Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1476200
10 PCB007 MAGAZINE I AUGUST 2022 If you manage a fabrication facility, we don't envy you. You're being hit on all sides with price increases, but you're traditionally leery of rais- ing your own prices. But you must do some- thing. Do you raise prices, trying to squeeze out more efficiency, or is it some combination of both? We asked Prototron President Dave Ryder and I-Connect007 columnist Dan Beaulieu to share their thoughts on the current fab pric- ing environment, the need for greater coop- eration, and some pricing strategies for fabri- cators who are nervously eyeing their bottom line. Andy Shaughnessy: Dave and Dan, welcome. We're here to talk about pricing strategies for fabricators. What should board fabricators do when the price of materials, chemicals, labor, shipping, and utilities are all increasing? Dave Ryder: We're getting notices from various suppliers every week about everything across the board going up. Sometimes it's not a big percentage, other times it's fairly significant. Back in January, aer months of receiving these notices, we finally decided we couldn't shoulder the changes in pricing any longer. So, we came up with a reasonable percentage that we felt covered the surcharges or addi- tional charges that we had been hit with. We pretty much raised prices across the board, but there's no additional profit in that number. is was simply just to cover the additional charges. Time for a Price Hike? Feature Interview by the I-Connect007 Editorial Team