Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/565949
42 The PCB Magazine • September 2015 terial costs are much lower. But beware price differences between offshore manufacturers. A cheaper price doesn't necessarily mean a more efficient operation—not any more. Effi- ciencies and yields in our industry are already very high at most shops, since the methodolo- gies have remained quite the same for the past couple decades at least. However, being a true automotive supplier means that there needs to be strict quality systems being applied to both the manufacturing facility as well as the supply base (laminates, soldermask, final finishes, etc.). Unfortunately, many shortcuts can be taken in PCB manufacturing to get costs down, includ- ing in the raw materials area, as well as in in- spection, cleaning, equipment repair and main- tenance, and so forth. As such, the number one priority should be to find a very good and capable partner/sup- plier of PCBs. Then learn all about their cost- ing. How did they get to their low pricing? Is it through cheaper material sources, cutting out process steps, skipping inspections or cleaning, or…what? Secondly, it is absolutely imperative that you audit your prospective overseas PCB sup- plier in person. ISO certification is basically meaningless, and TS16949 certification can be purchased without actually doing the required work (so I am told from reliable sources). Ev- eryone says they can build for the automotive market; make sure they actually do, not just say they do. That is the true test of how effectively TS16949 is being used. Referring back to one of my past articles, Built Board Tough (The PCB Magazine, July 2012), there are three critical production areas that re- quire extra attention during an audit. These are lamination, drilling, and plating. These areas must be gone over with a fine-toothed comb, so to speak. Following are some pointers for each area—but this is not an all-inclusive list. Materials What laminate is actually being used to make the boards? Ask for a datasheet while quoting. Then, during your audit, take a look at the laminate storage area. Is the material they called out actually in there? (And by the way, how are they storing their pre-preg?) Run some solder float tests. Figure 1 (a and b) shows two FR-4 laminates put through solder figure 1: (a) solder floats of two materials, 260°c for 30 minutes; and (b) 280°c for five minutes. A B BECOMING AN AuTOMOTIVE SuPPLIER—PROCEED WITH CAuTION continues FEAturE