PCB Manufacturing Process step 1 : Pre-Production Engineering
PRE-PRODUCTION ENGINEERING
Everything starts with the Engineering Department. They receive the GERBER file, check it and compare it with the order, IPC standards, and supplier capabilities.
GERBER FILE CHECK
ICAPE Group engineers carry out a Design For Manufacturability (DFM) review, check the data, the copper layers, the mechanical drawing, the specifications, line and space between the tracks. Once done, we create a file called 'Technical Questions' if necessary.
DFM REVIEW
This file is sent to the customer in order to propose a possible solution or improvement, such as different panelization techniques, soldermask type, design, base material, brand or specifications and even different technologies in order to be feasible and cost-effective in the selected partner factories according to IPC standards.

PARTNER DFM REVIEW
Our partner factory enters the scene, receives the data, conducts a second DFM review and starts combining Circuit designs on the production panel.

ARTWORK PRINTING
Each PCB layer is verified and transferred to the Printing artwork machine.We have one artwork for each layers, inner, outer, soldermask, lengend printing and also special layers like vias, peelable mask, carbon etc. All those artworks can be used for thousands of panels.

ARTWORK CONTROL
All artworks go through an Automatic Optical Inspection machine capable of checking for the defects in seconds compared to the original GERBER file.
