FAQ

Setup and tooling fee is no need for repeat order.

We keep the setup and tooling in our factory for six months. So if your order is repeated within six months, the setup and tooling fee fee can be deducted. 

Before you buy or procure PCBs from the other supplier via an agent, we would like to hear from you. We are certain that we can save you money on large volume orders since we don’t use any other PCB suppliers for manufacturing. 

Yes,we test the bare PCBs .All prototypes and medium volume order PCBs are tested using flying probe testers. Custom designed and manufactured fixtures (also called bed of nails) are used for large production runs. 
E-test costs are included in the prices you quoted online. 

Yes. Our online sales system operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week,so you can place your  order at anytime to contact our sales.You can  place an order at the weekend? Normally, you will be sent a confirmation email within 4 hours of you placing the order. For orders placed at the weekend or between 18:00 and 4:00 (the next day) on the working days,please allow up to 12 hours for a response. 

Yes. We check your  manufacturing data based on documents you sent to us. We do provide some suggestions to you, free of charge if you need, on our design rules such as increasing clearance, trace width or pad size to decrease cost or make your ordered boards within our manufacturing capability. But it is still up to you to make decision. 

We keep our prices low by constantly implementing more efficient manufacturing processes, by developing systems that allow us to quickly change setups, by maintaining partnerships with suppliers, and by conservatively managing our business.
We are committed to providing our customers with quality PCBs that meet the highest standards for quality and value. We comply with the ISO9001:2000 quality management system and UL approvals. 
Low cost doesn’t mean that you have to compromise on quality.

Quality warranty .We guarantee bare boards against quality defects under normal usage, and if there are problems, we will: 
1. Replace boards at no charge or refund up to 100% of your payment. 
2. Issue a 10% discount (up to $50) voucher on your next order. 
The above conditions are based on you returning the boards to us. They are also based on a 7 working day limited warranty, valid from our delivery date. 

At CHENONN ELEC, there is no minimum quantity! You are free to order just 1 PCB if that is all you require. 

The minimum distance between the boards on the panel is Zero, if you use V-score between the circuits/boards. However, if you like to use stamp holes (also called mouse bite) between them please leave at least 3mm’s gap. 

While the single circuit board can be up to 500mm x 500mm, the maximum panel size we allow is 230mm x 310mm. 

Yes. We allow a maximum of two circuits to be put on the same panel without any extra charge.  Put multiple PCB together and run them as one PANEL PCB .These two circuits can be the same design or different. Any of them should not be larger than 80x80mm.

These circuits will be de-panelized from the panel before dispatching. If there are more than two circuits on the panel or any of the circuits are larger than 80x80mm, extra charge will be applied. Please contact us to get a fast quote. 

Yes. We are able to build flexible PCBs of up to four layers. The specifications are: polyester, 6mil minimum tracking width/clearance, 15mil minimum hole size, 1oz copper weight, 75µm base material thickness, HASL finish. These are the standard specifications for flexible PCBs. 

There are many factors to be considered including the hole type, size, board thickness, finish type.About the a specific hole and pad ratio ,for these normal through hole pads, we have the following values which are commonly referred. Hole/pad size in mm: 0.4/1.5, 0.5/1.5, 0.6/2.0, 0.8/2.5, 1.0/2.5, 1.2/3.0, 1.6/3.5, 2.0/4.0. Please contact us if you require any further suggestions. 

Customers can specify the material supplier for production orders. For prototype and low volume orders, the following are the main suppliers(board manufacturer) for FR4 board: Kingboard (Hong Kong), NanYa (Taiwan) and Shengyi (China). 

No. We didn’t see much difference between these two being used for prototype PCBs, so only FR-4 is used for the prototype PCBs. CEM-3 is available for a mass production order. 

Although green is the standard colour we use for prototype PCBs.

We can also provide the following colours: red, white, blue, black, yellow, etc. You might need to pay a bit extra if these custom colours are used. Please contact us to find out more details(colour options for the solder mask) 

Yes,for bevel gold fingers,a standard 45-degree bevel will be added to your edge connector.

At your request, we can also bevel at 15 or 30 degrees upon request. For multi-layer boards please ensure you have adequate back set for the bevels. Please mention this in the order form when placing your order. 

Yes, you can, we accept any PCB shape,sure about the PCB with a non-rectangular shape.

Note that a rectangular outline (the minimum rectangular shape which can cover the entire PCB) will be used to calculate the board size. The shape should be clearly indicated in at least one of your copper layers. Otherwise you must supply a mechanical plan, separate from the Gerber file, indicating the shape of the PCB. This file has to have a reference to the copper layers, or has to have the same offset as the other layers. 

The standard 1.6mm thickness 4-layer PCB stack-up is as below (from top to bottom): 1oz copper (0.035mm) + 7628Prepreg(0.1778mm) + 1.2mm core board + 7628Prepreg(0.1778mm) + 1oz copper(0.035mm). The tolerance of the finished thickness is +/-0.1mm.

We can also offer 4 layer PCBs with thicknesses of 0.8mm, 1.0mm, 2.0mm and 2.4mm. Please contact us to find out more information about a multi-layer PCB stack-up. 

The hole size (contained in your Gerber file) is assumed as the finished hole diameters after plating. The tolerance of size is +/-0.08mm. 

Standard specification of PCB .The following is used for our standard specification of board : FR4, 1.6mm thickness, 1oz copper weight, white silkscreen, green solder mask, HASL/Gold finish. 

Yes. Your data ( PCB files )will be checked with our design rule check. If we find any technical issues or have any enquires we will contact you. This is quite common for prototype orders. Please keep an eye on your email in the first 6 hours after placing your order. 

