What is PCBA?
PCBA, (Printed Circuit Board Assembly), is the finished product after components have been bonded to a PCB, (Printed Circuit Board). These components can range from resistors and diodes to transformers and integrated circuits. The PCBA process tends to include a reflow furnace to heat the printed solder paste so that the components are formed onto the board.
The term PCBA is sometimes confused with the term PCB. PCB, in terms of circuit layers, is classified as either single layer, double layer, or multilayer. These boards can also be divided into a category: flexibility. There are 3 types of PCB in terms of flexibility, such as rigid board, flexible board, and flex-rigid board. This is different from the term PCBA since it is not a tangible object but rather a service. This service usually includes using SMT and DIP technologies so that all the components and parts are soldered/mounted on a PCB.
The most basic PCBA process has three steps. It begins with a solder paste printing station. This is where solder paste gets printed onto the boards. After pasting, the components are placed on the board by a pick-and-place machine. When all components have been planted, the board is then ran through a reflow oven so that the board can be completed.
Normally, the assembly process ends here. At ACME, we also include wave soldering, selective soldering, machine and visual inspection, and cleaning. One of the latest Nordson selective soldering machines is used to accurately solder in partially assembled PCBs. Our 3D AOI machine from YesTech inspects the components on the boards using not only the length and width, but also the height. This can check for correct solder heights, proper wetting, and missing components. Our quality check inspectors review the images to make sure the board passes IPC-A-610 standards.
For more information and the services ACME PCB Assembly provides, call (310) 715-1898 or visit our website at http://boardassembly.com.