Why is There a High Scrap Rate in PCB Circuit Boards?

High scrap rate in PCB circuit boards can be caused by a variety of reasons, according to the search results, the following are some common reasons:

Lamination Quality Problems: 

Problems that may occur during the lamination process include thermal expansion of the inner layer material, resin flow of the bonding sheet, thermal contraction in the lamination, and large difference in thermal expansion coefficients of the laminated material and the template, etc. These problems may lead to defects such as interlayer entrapment, voids, and shorting of pits.

Etching Process Problems: 

Insufficient etching, scratches short-circuiting and other defects may be caused by the concentration of the potion when etching is too low, the set etching speed is too fast or the time is too short, and so on.

Drilling Problems: 

Hole bias phenomenon is an important cause of PCB board scrap. Hole bias may be caused by too many times of grinding drill nozzle, drill nozzle wear, drilling parameters set improperly and other reasons.

Open-circuit Problems: 

Repetitive open-circuit, notch open-circuit, vacuum open-circuit and scratch open-circuit and other defects may be due to defects on the exposure negative, the exposure stage after the closure of the vacuum is not good, improper operation or machine causes.

Material and Process Issues: 

Improper selection of materials, process control is not appropriate, suppliers to provide material quality problems may lead to PCB circuit board scrap.

Equipment and Operational Problems: 

The precision of the equipment, the operator's technical level, improper operation, etc. may affect the quality of PCB circuit boards.

Environmental Factors: 

Improper packaging or preservation of moisture, preservation time is too long beyond the shelf life and other environmental factors may also cause the PCB circuit board scrap.

Design Problems: 

Poor design selection and copper distribution may lead to problems in the production process of the circuit board.

Design Errors: 

Mistakes in the design phase, such as irrational line layout and failure to comply with design rules, may lead to irreversible errors in the production process.

Supply Chain Problems: 

Unstable quality of raw materials in the supply chain or delivery problems from suppliers may lead to production interruptions or the use of inferior materials, thus increasing scrap rates.

Inadequate Production Planning: 

Inadequate production planning, such as excessively large batch sizes or disorganized production scheduling, may lead to production inefficiencies and increase the risk of obsolescence.

Inadequate Quality Control: 

Lack of effective quality control processes or quality testing equipment may result in problematic products entering the market or being scrapped during the production process.

Inadequate Employee Training: 

Employees are unfamiliar with the production process, operating procedures, or lack of continuous training and skill enhancement, which may lead to operational errors and increase the scrap rate.

Aging or Improper Maintenance of Equipment: 

Aging or improper maintenance of production equipment may lead to decreased productivity and product quality issues.

Inadequate Environmental Control: 

Inadequate control of temperature, humidity and cleanliness of the production environment may affect the quality of PCB production.

Changes in Market Demand: 

Rapid changes in market demand may lead to a reduction in demand for certain products, which in turn makes the production of PCB circuit boards can not be sold and scrapped.

Updates in Regulations and Standards: 

With the update of industry standards and changes in regulations, some PCBs that do not meet the new standards may need to be scrapped.

Rework and Reprocessing Problems: 

Rework and reprocessing process of improper operation, may lead to further damage to the product, increasing the scrap rate.

To reduce the scrap rate of PCB circuit boards, it is necessary to carry out careful management from all aspects of the entire production chain, including design, procurement, production, quality control, staff training, equipment maintenance, environmental control, etc., to ensure that each link can achieve the best state, so as to improve the overall production efficiency and product quality.

Xinchenger Electronics Co., Ltd. has more than fifteen years of experience in PCB production and has complete PCB process equipment. It has Rogers high frequency sheets, RO3000, series, RO4000 series, RO5000 series, etc. all year round, with dielectric constants ranging from 2.2-10.6. If you have any needs for PCB high frequency boards, RF PCB and other circuit boards, please come to us for customized drawings. Welcome to inquire!