Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1529411
8 PCB007 MAGAZINE I NOVEMBER 2024 Marcy's Musings by Marcy LaRont, I-CONNECT007 Engineering Economics e real cost to manufacture a PCB, sometimes referred to as the "loaded cost," encompasses everything that goes into making the product: the materials and other value- added supplies, machine and personnel costs, and most importantly, your quality. Happy Holden calls it "Engineering Economics," and dedicated a chapter in his book, 24 Essential Skills for Engineers, to the subject. So, how do you understand the real cost to manufacture? Obviously, yields are ever ything in this business, but so is building more accuracy into our boards and finding defects. is is critical to a PCB fabricator's success. As Happy writes, "Yields are the dividing phenomena that oen decide whether we make a profit." is is where pricing can be a dicey proposition. Not pricing your product properly can be disastrous to your bottom line which is one ver y important reason to understand the true cost to manufacture. In this issue, we examine the real cost of manufacturing through several different lenses. We start with an article by Richard Koensgren