Where does Soniclab manufacture my boards?
The bare PCB is manufactured by one of our partners: Eurocircuits or Würth Elektronik, depending on the required technology. Their production plants are in Germany, Belgium and Hungary.
Assembly process (SMT assembly, selective soldering, inspection, etc.) is done at Soniclab's plant in Budapest, Hungary.
Can Soniclab produce boards in higher quantites or with different parameters (e.g. more PCB layers) other than available on the website?
Yes. Online ordering on our website supports only the typical configurations and quantities. Custom quotation can be requested at info@soniclab.com.
What kind of payment methods does Soniclab accept?
Customers can pay by Mastercard or Visa credit and debit cards online, or by wire transfer in advance.
Can I send my own bare PCBs for assembly?
Sure. Customers can choose to buy the bare PCBs through Soniclab or can supply themselves. If they're supplied by the Customer, all shipping costs and duties (customs and taxes, if any) must be prepaid by the Customer.
Can I send my own components for assembly?
Yes. Customers can choose to buy the components through Soniclab or can supply themselves. If they're supplied by the Customer, all shipping costs and duties (customs and taxes, if any) must be prepaid by the Customer.
Quantity of the components should follow the guidelines explained
here
. Customer can also choose to supply only some of the components and buy the rest from Soniclab. In this case, Customer should indicate which components to be supplied by Soniclab.
Is Soniclab's process lead free?
Absolutely. We only use lead free materials and supplies for production. If the Customer insists to leaded process, it might be available on request.
What are fiducials?
Fiducial points are small dot drawings on the copper layer(s), used to correctly position the bare PCB. The pick and place machine uses a camera to find the fiducial marks on the PCB. The measured position and angle is used to correct the alignment of the board.
A detailed guide is available here:
Click to download the guide.
How does Soniclab calculate the delivery time?
Delivery time begins to count the next day when all of the following conditions are met:
- All relevant documentation is received
- Payment is done
- Bare PCB's and/or components has been received (only if they're supplied by the Customer)
For example, if the payment is done on Monday and the chosen delivery time is 7 working days, then the finished boards will be shipped latest on next Wednesday.
Can Soniclab handle cut tape strips?
Yes we have methods to fix cut tape strips onto the pick and place machine.
If I supply the components, are there any spares necessary?
Yes. The machine uses a visual recognition method to inspect the component's shape, size and orientation. Eventually, the software may place components into the trash. Also, when the parts are loaded onto to so called feeders, some of them at the beginning of the tape will fall off. Quantity of the components should follow the guidelines explained
here
.
What price can I expect in the quotation for the components?
We offer the components on avarege of +15% surcharge on the price which available online at the well known component distributors such as Farnell, Digi-Key, Mouser, Avnet, Arrow, etc.
However the percentage of the surcharge varies between 10% and 30% depending on the count of the boards ordered.
This surcharge covers shipping costs, duties, spares and sourcing fees.
Do I need to declare exact manufacturer part numbers for the components in the BOM file?
No, but it's recommended. When it's declared, we can easily prepare the quotation and source the part. When manufacturer part number (MPN) is not declared, we will look up for a suitable component for that position. For example, if we see 100nF/16V/0603 in the BOM with no MPN declared, we can easily find a matching component.
However for complex parts, we may not be able find out the MPN based on its description. To avoid any delay, make sure that the component is clearly identifiable based on the data in the BOM file.
Can I cancel or modify my order once I finalized and paid it?
It depends on the current status of the production and on the type of the modification. Just send us an email to info@soniclab.com and we will advise the possibilities and surcharges (if any) of the modification.
As a general rule we don't charge a fee for modification or cancellation, however any cost that already arose (e.g. cost of already purchased components) will be charged to the Customer.
What are the available shipping options?
We offer different shipping methods. At the time of checkout, Customers can choose between the following options:
- Ship the goods via TNT Express or Economy service for the price displayed at the checkout page. More information
- Use the Customer's own carrier account (e.g. Fedex, UPS, DHL, etc.) to ship the goods and pay the cost to the carrier.
What kind of TAX and / or customs duties should I expect?
Shipment may be subject for customs duties and / or taxes during importing into the destination country, depending on the following conditions:
- Customer is a company or an individual
- Shipping location (EU or outside the EU)
- Value of the shipment
- Destination country's legislation
Click here for detailed information