Frequently Asked Questions (and Answers)
A copy of the FAQ's is available for download - Go to the Download page.
And now the answers...
Q1. What information is required for a quotation?
A.
For repeat orders within twelve months with no build level change (i.e. no PCB or BOM changes) cost will usually be similar or identical to the last build less any tooling which can be reused.
For a new project, we need the following:
Q2. What information is required to start production?
A. In addition to the data above;
Q3. How best is the data transferred?
A. As file attachments to e-mails. The following file formats are preferred;
Q4. Can we supply all of the parts free issue?
A. No problem. This is a very common situation and we are experienced in dealing with free issue kits. Our kit preparation stage checks for gross errors such as wrong values and shortages. We recommend that you over supply passive components to allow room for miscounting and production errors. Please note that for parts supplied for machine mounting require approx 50mm spare leader tape for feeder loading.
All surplus parts will be returned upon completion.
Q5. Can Allgood supply all/some of the parts?
A. No problem. We stock a wide range of passive components for your use and can procure many other parts. If a more extensive range of parts are required, a kitting company will be used as they are more experienced in sourcing parts. For this a Bill of Materials would be required as soon as possible as lead times can be lengthy.
Q6. How much does Allgood mark up the prices of bought in parts?
A. In general we apply a flat rate mark-up of 20% to all parts and services we procure on the customer's behalf. The mark-up, covers our costs in procuring and enables us to pay our supplier before the job is invoiced. We will consider negotiating lower mark-ups and in fact if money is tight, we are happy for our customers if they wish to pay our suppliers direct in which case no mark-up is made.
Q7. Does Allgood accept Credit Cards.
A. Not at present. Most of our customers are businesses so we have not been asked this one many times - however if you think it would benefit you if we did, let us know and we can look into it.
Q8. I don't have an account - how do I pay?
A. For very small orders we usually accept payment upon completion. For anything larger or that needs external bought in services such as tooling or parts procurement we may ask you to pay up front via a ProForma. On longer term jobs we may ask for stage payments to cover parts etc. that have been bought but that have not yet been used.
If you require us to put your order on hold for any reason after we have incurred any costs, we reserve the right to invoice you for anything we will have to pay for ourselves before we can complete the job and invoice you. This usually means tooling and materials but could include work completed if a substantial amount had been done.
A. We will be glad to consider opening an account for you on completion of the usual checks. You can find an application form on the Downloads page.
Q10. Can Allgood supply the PCBs?
A. Yes we can. To do this we need all the PCB manufacturing data as soon as possible.
Q11. I am designing my PCB with BGAs; what can I do the improve it's manufacturability?
A. BGAs are becoming increasingly popular. If your PCB design is not yet frozen, there is one simple but very useful thing you can do to improve the manufacturability of the board. If you look at the photo below, you will note the presence of chevron shaped corner indicators in the top copper layer of the PCB. These enable us to align the package corners before reflow and to check for correct positioning after reflow.
This
layout has two sets of markers to allow for two different package sizes, most
people only need one set to define the corners of the package they are using.
You can use a circular pad rather than a chevron if tight for room and ideally
on every corner if you can.
The markers MUST be in the top copper layer - do not try to do it with silkscreen as the registration is too poor to be any use on a BGA.
If you are new to BGAs or want to know more we have compiled some notes in a separate page - Click Here
Q12. How will Allgood keep us informed of progress?
A. In the event of problem, we will contact you if necessary via e-mail or telephone
Upon receipt of parts or PCBs from you we will contact you via e-mail
Upon completion and delivery of the project we will inform you via e-mail
Q13. What delivery options are there - and is my parcel insured?
A. Our main carrier is BusinessPost. Sometimes we use Royal Mail Special Delivery for small items.
Consignments are insured for £15000 in transit regardless of weight - most carriers insure by weight at £10 a Kg which is far from adequate for our sort of items.
Businesspost offer a range of timed deliveries - currently (2008) next day delivery is charged at £15 per consignment (inc packaging) up to a total of 10Kg then £0.50 per Kg after. Next day by 12 is popular and is charged at £17.50, Next day by 1030 is £20.
Royal Mail Special Delivery (formerly Registered Post) is a "Next Day by 12" service and is charged at £5. We can only use this for items up to 1kg.
Split Shipments.
For good reason many customers ask us to split ship - i.e. send initial boards through when ready and send the rest later. In this case we charge per shipment. If however we have to split ship for our own reasons, then we carry the cost of the additional shipments.