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Quality
39a Millers Road
Warwick
Warwickshire
CV34 5AE
UK
Quality
Technical Support Quality Statement
As a family run business, achieving customer satisfaction is close
to our hearts.
We continually work to improve the effectiveness of our Quality
Management System and to deliver high quality product, on time,
with good value.
If a quality issue arises, then we must determine what went
wrong and implement changes in our processes or systems to
ensure it doesn’t happen again.
We endeavour to achieve this by good communication, ongoing
assessment and training, and putting quality ahead of schedule
and cost.
Electronic Engineering is often a key part of product design and can
make or break the success of an otherwise well engineered product.
Quality has many aspects in Electronics, but is embodied in one
philosophy; “Do the job well and measure the quality against
accepted benchmarks.”
Where we introduce our own benchmarks, they should exceed
accepted standards and never undermine them in any way. This is
where experience comes in.
In manufacturing, we are expected to adhere closely to agreed
standards and deliver product that matches or exceeds client
expectations. This includes the appearance of the product, but
appearances can be deceptive. There are other less obvious areas
that visual inspection can’t detect. These are outlined and discussed
in Quality in Manufacturing.
Product is often required on extremely short lead times. This can be
a risk area if things are rushed. Although it’s ultimately the job of
the QA manager to insist that all procedures are carefully observed
under these circumstances, it should really be embedded in
company culture.
Since the financial crash of 2008, many PCB assembly businesses
have had to cope with lower margins. In order to do well,
businesses have had to invest to increase productivity. Businesses
with a poor debt to equity ratio were not well equipped to do this.
Our family business has steered a safe course. We have greatly
improved our productivity with new equipment whilst keeping risk
low.
About Quality
Quality starts with good business systems and good attitude.
One wrong component can cause a very expensive failure;
reputation, equipment cost, down-time and call-out expense.
ERP systems don’t always meet the needs of PCB assembly. We
chose to build our own Microsoft Access based system which has
matured over two decades. It enables us to do accurate costings
whilst maintaining good component and process data across
different technologies. Purchasing and Goods Received are all tied
in. This is the core of our QA and relies on good communication
with our clients.
Manufacturing Quality
Systems
Build Quality
Cleanliness, accurate and neat component placement, and high
quality soldering are all required. We have high-end machines and
high-end skills in order to do a great job.
Our hand-built prototype PCB assembly is close to production
quality.
People
Good training and quality-feedback are are essential. One of
downsides of many businesses is staff turnover. Quality can
wobble if a person who became familiar with your product leaves
and a new person has to gain familiarity. We don’t have staff
turnover and we train our people well.
Hidden Problems
The product can look excellent and perform well initially, but long term reliability can be affected by things that you can’t necessarily
see. Some examples . . .
Static Control
Temperature Profile
Static control is probably the best known requirement for PCB
assembly. Damage can occur with poor handling. High impedance
chips are most susceptible – damage is unseen and highly
variable. Failure can occur immediately, but worst case, can occur
after delivery to the user.
Avoiding thermal shock is a key requirement of soldering. Greater
precision has been required since ROHS regulations specified lead
free solder in PCB assemblies. Lead free solder has a higher
melting point than tin-lead alloys. Plastic components have had to
change in their composition to ensure compatibility, but the
temperature window for safe process control is now smaller. Good
equipment is required. Avoiding thermal shock is all about
accurate temperature zoning.
Storage Humidity
Working Humidity
If components are to be stored for any length of time, correct
storage bags and low humidity are required. Contact oxidation
and moisture ingress are the main problems. Incorrectly stored
components can fail as a result of damage during the soldering
process because of absorbed moisture in even mildly hydroscopic
materials. We store your parts correctly.
Static conductive and dissipative work areas are required for safe
handling. The risk of static damage increases when the humidity
is low. In addition some adhesives require minimum humidity
levels to attain hardness.
Experience, training and intelligence are required to implement a
good quality environment.
We provide service to manufacturers across the UK, and are local to Leamington Spa, Coventry, Rugby, Daventry, Birmingham. and Stratford-on-Avon.
See our location here.
Component Shortages & Counterfeit Parts
Parts shortages can create great pressure to accept parts that
may not be genuine. Genuine parts come from the stated
manufacturer and have successfully been through QA.
Non-genuine parts may include chips that have failed at QA or
have even been pirated. They may include chips that have been
relabelled. We choose our sources carefully and have many
trusted suppliers.
Obsolescence is a major problem. When purchasing, we can
normally flag upcoming obsolescence to warn you of need to
redesign. Second sourcing for key components is highly desirable.
For PCBs with on-board microcontrollers, it may be wise to design
an alternative version that uses a micro from a different
manufacturer.
Speak to us if you have concerns. We have helped a number of
clients to navigate these areas.
SMT brings many benefits. Amongst these are …
A smaller PCB along with less drilling mean lower cost. Maybe more
important is that more functionality can be squeezed into the same
area as a through-hole product. Manufacturing costs are often
lower. Not all PCB assemblers have automatic stuffing for through-
hole components, but most will have SMT pick-and-place machines.
You may like to come in and see our SMT PCB assembly. We often
populate boards on both sides, which is another advantage of the
technology.
