Flexible PCB manufacturers use prototypes to repeatedly test the functionality of their solutions throughout the design process, and do it every time a new change or addition is made. However, you may ask, why use PCB prototype before standard production runs.

Although prototypes seem to add some cost and steps to the process, they play an important role in the design process. They allow your designers and their teams to test at multiple design stages and make adjustments if necessary to customize solutions before full production runs.

This creates several advantages for your designers and clients:

1 – Reduce time

Whenever engineers develop a PCB design, they usually go through multiple iterations during testing before creating the final product. Although this can be a time-consuming process, the PCB prototype helps speed up the process by:

Visual aid: Showing the prototype of the final product to the customer as a visual aid helps to easily communicate the design, thereby minimizing the time spent on interpretation or redesign requested by the customer.

Complete testing: Prototype design eliminates guesswork in the equation, allowing your design team to quickly and accurately identify problems.

Minimize rework: Prototyping allows your design team to view and test the circuit board before full production, saving time and money.

2 – Accurate and reliable prototype

A reliable PCB prototype can more easily solve the problems in the entire development process. Flexible PCB manufacturer creates a high-quality PCB prototype accurately represents the functions of your final product, and allows designers to view and test the following: PCB design, functional testing, condition testing, and final product design.

3 – Manufacturing review and assistance

When you use PCB prototype production services, you will benefit from a new perspective from a third party. Some problems may arise during the design process, including excessive input, design blind spots, and design rule checking (DRC) restrictions. These issues can lead to design flaws, inefficiencies, and many other issues that designers missed during the review process.

4 – Ability to test components individually

For complex projects, the ability to test and verify each component individually enables your team to pinpoint where the problem is. Without individual component testing, it is difficult to find the problematic area.

5 – Reduce costs

So why add PCB prototype in your design process? Because it reduces the overall cost of the project. By helping your design team find problems faster, you can fix them before investing in standard production runs. It is cheaper to rework defective components than to produce the entire project.

6 – Complete the project efficiently

Using PCB prototype production enables your design team to find problems early and quickly determine the components that need to be adjusted. Without it, discovering the causes of insufficient performance and other defects would be a time-consuming process that may greatly extend the time frame of the project.