Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1514628
10 PCB007 MAGAZINE I JANUARY 2024 Feature Article by Dana Korf "Why can't we all just get along?" —Henry Liberman, TEDx It's no industry secret that most PCB data packages sent to fabricators from designers cannot be built as-is. e finished boards oen seem to work, despite a factory estimating what the designer wanted vs. what the documen- tation showed, then jointly rectifying issues through lengthy technical query (TQ) cycles. In general, everyone seems to be satisfied with this process, so why do we need to improve the designer/manufacturer relationship? Why is the best solution a strong designer/manufac- turer relationship, and is it even possible? Let's perform a traditional root cause anal- ysis and define the function of a designer vs. a manufacturer. Oxford Language definitions: • Designer: A person who plans the form, look, or workings of something before its being made or built, typically by drawing it in detail. • Manufacturer: A person or company that makes goods for sale. is seems pretty straightforward. e man- ufacturer builds the product based on the sup- plied documentation. Unfortunately, the man- ufacturer's front-end engineering team typ- ically completes a portion of the design aer the data package is received because it can't be built as submitted. e manufacturer must update the design to maximize yield, meet cost targets, ensure reliability, and meet all perfor- mance requirements. Typical design functions performed by the manufacturer include creating a material The Designer and Manufacturer Must Be in Sync