What happens between your Gerber files and a shipped board

Every order follows the same route: inquiry, DFM review, quotation, engineering confirmation, production, inspection, optional assembly and test, then documentation and shipment. Nothing in that sequence is a surprise, and nothing about it depends on the size of the order. A prototype and a production lot move through the same checkpoints, which is why the specification can be written down before anybody starts cutting laminate.

The DFM step matters more than its position in the list suggests. When Gerbers, drill files, a stack-up and any impedance requirement arrive together, they can be checked against actual process capability before a price is committed. The output is a list of specific issues — a hole size that is too small for its depth, a plane that has nowhere to escape, a creepage distance that does not survive the voltage — rather than a generic statement that the design is manufacturable.

The quotation is itemised so the drivers are visible: layer count, material, copper weight, surface finish, board size, quantity and lead time, each on its own line. If a number is not what you expected, the line it sits on usually explains why. That makes a quotation a document you can negotiate, because you can see which parameter is actually costing you.

Before production is released, the stack-up, impedance rules, drill and routing data are confirmed in writing, and any deviation from the original files is raised rather than absorbed. During production, incoming material is checked and recorded, and inspection runs alongside the job rather than after it. Optional assembly adds component sourcing with every substitution flagged for approval, SMT and through-hole build, firmware programming and functional test. The order closes with the boards, the documentation that describes them, and a shipping method you chose — EXW, FOB or DDP.

• Send the whole data setGerbers, drill files, stack-up and impedance notes in one package shorten the review and reduce the number of round trips.
• Ask for the DFM findingsRead the manufacturability comments before releasing a purchase order, not after the first article arrives.
• Compare quotations line by lineTwo prices are only comparable when the stack-up, finish and copper weight behind them are the same.
• Get the specification in writingLayer structure, material, copper weight, finish, mask colour and drill table confirmed before release.
• Ask what travels with the shipmentStack-up, impedance and inspection results should arrive with the boards, not stay in an inbox.