Often when we receive a Request for Quote (RFQ) from customers, some key pieces of information are missing. Missing details will delay us in getting the quote back to you at our earliest. To make sure we provide you with the best possible lead times and pricing, please provide the following information when you submit your RFQ.
For PCB only RFQs
ALTIUM/GERBER FILES:
We require an Altium file or Gerber/assembly drawings at quoting stage as this helps us understand the complexity of the assembly. If you’re providing Gerber files, be sure to include the Pick & Place (P&P) file if possible.
PCB DETAILS:
In addition to quantity required, provide the following PCB specifications:
- Board thickness
- Copper thickness
- Surface finish
- Solder mask colour
- Design parameters
- Board Stack up
- Silkscreen requirements, if any
- Panelisation details, if required
- Any special features e.g. peel off mask, plugged vias, hard gold, special thickness tolerance, controlled impedance, etc.
For PCBA RFQs
If your project requires assembly services,
A COMPLETE BOM:
A well organised Bill of Materials (BOM) that includes
- Manufacturing part numbers
- Brands (if known)
- Descriptions
- Designators
- Footprint
- Customer part number, and
- Quantity
Include any info on tolerances for the passive components, and highlight your preferred supplier and supplier codes, if any.
IMAGES:
If available, include images of a sample board. This will help us getting a clear view of what the board looks like and to estimate the assembly cost.
ASSEMBLY REQUIREMENTS:
Include any specific assembly instructions such as:
- RoHS or Non-RoHS assembly
- Gluing of heavy components
- Washing of the boards
- X-ray requirement
- Functional testing
- Programming
- Label placement
- Potting requirements
- Conformal coating requirements (including masking instructions)
- Serial/Part number format (esp for Box-building)
- Specific packing requirements, and
- Any other crucial information such as: The amount of space required when soldering LEDs to a board (eg: distance between LED and board should be 15mm). We require this information at the quoting stage as this will help us properly estimate the time required to manufacture.
DELIVERY:
Provide us with the destination address you want the products delivered to.
NOTE: Customers usually have the option to visit our depot in Melbourne to pickup packages, however due to COVID-19 restrictions, local pickup is not available until further notice. All products will be shipped through courier. Your account manager will notify you once this option becomes available.
SUPPLYING YOUR OWN COMPONENTS?
If you plan to supply a portion of the components, please highlight and/or label clearly in the notes section in the BOM. Let us know which components will be supplied by you and which you require to be purchased.
If you plan to supply ALL the components, please read our article Preventing Quality Issues from Customer Supplied Parts and follow the attached checklist. We have highlighted some of the quality issues encountered with customer supplied components and provided guidelines to help minimise delays and added costs.