Application Watch: Customized PCB assemblies for gaming hardware

China's PCB assembly sector welcomes diverse product requirements and order quantities.

Companies in the PCB assembly sector in China are emphasizing their ability to adapt to different industry needs and flexibility regarding order volumes. To boost competitiveness, they also continue to improve production techniques, especially as components trend toward ultraminiature sizes and higher density.

In the gaming industry, suppliers look to continue benefiting from steady growth. According to a report published by Jon Pedie Research, gaming PCs are expected to reach $3.6 billion by the end of 2020, spurred by parts purchases by new and existing gamers upgrading computers for gaming during the pandemic. The popularity of e-sports has also been increasing demand for gaming keyboards, gamepads and accessories, according to Mordor Intelligence.

At present, PCB assemblies for gaming hardware represent between 10 and 30 percent of most Chinese manufacturers' shipments. The pandemic halted production activities in China for two months in the early part of the year, but many companies have since recovered and intend to keep raising output through 2021. Prior to the pandemic, demand for PCB assemblies for gaming products had an annual growth rate of 5 to 10 percent, according to suppliers interviewed by Global Sources Electronic Components.

Shenzhen Shinelong Electronics Industrial Co. Ltd, which suffered a sales drop of 25 percent in early 2020, is confident of a 5 to 10 percent uptick in 2021.

PCB assembly manufacturers in China, some of which provide services including in-house PCB fabrication and full-range EMS, use production equipment such as SMT, multifunction placement, wave soldering, reflow and solder printing machines. For testing, they have online AOI, ICT, and functional and electrical testing devices. Optical microscopes are also widely employed.

Equipment upgrades are always on suppliers' agenda to enable them to compete with many foreign rivals and bigger players in China. Shenzhen Shinelong has done so to ensure high precision, efficiency and quality. Itspent $2.2 million on new SMT equipment, AI devices and online AOI equipment recently. The supplier will continue updating its machinery in the next two years.

SHC Electronics Ltd guarantees the quality of its PCB assemblies, which undergo 100 percent testing. It implements E-testing, visual inspection at IQC, IPQC, FQ and OQC stages of production, X-ray testing, AOI, 3D microscope inspection, ICT, and high voltage, impedance control, thermal stress and shock tests.

China is one of the world's leading manufacturing bases for PCB assemblies, accounting for 30 to 40 percent of shipments globally.

Of the hundreds of companies making up this sector in the country, more than half are in Guangdong province's major cities such as Dongguan, Shenzhen and Zhongshan.

This production pool will continue growing, attracting domestic and foreign ventures in the coming years. A homegrown company, Camelot, plans to expand from PCBs to PCB assemblies in the next few years to take advantage of rising demand.

Manufacturing capability

Manufacturers in China can mount components as small as 01005, in BGA, QFP, QFN and TSOP packages and with a maximum height of 30mm. They offer ±0.01mm minimum pick and place precision, with ±0.03mm minimum precision for ICs.

The minimum pin and ball pitches in SMT are 0.2mm, and the minimum stencil precision is 5µm. In terms of PCBs used, sizes range from 5x5mm to 500x1,500mm. Board thickness is 0.1 to 10mm.

Besides SMT and THT processes, these manufacturers provide services such as box building, potting and coating, in-house programming and packaging. The majority of companies are compliant with ISO 9001 and 14001 requirements, and ensure products follow the RoHS Directive.

In this customization-driven product category, materials and components usually come from buyer-specified sources.

Due to the US-China trade war, the cost of manufacturing inputs has fluctuated in the past 12 months, but most companies kept product prices flat. A few lowered their quotes to attract more orders amid competition.

Interviewed suppliers anticipate stable material and component costs, and PCB assembly prices, in 2021.

The products in this gallery have been handpicked by our China-based market analyst for representing current trends in PCB assemblies from China makers.

PCB assembly on up to 16-layer board

The PCBA-2186 from Shenzhen Golden WealdElectronic Co. Ltd is a PCB assembly on a single to 16-layer board with a CEM-3 or FR-4 base, and HASL, OSP, immersion gold and silver or gold-plated surface finish.

At minimum, the 0.2 to 3.2mm-thick PCB's line width is 2.95, line spacing 3.93mil, core thickness 0.075mm, drilled holes 0.25mm and punched holes 0.9mm. Copper thickness is 1/2 to 3oz copper.

The negotiable order quantity is for delivery within 24 days.

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PCB assembly, 0201 components high-density board

This PCB assembly from Shenzhen Shinelong Electronics Industrial Co. Ltd, the SEICPCBA, has lead-free and as small as 0201 components mounted using SMT and wave soldering. The RoHS-compliant unit undergoes high-precision e-testing, including ICT and functional test. BGA repair is also done. Order quantity is negotiable. Delivery lead time is 30 days.

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PCB assembly, QFN & BGA components

Model GS-096 PCB assembly from Tortai Technologies Co. Ltd is done using BGA and QFN components. The unit undergoes IC programming, ICT, functional testing and X-ray inspection. Order quantity is negotiable. Delivery is within 12 days.

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PCB assembly, 35µm inner, 50µm outer copper

Zitrok Electronics Co. Ltd's ZITROKPCBA PCB assembly is based on a 4-layer FR-4 board with a blue solder mask and a lead-free HASL surface finish. The 2mm-thick PCB has 35µm inner and 50µm outer copper, as small as 0.25mm holes, and 4mil minimum line width and spacing. The number of orders is negotiable. Delivery takes 6 days.

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