The production of prototypes, which really meet time and quality requirements of the customers, is a very challenging job. The multi-year experience in this field of Elemaster Germany helped us to find out the most critical success factors and the best solutions for our customers.
A new product development project often starts later than planned, or can be delayed for a number of reasons. However, the target date for the completion of the prototypes is related to the presentation of the new device at a trade show or to a customer, or to the booked date of an EMC test laboratory, so in most cases cannot be postponed.
This increases the pressure and the possibility of mistakes, and with the increased complexity of new designs during electronics development some inconsistencies can appear. Experience has shown that these are only recognized during the assembly or the commissioning of the prototypes.
Since 1989 Elemaster Germany assembled thousands of prototypes for its customers and for its own electronics development. From these projects we learnt how to organize the manufacturing and materials management processes, to be able to produce prototypes in an effective and efficient way, with good speed and quality, too.
The optimal process for assembling prototypes
The key for successfully assembling of your prototypes lies in the preparation, so Elemaster Germany will support you from the early stages of your project.
1. BOM analysis
We always have thousands of standard SMD and THD components in stock in our warehouse, which you can access, this saves additional procurement efforts with components suppliers. Components that are likely to be difficult to be obtained should be ordered to us as soon as they are defined during the design, and can be marked directly using your labels, to quickly identify and pick them up.
2. PCB optimization
Thanks to its extensive expertise in the areas of PCB design, Elemaster Germany can support you in optimizing your PCB, finding the best answers in relation to:
- Selection of the suitable PCB technologies, to reduce manufacturing costs and grant the requested level of quality and safety.
- Definition of all the requirements for an efficient and safe manufacturing of your prototypes (e.g. fiducial marks, edge free of components or design of a PCB panel with predefined border, placement of the SMD and THD components, distances between components).
- Optimization of the cost of tooling and equipment to be used with the series, later on
- Impedance calculation of tracks
3. Assembly optimization
To optimize the assembly costs, we determine in advance which components needs to be assembled automatically and which one manually. Elemaster Germany has a wide range of options for assembling prototypes and handling the whole range of electronic components available in the market. A paste printing process is most likely used for SMD assemblies. Soldering takes place through a vapor phase soldering machine. In most cases the THD components are placed manually and manually soldered, too. Other methods of soldering the THD components (wave soldering, selective soldering) are available.
4. Quality
All prototype assemblies are optically inspected and checked after the assembly or soldering process. If we identify possible problems or potential improvements for the future serial production, we will give you related report free of charge.
5. High customer satisfaction
Our regular customer surveys prove that, thanks to our speed and flexibility, our prototype manufacturing service is highly appreciated. Matching customers requested date and quality standards are a key factor for exceeding our customers expectation.