Project Management

Optimize PCB Designs Before Product Development With Clear Client Requirements

Optimize PCB Designs Before Product Development With Clear Client Requirements I swear I clearly heard my son asking for a McFish in his Happy Meal. But when he insisted that he asked for nuggets, I had no choice but to buy another set, although I strongly suspected he was just after the toys. This may not exactly be what you’d call “good parenting” but it is a great example of how misunderstandings can occur when you don’t get requirements jotted down on paper. While the cost of not paying attention to my son simply cost Read Article

Single-Sided Versus Double-Sided PCB Costs Are Necessary Comparisons

Difference Between Single-Sided and Double-Sided PCBs: Necessary Costs Comparisons Duck hunters cherish their favorite call. With hundreds of available calls at our fingertips, choosing the right call can challenge anyone. Single and double reed duck calls perform differently and vary in cost. Conventional wisdom might conclude that “double” translates into “more value.” Yet, professional and experienced duck callers prefer single reed calls. Since many beginners don’t have time to practice, many choose a double reed duck call Read Article

BOM Control: Setting up your PCB Documentation for Success

BOM Control: Setting up your PCB Documentation for Success Years ago I ventured into the world of remote control helicopters. Not the ready-to-fly-out-of-the-box drones that they sell today, but a gas-engine, Bell-Hiller mix, remote-controlled helicopter. What the salesman didn’t tell me though was about all the other items that I would need to purchase in order to complete it. I was going to have to purchase the engine, muffler, radio components, servos, starter, battery, as well as much more. As you Read Article

Wet and Dry PCB Etching Solutions: Which Process is the Right Solution?

Wet and Dry PCB Etching Solutions: Which Process is the Right Solution? I have always been a very visually-oriented thinker. When I was much younger, I used to look up maps to video game levels online and put a sheet of tracing paper up against the screen to copy them down. The Zelda games specifically would always leave me with a notebook full of maps and, on the more challenging dungeons, color-coded warnings. If I sneezed once in my tracing process or the screen moved or I was called away mid-tracing, my map would Read Article

Sooner or Later, Your PCB Design Layout Will Need Rework

Sooner or Later, Your PCB Design Layout Will Need Rework I woke up last Saturday morning eager to get started on my latest backyard project. First, a trip to the hardware store for supplies, and then spend the rest of the day working on the project. Or at least I thought that I had it all planned out until my wife reminded me that I had promised to help her with some other chores. The proverbial rug of my weekend project was yanked out from under me by the classic “honey-do” block. Since I had, in fact Read Article

Bill of Materials Management Strategies: Automation is Your Friend

Bill of Materials Management Strategies: Automation is Your Friend When I was a boy I really enjoyed reading the “Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators” mystery books. These books were a contemporary to “The Hardy Boys” mystery books and I filled a lot of my free time reading about “The Secret of Terror Castle”, “The Mystery of the Screaming Clock”, and many other frightful enigmas. A few years ago I ran across some of these books, and now I collect as many as I can find. Another avid fan I know said it Read Article

The Advantages and Disadvantages of Designing with Breadboards

The Advantages and Disadvantages of Designing with Breadboards Breadcrumbs, breadboards, and breadwinners. One of which has electronic components. Two of which will provide you with a delicious and nutritious meal enough to feed a family. The first, will provide you with the foundational playground to which your printed circuit board board design will spawn from. I will save you time, effort, and many awkward encounters by telling you that if you go around trying to stick jumper leads into breadwinners Read Article

Remove the Chance of PCB Manufacturing Delays by Using a Final Deliverable Checklist

Remove the Chance of PCB Manufacturing Delays by Using a Final Deliverable Checklist Several years ago I had knee surgery. Something had happened to the membrane that provided protection in the joint, and my knee was making all kinds of noise that a healthy knee shouldn’t be making. Before going into the surgery the doctor said that I should take a marker and carefully notate which knee required the surgery. Considering the circumstances, I hope he wasn’t pulling my leg before cutting into it. Using a checklist is always a good Read Article