Benefits of Surface-Mount Technlogy
Being flat on the PCB and secured with no wobbly leads is an
obvious benefit.
Durability
Having no leads to increase inductance, and being small so that a
capacitor can be very close to a component pin is an advantage.
Compact design can improve EMC.
EMC
Cost
Electronic Engineering is often a key part of product design and can
make or break the success of an otherwise well engineered product.
Quality has many aspects in Electronics, but is embodied in one
philosophy; “Do the job well and measure the quality against
accepted benchmarks.”
Where we introduce our own benchmarks, they should exceed
accepted standards and never undermine them in any way. This is
where experience comes in.
In manufacturing, we are expected to adhere closely to agreed
standards and deliver product that matches or exceeds client
expectations. This includes the appearance of the product, but
appearances can be deceptive. There are other less obvious areas
that visual inspection can’t detect. These are outlined and discussed
in Quality in Manufacturing.
Product is often required on extremely short lead times. This can be
a risk area if things are rushed. Although it’s ultimately the job of
the QA manager to insist that all procedures are carefully observed
under these circumstances, it should really be embedded in
company culture.
Since the financial crash of 2008, many PCB assembly businesses
have had to cope with lower margins. In order to do well,
businesses have had to invest to increase productivity. Businesses
with a poor debt to equity ratio were not well equipped to do this.
Our family business has steered a safe course. We have greatly
improved our productivity with new equipment whilst keeping risk
low.
About Quality
Quality starts with good business systems and good attitude.
One wrong component can cause a very expensive failure;
reputation, equipment cost, down-time and call-out expense.
ERP systems don’t always meet the needs of PCB assembly. We
chose to build our own Microsoft Access based system which has
matured over two decades. It enables us to do accurate costings
whilst maintaining good component and process data across
different technologies. Purchasing and Goods Received are all tied
in. This is the core of our QA and relies on good communication
with our clients.
Manufacturing Quality
Systems
Build Quality
Cleanliness, accurate and neat component placement, and high
quality soldering are all required. We have high-end machines and
high-end skills in order to do a great job.
Our hand-built prototype PCB assembly is close to production
quality.
People
Good training and quality-feedback are are essential. One of
downsides of many businesses is staff turnover. Quality can
wobble if a person who became familiar with your product leaves
and a new person has to gain familiarity. We don’t have staff
turnover and we train our people well.
Hidden Problems
The product can look excellent and perform well initially, but long term reliability can be affected by things that you can’t necessarily
see. Some examples . . .
Static Control
Temperature Profile
Static control is probably the best known requirement for PCB
assembly. Damage can occur with poor handling. High impedance
chips are most susceptible – damage is unseen and highly
variable. Failure can occur immediately, but worst case, can occur
after delivery to the user.
Avoiding thermal shock is a key requirement of soldering. Greater
precision has been required since ROHS regulations specified lead
free solder in PCB assemblies. Lead free solder has a higher
melting point than tin-lead alloys. Plastic components have had to
change in their composition to ensure compatibility, but the
temperature window for safe process control is now smaller. Good
equipment is required. Avoiding thermal shock is all about
accurate temperature zoning.
Storage Humidity
Working Humidity
If components are to be stored for any length of time, correct
storage bags and low humidity are required. Contact oxidation
and moisture ingress are the main problems. Incorrectly stored
components can fail as a result of damage during the soldering
process because of absorbed moisture in even mildly hydroscopic
materials. We store your parts correctly.
Static conductive and dissipative work areas are required for safe
handling. The risk of static damage increases when the humidity
is low. In addition some adhesives require minimum humidity
levels to attain hardness.
Experience, training and intelligence are required to implement a
good quality environment.
Component Shortages & Counterfeit Parts
Parts shortages can create great pressure to accept parts that
may not be genuine. Genuine parts come from the stated
manufacturer and have successfully been through QA.
Non-genuine parts may include chips that have failed at QA or
have even been pirated. They may include chips that have been
relabelled. We choose our sources carefully and have many
trusted suppliers.
Obsolescence is a major problem. When purchasing, we can
normally flag upcoming obsolescence to warn you of need to
redesign. Second sourcing for key components is highly desirable.
For PCBs with on-board microcontrollers, it may be wise to design
an alternative version that uses a micro from a different
manufacturer.
Speak to us if you have concerns. We have helped a number of
clients to navigate these areas.
SMT brings many benefits. Amongst these are …
A smaller PCB along with less drilling mean lower cost. Maybe more
important is that more functionality can be squeezed into the same
area as a through-hole product. Manufacturing costs are often
lower. Not all PCB assemblers have automatic stuffing for through-
hole components, but most will have SMT pick-and-place machines.
You may like to come in and see our SMT PCB assembly. We often
populate boards on both sides, which is another advantage of the
technology.
Benefits of Surface-Mount Technlogy
Being flat on the PCB and secured with no wobbly leads is an
obvious benefit.
Durability
Having no leads to increase inductance, and being small so that a
capacitor can be very close to a component pin is an advantage.
Compact design can improve EMC.
EMC
Cost
Technical Support
39a Millers Road
Warwick
Warwickshire
CV34 5AE
UK
01926-402261