items and counterfeit risk, and the critical path is reported back to you.

Three working days is the fastest tier, for 1–10 pcs, and it depends on components being in stock. Prototype boards get a first-pass DFM report within 24 hours, and the quotation is issued after that review so the price matches what will actually be built.

The minimum is driven by the component package. Chip passives 0603–2225, plus SOT, SOD and MELF, start at 50 pcs + 30 spares. All other packages start at 100 pcs + 50 spares. Prototype quantities are quoted per project.

Because the floor comes from distributors, not from the line. Parts ship on reels with their own minimum multiples, and a placement programme, a stencil and a first article cost the same whether they carry five boards or five hundred. Publishing a lower number would mean quoting something that cannot actually be bought.

Gerber X2/X3 (RS-274X), ODB++ or IPC-2581; an Excellon drill file with plated and non-plated holes separated; a pick-and-place or centroid file with rotation and side; and a BOM carrying the manufacturer, the manufacturer part number and the reference designators for every line. An assembly drawing showing polarity, connector orientation and keep-out areas should travel with it. Recommended but not required: stackup, impedance targets, stencil aperture requirements, test point list and the IPC-A-610 acceptance class.

You get a first-pass DFM report within 24 hours on prototype boards, listing each returned item and a proposed fix. The usual six: a library footprint that disagrees with the datasheet land pattern (the datasheet wins); a solder mask dam too narrow between adjacent pads; vias neither tented nor plugged; a breakaway rail under 5 mm; fiducials missing or symmetrically placed; and components closer together than the nozzle envelope, or heavy parts without a support point. Substitution is never automatic: an alternate needs a datasheet parameter comparison and your written confirmation, with approved vendor list parts considered first.

T/T with a 30% deposit and the 70% balance against a copy of the bill of lading. Below USD 20,000 an escrow arrangement is available at 0.3–0.5%. Net 30 or Net 60 is not offered on a first order.

An L/C at sight costs 2–3% in bank charges. It is worth considering above USD 50,000, and below USD 10,000 the charges outweigh the protection it buys.

No. The ISO 13485:2016 scope here is Production of PCBA. It is a quality management system certificate: it is not an FDA clearance, and it is not an EU MDR certificate. What it does mean is that medical programmes run with lot-level traceability and an IQ / OQ / PQ validation document pack, and that any process change re-opens verification.

The finished-device manufacturer, which is the buyer. Under 47 CFR 15.101, a peripheral device or subassembly sold to an equipment manufacturer for further manufacturing does not need its own authorisation; the manufacturer obtains it before further sale. In the EU, products containing a radio follow RED 2014/53/EU, and EMC Directive 2014/30/EU does not itself apply to radio equipment: RED Article 1(4) removes radio equipment from the Low Voltage Directive while retaining the Article 3(1)(a) safety objective, and Article 3(1)(b) introduces the EMC requirements instead. A populated panel is not a CE-marked product, and a contract manufacturer cannot hold CE marking. We supply material declarations, process records and test data, and we support your certification testing.

Yes, on request: a declaration of conformity plus test reports. RoHS 3 (EU 2015/863) and REACH SVHC obligations are met with declarations and reports, not with a certificate. Conflict minerals are handled separately again: 3TG sourcing is disclosed through a CMRT, which is a smelter and refiner source disclosure available on request annually, and not a certification of any kind.

ESD bag, then a moisture barrier bag with desiccant and a humidity indicator card. Moisture-sensitive parts have their floor-life budget controlled after the bag is opened, and anything that exceeds it is baked before the next thermal excursion.

Yes. Supply the carton drawing, label artwork and any barcode or serialisation requirement when the order is placed, and it is written into the route card so the packing step is built to your specification rather than to ours.

EXW, FOB Shenzhen, CIF, DAP and DPU. CIF is not a delivered term: risk transfers at the port of shipment, not on arrival, so the buyer still carries the sea leg. DDP is quoted per order, and we normally recommend the freight forwarder act as importer of record.

Indicative port-to-port sea transit: Shanghai or Ningbo to Los Angeles / Long Beach 12–16 days; Yantian to Seattle 14–20 days; Qingdao to New York or Savannah 30–45 days; South China to Houston 25–35 days; Matson CLX 11–12 days. To Europe via the Cape of Good Hope, Yantian to Rotterdam is about 35–40 days and Shanghai about 42–47 days; via Suez about 25 days. Add 3–5 days of origin handling (7–10 if the container is inspected) and 2–7 days of destination customs clearance and drayage. LCL adds 5–7 days.

Duty is the buyer's responsibility under the quoted trade term. A populated PCBA has no single HS code: it is classified by end use, for example 8473.30, 8517.62, 8543.70 or 8537.10, which is different from the bare board heading 8534.00.0040. Rates change frequently, so any figure here is indicative only, and the classification is confirmed at the time of quotation.

The lot or serial number resolves to the component lots and the process records behind that build: SPI data, AOI data, X-ray where the project configures it, and the reflow profile. Containment comes first so the rest of the shipment can be held or released, then root cause. Rework follows IPC-7711/7721 and the change is recorded against the unit.

Acceptance is to the IPC-A-610 Class 2 or Class 3 stated on the order, and non-conforming work is reworked or rebuilt at our cost. No blanket warranty period is published, because the period is set by the acceptance class, the application and the test coverage you specify, and it is written into the quality agreement. Two internal figures are published with their definitions: first-pass yield ≥98.5%, measured at final inspection before any rework or retest on SMT and THT production lots, excluding pilot builds and post-ECN first articles; and on-time delivery ≥98.7%, measured against the confirmed ship date at order acknowledgement and counted per shipment.

Yes. Raise an RMA against the lot or serial number. If the fault is ours, rework or rebuild is at our cost. If the unit tests as conforming with no fault found, it is returned to you with the test evidence, and it can be retested against a quotation if you want a second opinion.

No. Components are purchased against your BOM specifically for your build, so finished goods cannot be taken back into stock. Rework, retest or repacking can be quoted, and general-purpose parts still sealed on their reels can be discussed case by case.