I have a client that is located in the UK (I’m in the US) who will need to have 2-layer PCBs made in the UK. By searching the forums I’ve come up with the following list:
Olimex, PCB Train, Eurocircuits.
I think I’ve heard of PCB Pool, too. Are there any others that I should recomend to my client?
-Dave Pollum
Olimex is in Romania, IIRC, and PCB Pool and Eurocircuits make their boards in Germany. PCB Pool has an office near Dublin, and Eurocircuits has a UK agent, so they are both easy to deal with.
I’ve used PCB Train and PCB Pool. both are good. Olimex is OK for hobbyist quality boards. Beware, you need to add a plating allowance to your drills for Olimex otherwise the holes might be too small!
leon_heller:
Olimex is in Romania, IIRC, and PCB Pool and Eurocircuits make their boards in Germany. PCB Pool has an office near Dublin, and Eurocircuits has a UK agent, so they are both easy to deal with.I’ve used PCB Train and PCB Pool. both are good. Olimex is OK for hobbyist quality boards. Beware, you need to add a plating allowance to your drills for Olimex otherwise the holes might be too small!
Leon - thanks for the recommendations and the warning about Olimex.
-Dave Pollum
I’ve used PCB Train a few times and had no problems, provided the boards are electrically tested. They make this service optional for 2 layer boards, but I’d regard it as essential. Their approach is good for small quantities (no upfront tooling charge), but the range of finishes and stack-ups they offer is restricted. For a simple 2 layer board this may not be an issue.
It’s quite usual to get the contract assembly firm to procure the PCBs, rather than ordering them direct, and I’d be inclined to recommend going down this route if possible. If nothing else, this transfers responsibility for board faults onto them, rather than having to face the prospect of perfectly good components being wasted by being fitted to a defective PCB. It also means you don’t have to worry about finding a PCB manufacturer as well.