Through It All: PCB Tools and What Experience Has Shown

Through It All: PCB Tools and What Experience Has Shown I have always been aware that places exist in the world where the January gray skies and chills never happen, but I’m still not entirely sure where they are. Whether it’s picking up a new hobby, being invigorated by your resolutions, or rewatching some of your favorite movies under a heavy, comfortable blanket, January has a lot more to offer than the cold, wet, and gloomy weather that is on the other side of most of our windows. As the doorstep Read Article

Optimizing Your BOM for Rapid Prototype Manufacturing

BOM Optimization for Rapid Prototype Manufacturing Your BOM can make your manufacturing speeds, especially if you want your prototyping to be done quick and smooth. Read Article

Create a BOM That Works for Everyone

Create a BOM That Works for Everyone For me, socks have always been about utility: they keep my feet from getting blisters. Yet for years I have spent far too much time sorting and organizing my socks to match up the colors. Browns with browns, blues with blues, and yellows with… well, to tell the truth, I would just throw those away. Yellow socks were just too weird for me. Then one day I decided to simplify my life and I replaced all my colored socks with plain black socks Read Article

Backroads or Highway: Managing PCB Power Distribution with a PDN Analyzer

Backroads or Highway: Managing PCB Power Distribution with a PDN Analyzer Who hasn’t been caught daydreaming out the window, overlooking the lines of cars on the freeway at a standstill, wondering about easier or more effective ways of getting to your job on time? And even then, sometimes the alternate routes aren’t always the fastest—there could be road construction, or an event going on which makes you have to re-route even more. At that point, most tend to throw all hopes for getting to work on time out the window Read Article

Don't Stay in the Tower: BOM System Communication and Component Pricing Costs

Don't Stay in the Tower: BOM System Communication and Component Pricing Costs Once upon a time, way back in the dark ages of the 20th century, there were three kingdoms: design, manufacturing, and purchasing. The royal design engineer’s process would look like this: they’d design the product, take their carriage to the manufacturing department kingdom where the designer would submit the design quickly and leave, trying to minimize as much chatter and cross communication as possible. The manufacturing engineers who receive Read Article

Electronic Parts Obsolescence Management, It's Your Move

Electronic Parts Obsolescence Management, It's Your Move I started playing chess a bit more seriously a few years ago and have since become quite capable of planning out moves several turns in advance with an accurate prediction of how my opponent will react to them. I wouldn’t even consider competitive with my chess skills, but there are professionals who can predict moves and match outcomes between 60 and 100 moves in the future. While it’s a strong practice to get into, being able to predict moves Read Article

Finding the Perfect World for Multilayer PCB Design

Finding the Perfect World for Multilayer PCB Design and Fabrication I have always been a huge Clint Eastwood fan. Dirty Harry always seemed to be a little too quick on the draw for an urban twentieth-century environment, but The Man with No Name—he was perfect for the ruggedness and lawlessness of his time. Obviously, I always rooted for him to beat up the bully, outdraw the outlaw, or get the girl, but the most intriguing thing was that he was usually quick to make a decision. Of course, the results varied Read Article

Instructions Are Easy When You Write Them: The PCB Assembly Drawing

Instructions Are Easy When You Write Them: The PCB Assembly Drawing learn about the basics of assembly drawing. Read Article

How Multi-Level BOMs Can Organize Your Next System Design

How Multi-Level BOMs Can Organize Your Next System Design If only packing for vacation were as simple as it sounds: figure out what clothes you need, throw them in a suitcase, and you’re ready to go—wrong! Here’s the more realistic vacation planning scenario: pack your clothes, pack your children’s clothes, and then pack all the other personal necessities such as diapers, games, etc. Next you need to pack the food followed by whatever gear your particular vacation requires including tents, fishing Read Article