PCB Purchase Order Review: What to Check Before Release

A PCB purchase order should name exactly what the supplier quoted: the part number and revision, the file package by date or checksum, the board specification, quantity, acceptance class, required reports, lead time, delivery terms and who can approve changes. Before you release it, check each of those lines against the quote and the current files; most order problems come from a PO that points to a newer revision, a different quantity basis or a report the quote did not include. A one-line PO such as “500 pcs PCB per quote” leaves the factory to decide what you meant.

What Should a PCB Purchase Order Include?

Identity, scope and terms, in that order. Identity is the part number, revision and file package. Scope is the board specification, quantity, quality requirements and reports. Terms are the price, lead time, delivery point, packaging and change authority.

IPC-6012F, the qualification and performance specification for rigid boards, leaves the performance class and many options to be chosen by the buyer at procurement, and anything outside the standard to be “as agreed between user and supplier” (IPC-6012F contents). The PO and the drawing it references are where those choices are written down. If they are not written, the supplier builds to its own defaults.

A good test is whether someone who has never seen the quote could build the right board from the PO and its attachments. If they would need to read an email thread, the missing item belongs on the PO.

How Do You Check the PO Against the Quote?

Line by line, looking for anything that changed after the supplier priced the job. Five mismatches cause most of the trouble:

Quotes expire because laminate, copper and gold prices move; our article on PCB quote validity explains what usually changes. If any line differs, ask for a revised quote or a written acceptance of the change before the PO goes out, not after CAM has started.

Which Files and Revisions Should the PO Name?

The exact package the supplier quoted, identified so it cannot be confused with another. A file name such as “final.zip” is not enough; name the revision and date, and if you can, a checksum or the job file’s project ID.

Ucamco’s Gerber job format, for example, carries a project ID with name, GUID and revision, plus fields for thickness, finish, Tg and electrical test, and it states that a property not given is undefined, not defaulted (Gerber job format specification, 2020.08). IPC-2581 packages carry similar header and history records (IPC-2581C contents).

The PO should reference:

• the Gerber X2, ODB++ or IPC-2581 package with revision and date;
• the fabrication drawing revision;
• the stackup revision, if it is a separate document;
• any supplier drawing or panel drawing you approved during quoting;
• the netlist used for electrical test.

What each of those files should contain is set out in our article on PCB fabrication quote files.

Which Quality Requirements Belong on the PO?

The acceptance class and every report you expect to receive with the boards. Reports requested after shipment usually cannot be produced.

If you need first-article inspection on the first lot only, say so, and say whether later lots need the same report. Our article on PCB quality documents before shipment explains what each report proves.

How Should Delivery and Terms Be Written?

With a date, a place and an Incoterm, not just “ASAP.” State:

• Ship date or dock date: and whether lead time counts from the PO or from file approval.
• Incoterm and named place: for example “DAP Austin, Texas” or “DDP Monterrey.” Under Incoterms 2020, DAP leaves import clearance and duties to the buyer and DDP gives them to the seller (ICC Incoterms 2020). Our comparison of DDP and DAP for PCB shipping shows how each changes the landed cost.
• Shipping method: courier, air freight or ocean.
• Partial shipments: allowed or not, and the minimum per shipment.
• Packaging: for example vacuum-sealed with desiccant and a humidity indicator card, a maximum number of boards per bag, and labels with part number, revision and date code.
• Overage and shortage: whether the supplier may ship more or fewer boards than ordered, and by how many.

Payment terms belong on the PO as well, so the supplier’s order confirmation can repeat them.

What Should the Supplier’s Order Confirmation Show?

The same lines as your PO, repeated back, so you can see the supplier read them. Check the confirmation for:

A confirmation that says only “order received” confirms nothing. If any line is missing or different, resolve it now; this is the cheapest point to correct an order.

How Should Changes After the PO Be Handled?

In writing, by the person with authority for that kind of change. CAM engineers often raise engineering questions after the order: a trace below capability, a drill size that does not match the drawing, a material on allocation. Each answer can change the board.

Decide in advance who answers what. Purchasing approves price, quantity and date; engineering approves geometry, material, stackup and impedance; quality approves concessions and report changes. Ask the supplier to send questions to a named contact, and record each answer against the PO number. For repeat orders, our guide to revision control for repeat PCB orders keeps approved changes from being lost, and our list of CAM questions before production shows the questions to expect.

Do not let production start with questions open. A board built on an assumption may be perfectly good and still not be the board you ordered.

How Can We Help?

QueenEMS quotes bare boards within 2 hours, and each quote lists the specification, quantity basis, reports and lead time we priced, so your PO can reference it line by line. We build to IPC-6012 and IPC-A-600 Class 2 or Class 3, and every ENIG lot gets an XRF check of its nickel and gold, with the readings available to ship alongside the boards. Send your file package, drawing and quantities, and list the reports you need on the request so they are priced from the start.

Conclusion

A PO that repeats the quote’s assumptions, names the files and lists the reports turns the quote into the board you expect. Contact us with your files, drawing, quantity and required reports.

FAQ

How do I order a custom PCB? Send Gerber or ODB++ files, a fabrication drawing, the quantity and the target date to a fabricator for a quote, then issue a purchase order that references that quote and the same files.

What should a PCB purchase order include? Part number and revision, the file package, board specification, quantity, acceptance class, required reports, lead time, delivery terms and the quote reference.

How long does it take for a PCB to ship? It depends on layers, area and quantity; our reference time for a standard 2- or 4-layer board under 1 m² is 5 days before shipping, and higher layer counts take longer. The quote should state working days from file approval.

Should the PO include the Gerber files? It should reference them by revision and date. Attaching the same package, or confirming the one already sent, removes any doubt about which files are being built.

Can production start before all CAM questions are answered? It should not. Close each question in writing first, so the board built is the board ordered.