Simple Strategies to Reach 10% PCB Cost Reduction

Who doesn't want to reduce the cost of their next production run by 10%?

For many electronic devices, PCBA cost is a major factor that impacts a company's competitiveness. Designers do not always take an eye towards total product cost, often focusing on capability at the expense of component cost reduction or manufacturing cost reduction opportunities. Some circuit board design decisions and components carry a premium and are absolutely necessary, but there are others that produce small cost savings that add up to large dollar figures at high volume.

To help you identify cost savings on your next build, take a look at some of the ideas shown below. Cost savings on a new build is about more than ordering her part volumes, it also applies to the circuit board itself.

PCB Fab and Assembly Cost Reduction Ideas

Before you start forgoing fundamental engineering requirements just to reduce cost, I think it's important to realize two facts:

1. There are usually two or three design factors that are the biggest cost drivers for your board
2. Many PCB get over-engineered, which presents many opportunities for small cost reductions

With these points in mind, it often becomes a simple matter to identify enough simple board changes to get you close to a 10% cost reduction on your circuit board fabrication run. Take a look at the items in the table below and see if any of these apply to your next project. 

Some of these points were compiled based on the core cost drivers of PCB fabrication, and this should give you some good ideas as to where you can find some opportunities for cost reduction. The opportunities might be small, but they all add up to big savings. To see what kind of savings we’re talking about, take a look at the podcast discussion below with Greg Papandrew.

Elsewhere in the episode, Greg notes that PCB fabrication accounts for only 8% to 12% of the total cost of a product. If you want to get to a 10% cost reduction, you will have to look beyond just the cost of fabricating a PCB. After looking just at the PCB, we can look at the parts to see where some opportunities might be found for cost reduction.

Parts Selection and Placement Drive Assembly Costs

First, one should note that placement of parts will drive some assembly costs. There will be some charges to assemble both sides of a PCB, and certain types of parts or packaging can require additional costs in assembly. Some simple parts swaps in the areas below can help get you across the finish line and reach a further cost reduction:

• No-lead components - Leadless parts (QFNs, BGAs, etc.) tend to bring extra costs due to inspection needs, as well as potential for rework when there are solder defects. 
• SMD case sizes - Smaller case sizes can incur higher assembly costs due to the use of smaller apertures. However, going to a smaller case can cost less. Going from 0402 or 0201 can increase costs, but from 0603 to 0402 can reduce costs.
• Double-sided assembly - Sometimes this is unavoidable, especially in dense boards. Assembling on both sides of the PCB will cost more than single-sided assembly. If you have a small number of parts on the back side, consider consolidating onto one layer.
• Overlapping BGAs/QFNs - This is an instance where the placement/assembly could drive a board fabrication decision that is more costly, namely using blind/buried vias instead of HDI. If leadless parts can be moved, the board fabrication is simpler and less expensive.

The challenge here is when the changes are applied. Most of these swaps are not part number consolidations, they have to be applied early in the design phase to ensure the swaps are workable in the PCB layout. To target the right parts changes to reduce PCB cost, take a look at the BOM after schematics are completed in order to avoid a PCB layout iteration later.

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