Common errors.Customers make every conceivable error, but the common errors ones are no board outline, no drill file, no drill sizes, or no layers stack-up information. Try to make your file names descriptive. Also a README.txt file is very useful for us in understanding your PCB. 

No, we cannot accept BMP, GIF, TIFF, or JPG pictures as the manufacturing file as these formats are not good for manufacture PCBs. But you can use these files to request a quotation. 

We recommend GC-Prevue and Gerber as Gerber viewer to manufacturing data. Try GC-Prevue from Graphicode which is free of charge. It will allow you to check the Gerber and drill data. For Linux customers, please use Gerber which can run on many common Unix platforms. 

Yes, you can use imperial units in your design. But please note that we work in metric units. This means we will convert your dimension to metric with the nearest available metric value. 

We prefer to accept Gerber RS-274X and NC drill files which is our standard manufacturing format PCB files . Please archive all your files into a ZIP/RAR file for uploading. For multi-layer boards please indicate the layer sequence information in a txt file. 
If you are using these design tools, and have difficulties converting the manufacturing file, we may be able to help you (additional charges may be applied). 
Should you have any special requirements, supplying us with a README.txt file will be very helpful. We will appreciate it if you can keep an eye on your email for the first 6 hours after uploading your file. 
Non-standard format files may lead to longer lead time. 

CHENONN ELEC provides design for assembly service,it is free of charge to customers. Those who have ordered PCB prototypes from us and are planning to place the production order with us. Our DFA service provides report based on the customer’s Gerber. By doing this, possible production problems can be addressed during the prototype stage. 

Component sourcing is not a simple task in real life. Finding proper parts/components from both reliable and professional suppliers is not easy. Price is not the only factor that must be considered when sourcing components. This job can take a few days for our experienced procurement engineers to carry out satisfactorily.

We only start this job when the customer places the turn-key order with us. Normally, the component cost will be provided in the first 5 working days once the order is confirmed. For most low-quantity orders (less than 50 units), the component costs are similar to what it would be if it was purchased in the oversea. This will eventually drop as the quantity increases. In the unlikely case that the price we quoted is not acceptable to you, you can choose to provide the components yourself. 

If all the parts are available, normally the PCB assembly job can be finished within 5 to 9 days in our factory. This means that the order can be delivered within 2 to 3 weeks once assembly job start.

About the lead-time for PCB assembly,however, we can’t fully guarantee the lead time for assembly orders as the customs clearing process is different (we guarantee the lead time for PCB manufacture orders). Like PCB manufacture orders, you can still locate the order process by using the online tracking system. A delivery tracking number will be sent to you once order is dispatched. 

Yes.,we are proud of our test facilities,it is the guarrenty of the high quality.Where possible we would prefer to carry out full functional tests before dispatch. We have more than 100 test equipments/facilities in our factory. This includes Vector Network Analyzer, Multi-channel Digital Oscilloscope, Logic Analyzer, Programmable Power Supply, RF Signal Generator, Wi-Fi test set. 

We encourage customers to use our components sourcing services. This is the most cost-effective and fastest way for PCB assembly. Bear in mind that our factory is in ShenZhen of China and 73% of electronic components in the world are originally made in Asia.

If you decide to provide the components from your site, please make sure each part is packed in an individual bag or tray with a label. Components which are sensitive to moisture or static must be packaged in compliance with their storage requirements. 

About the pcb assembly quality standards,we manufacture PCBs to meet IPC-A-610 Rev D Class 2 specifications as the default, supported by inspection and test criteria established by IPC. 

In general, our process doesn’t require any as we do not experience much loss. However, to avoid any delays due to parts shortage or missing items, the extra parts is needed.

We would encourage customer to provide 3% extra parts (passive devices) and 1-2 extras for IC’s and other expensive parts. These unused parts will be return to customer together with the finished boards. 

Bill of materials (BOM) detailing the components to be fitted to the PCB with the manufacturers parts numbers and the components suppliers’ parts number (e.g. Farnell, RS, Digi-key). You can get the BOM template just contact our sales.

PCBA sample photos if possible. By allowing us to see the product pictures it will help us to give you the quotation faster.

In addition to the above, we would need details of approximate order volumes and a desired delivery schedule. 

We understand short lead time is essential in today’s rapidly changing market place.

A tracking number will be sent via email when your boards are despatched.

A signature is required for delivery. If our delivery partner is unable to obtain a signature when they attempt to deliver your PCBs, you will receive a postcard with collection details. The time when the first delivery is attempted will be considered as our delivery arrival time.

We are not in control of the performance of the delivery service, but we do still provide the delivery warranty to our customers. In the unlikely event that your PCBs are delivered one working day after the guaranteed time, we will give you a 5% discount on your next order. If the delivery delay is between 24 and 48 hours (two working days), a 10% discount will be offered; 15% discount for 48-72 hours’ delay, and so on (up to 30% of your order.). Please be aware that this price reduction policy doesn’t not apply to these Laid-back Price orders. 

We consider the lead time as the period of time between order confirmation and order arrival (manufacturing time + shipping time). We have options of between 5 and 11 working days for prototype orders.

Example: An order placed on Monday with 5 working days’ lead time, payment made and accepted, data sent and reviewed, all done by 10:30am. So you will get your PCBs the same day the following week!

Please contact us to discuss your mass production order lead time. 

If you request a refund before the manufacturing process starts, you will be refunded the full payment amount. 
If the request is made after the manufacturing process has started, the refund amount will be minus the materials and process costs at that time. 

We don’t mislead our customers, the amount you get from our sales quote form is the total you need to pay. Payment methods-We accept payment by all major credit and debit cards.

We also accept bank transfers via Western Union, wire transfers, and payments through PayPal. Please note that if you use PayPal and the order amount is above $300, a 3% surcharge will apply.