Is Visual Inspection Enough When Manufacturing High-Quality PCB Electronics?

Visual Inspection and Small Batch Electronics

How can a contract manufacturer ensure that it is providing its small batch electronics manufacturing client with the highest quality product when functional testing is not an option? In an effort to reduce costs, many customers will specify that a visual inspection of their completed assembly is to be the final quality control measure prior to shipping. Some of these assemblies can be pretty complex, consisting of hundreds of surface-mount and through-hole components. Each component and its associated solder joints (or another connection method) must be examined. It requires a team of well-trained, dedicated professionals with impeccable attention to detail to successfully complete this requirement.

What Can I Do To Help Reduce Production Cost and Lead Time in my PCB Assembly?

Design for Manufacturability

Design for Manufacturability (DFM) is the process of designing your product so that it can be produced easily and quickly. A few adjustments can help you get your new product to market before your competition, and help you meet your delivery schedules! The fewer steps in the electronics manufacturing process means less time between ordering and receiving your product.

RBB Remembers Founder Dave Bayer

It is with sadness that we share with you the passing of one of RBB’s founding fathers: Dave Bayer. Dave passed away July 2, 2019, after an illness.

“Romich, Beery, and Bayer” was the name of our company at our very beginning in 1973. Dave provided great value, brainpower, and energy in getting this business off the ground. We are all part of his legacy. Later, Dave formed a separate company called Du-It Controls that specialized in wheelchair systems. Dave developed a wheelchair control system to assist high-level quadriplegics.

“High-Mix, Low-Volume” and “Small Batch” are NOT the Same Thing

In the EMS industry, the term high-mix, low-volume (HMLV) refers to CMs or OEMs who change over production between assemblies and processes much more often than their low-mix, high-volume (LMHV) counterparts. HMLV shops convert their lines to different assemblies rapidly (hours or minutes) and frequently (several shifts or days). Note that the opportunity for error rises as batch size decreases.

By contrast, LMHV production runs can last weeks or even months between change overs. It’s a different animal altogether.

RBB builds many hundreds of unique assemblies annually and most weeks introduces multiple new assemblies. It's rare that RBB runs a batch large enough to consume an entire shift of time, much less a few shifts!

RBB Shows Appreciation For Outgoing President Jim Tennant

This week, the RBB team showed our appreciation to outgoing President Jim Tennant for his 5 years of leadership. Here are a few words Jim shared with the RBB team:

“I have seen the great efforts made and great results accomplished by this team. I have absolute confidence in RBB and its future success. I know the hard work spent by this whole team. I don’t wish for them just what they have earned or just what they deserve, but far more. God Bless you all.”

When a Team Member Leaves and Comes Back

Culture is central at RBB. We strive to be different, and it is noticed by our team. Last year, we had a team member leave RBB. While this happens frequently in most companies, what’s unusual is that he fought to come back.

Brian Thomas joined the RBB team in 2010. In 2018, he had a job offer. Brian thought hard about this new offer, which included a nice pay raise and sign-on bonus, and ultimately decided to take it. But after only three months at the new job, he started to wonder if what he was promised was really worth the change.

How the Right Suppliers Can Help You Manage Residual Inventory and Control Hidden Costs

An important part of effective inventory management is monitoring and controlling residual inventory, or the parts left on the shelf after the last shipment is produced. It's important that every business orders the right quantity of parts at the right time to reduce the extra, hidden costs tied to residual inventory.

Why Choose Cycle Count Inventory Auditing Over an Annual Inventory Count?

Do you spend days tallying parts during an annual inventory count? Are you shutting down your shop floor for days just to get decent counts? If so, there's an alternative inventory management method that will eliminate the need to shut down production and also deliver better results.

This alternative method is known as cycle counting, and whether you’re a global manufacturer or a privately held company, you may stand to benefit from it. In fact, at RBB we've experienced numerous benefits since we've started to cycle count inventory. Most Importantly, cycle count allows RBB to provide more reliable scheduling and delivery to our clients.

Bell Signals Start of Partnership

At RBB, we aren’t afraid to ring our own bell. But when we do, it isn’t all about us. We have a loud, antique bell in our sales office – and we ring it every time a new client joins the RBB family. Yes, the ringing of the bell is about internal celebration and recognition of the efforts of the entire RBB team, but it means so much more.

A Letter to My Former Self

With RBB celebrating our 45th anniversary this year, I've thought a lot about how we got here and what I wish I knew all those years ago. In order to communicate that, I decided to write a letter to my former self. Here is that letter: