Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1475604
16 DESIGN007 MAGAZINE I AUGUST 2022 Holden: Yes. I was specifically addressing new electric vehicles because an automobile is a harsh environment, and because it's vibration, temperature, and time, and you want the board to last at least 15 years. Matties: When we talk about the fabricator controlling 20% of the cost, what are the vari- ables in that, Happy? Holden: It's their material handling options. You may specify the material, but a fabricator varies that cost depending on how he buys the material, stores it, and deals with it. e man- ufacturing yield, especially, will change that cost; otherwise, almost everything is spelled out by the designer in the specs. e specs tell you the material and what the trace/space widths are and how many layers you will have and the thickness of the layers, etc. ere are not very many degrees of freedom a fabricator has once he gets all these specs. Matties: Well, that's the other point you made the other day, we have a board thickness based on connector type. And that's been the stan- dard ever since. I think that's what you men- tioned, Happy. Holden: It's the paradigm paralysis system. We've been making 0.062" boards because that was the thickness of the connector. And now we don't usually have tab fingers on boards anymore, and connectors come in all differ- ent thicknesses. Now the main board doesn't have to be 0.062" because it's not plugging into the gold. If it's half the number of layers, then it's going to be less expensive. Can we make it smaller and get more per panel? e number of boards per panel is a major cost driver. And the total number of layers is a major cost driver. Matties: If you could get 20% more out of a panel, that's huge. Holden: It's just all tracked in the same old way. e nice thing about the same old way, since it's not optimized, is that it gives the smart fabricator a way to increase the profitability or save costs and provide some of that back to the OEM in terms of reduced price on quoting, and they keep mark. It all stems from that fact that there is no planning tool to optimize the design before you start the design. Andy Shaughnessy: I think it's going to be tough to get designers to buy into designing for con- servation, because the extra costs are already baked into the cake, along with extra respins. It's going to take a concerted effort from every- one involved. Matties: Yes. I think if you could get the mate- rial suppliers to buy in, along with the design- ers and the OEMs, then you can create change. But that's what it's going to take. Holden: Because designers control 80% of the cost of the board, the potential savings would be unbelievable. Matties: Always great to talk with you Happy. anks so much. DESIGN007 Happy Holden has worked in printed circuit tech- nology since 1970 with Hewlett-Packard, NanYa Westwood, Merix, Foxconn, and Gentex. He is currently a contributing technical editor with I-Connect007, and the author of Automation and Advanced Procedures in PCB Fabrication, and 24 Essential Skills for Engineers. To contact Holden or read past columns, click here.