Turnkey PCB Assembly: All Essentials Decoded

Feb 21, 2024

Turnkey PCB assembly is an efficient and cost-friendly approach to quickly and effortlessly get your project up and running. The majority of us don't have the time or the ability to do this effectively. Turnkey PCB is one of the best services that takes your PCB project from concept to completion and handles every intricate detail along the way. It combines design, component sourcing, PCB fabrication, assembly, and testing all under one roof. This post will give you more ideas about turnkey PCB assembly and how it plays a crucial role in streamlining the electronics manufacturing process.

Get introduced to Full Turnkey PCB Assembly

Turnkey assembly is a PCB assembly service offered by electronics manufacturers where they take responsibility for the entire process. The assembly involves the following process:

Design and Prototyping: This is the first step in any PCB assembly process where the PCB assembler collaborates with the client to understand their requirements and design goals. After seeking approval on the design, the actual prototyping begins which helps test and refine the designs before the full-volume production begins.
Component Procurement: In this phase, the PCB assembler would procure all necessary components required for the assembly. This helps their clients to save time on procurement and inventory management. If you are partnering with a trusted PCB assembly service, they have access to the inventory of components through their supply chain network. This would save your time in coordinating with different vendors on components, their prices, quality, and so on.
PCB Fabrication: In this step, the PCBs are fabricated as per the specifications finalized in the design phase. This involves multiple steps, such as imaging the layout on the copper-clad laminates, removing excess copper from the inner layers to reveal pads and traces, creating layer stack up on the PCB, drilling holes for vias, through hole pins, and mounting holes, etching excess copper from the surface layer to reveal pads and traces, plating via holes and pin holes, adding protective coating to solder or surface masking, silkscreen printing, and adding surface finish.
Soldering and Assembly: In this phase, the electronic components are soldered on the board. The component mounting is done by two techniques – surface mount technology and through-hole technology.
Quality Control and Testing: In this phase, the assembled PCB boards are tested and inspected to identify defects. Generally, PCB assemblers conduct in-circuit testing, functional testing, and automated optical inspection for testing and inspection.
Packaging and Delivery: The PCBs are packaged and shipped to the client’s distribution center or facility.
Post-assembly Support: Many experienced full turnkey PCB assembly services offer post-assembly support such as technical support, repair and maintenance, warranty support, and so on.

Benefits of Full Turnkey PCB assembly

As full turnkey is a process where the company provides end-to-end services for the design, it also offers some benefits to businesses which are discussed below:

Short Production Times: With a streamlined process, an experienced full turnkey manufacturer should be able to produce and deliver your assembly in less time. Finding components can be time-consuming and tiresome for a client, but a turnkey manufacturer is far less likely to encounter this problem because it has ties with component suppliers and a team dedicated to making sure all components are available for production.
Simplifies Project Management: The PCB assembly process involves multiple steps, right from designing to procurement to assembly, testing, shipping, and more. All these steps would involve interaction with multiple vendors, which would be time-consuming for any client. So, by partnering with an experienced PCB assembler, a client can easily simplify their project management. Instead of multiple, now they have only one point of contact that offers them insights on how the whole process is progressing.
Time and Cost Efficiency: By consolidating all manufacturing processes under one roof, full turnkey manufacturing can lead to significant time and cost savings. It eliminates the need for extensive supplier evaluations, negotiations, and the management of multiple contracts, which can be time-consuming and costly.
Design Integrity: By analyzing and revising the design as necessary, the assembly shop can guarantee component availability and affordability. The circuit board layout will also be improved in accordance with design for manufacturability (DFM) guidelines to ensure error-free manufacturing.
Focus on Core Areas: When you have outsourced manufacturing through a turnkey approach, this can help you focus on your core competencies like the design of the product, sales, etc., which can enhance your productivity while leaving the production process in capable hands.

There are many perks associated with the full turnkey PCB assembly process and there are various providers as well who are providing this type of service. Accelerated Assemblies provides full turnkey PCB assembly services to its clients. They begin by optimizing your initial design for manufacturing as part of their complete solution and supervise the purchase of parts and materials, assembly, inspection, and final testing as your project moves through our production procedures. Feel free to get in touch with experts at Accelerated Assemblies and grab the best assistance on your full turnkey PCB production needs.