Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1514628
28 PCB007 MAGAZINE I JANUARY 2024 tations, you may consider leveraging one of your front-end engineers knowledgeable with the process at hand. Our experience has been that PCB design engineers love to learn. Basic presentations on such topics as PCB manufac- turing and PCB cost drivers go a long way in building a trustworthy relationship. Other sub- jects—new technologies, for example—may call for more tailored presentations, allowing you to distinguish yourself from other manu- facturing facilities. Help your customers see you as a PCB authority, and they will know who to call for expert advice. Transparent Communication All relationships must be built on transpar- ent communication. PCB design and manu- facturing relationships are no different. When the PCB is being tooled up at the factory, many questions arise. While some are sim- ple, others require changes the designer needs to know about. If we know the designer well, we can make certain decisions on their behalf to keep the PCB moving at the factory. How- ever, major decisions must be made by the designer. en, when we send questions to the customer, most have already been answered. For the more difficult questions, we may offer several solutions, or just one. e point is that we always com- municate the out- come of each option t o t h e c u s t o m e r . One quick way to destroy a trustwor- t h y r e l a t i o n s h i p with a customer is to modify the design without transpar- ent communication. ough it's not sup- posed to occur in our industry, it still does and it's impor- tant to acknowledge this. Aer the PCB has been delivered, reach out for feedback and provide what's requested. Fostering loyal relationships with PCB design engineers is no different than any other relationship. e more support we can pro- vide them, the more value we add to the rela- tionship. Delivering reliable and consistent circuit boards should be the most important goal. However, if the boards are consistently late, your relationship with the customer will wane and fade away. If transparent communi- cation is not an integral part of your approach, you risk losing valuable customers. Finally, educate and mentor PCB design engineers. Going the extra mile is always appreciated by design engineers. is requires effort, but as someone wiser than us once said, "e extra effort is worth it." PCB007 Ryan Miller and Jeffrey Beauchamp are field applications engineers with NCAB Group. To read past columns, click here. Ryan Miller Jeffrey Beauchamp