Management of DPMO Metrics Reduces the Cost of PCB Assembly

Manufacturers can use DPMO metrics to reduce the cost of PCB assembly with fewer resources. DPMO data can be used for predicting the fault spectrum on future products, quoting new business, setting quality targets for manufacturing, defining test strategies, predicting yields, or estimating shipped quality levels. Manufacturers can input DPMO and BOM data into cost calculator tools to estimate manufacturing costs. When combined with a few site-specific assumptions about labor rates and test strategy, roughly 80% of PCB assembly costs fall into place once there is a clear definition of the DPMO. In this way, manufacturers can determine targets for both in-process quality and financial profit and loss. Tools are now available to the industry that make use of DPMO data for strategic decision making applications. Use case examples are shown.