10 Reasons to Brand Your PCB: Why branding is important in projects
Although branding doesn’t improve the overall quality of your circuit board, it has many aspects that can improve your sales and reputation. Regardless of whether you’re developing boards for a third party or are planning on marketing your own electronics, branding the board can have lasting effects. Why should you consider printing information directly on your PCBs?
1. Brand Identity – When a technician opens up a device to conduct repairs, the PCB’s brand is seen quite often. This can develop a technician’s interest to find out more about your organization’s products and services.
2. Repair Assistance – By branding your PCB with model versions, you can help repair technicians find correct parts. Nothing is worse than trying to find a replacement board for a device when there is no obvious information.
3. Compatibility – Some electronic components may not work together due to incompatibilities within developed technologies. By printing the manufactured or designed date on the PCB, a technician can determine if the board will work for his or her project. Boards developed in 1993 may not work with those developed in 2010.
4. Driver Installations – Using the branded information on the PCB, a technician could research to find compatible driver files should your development require such. For instance, the information on a video card’s PCB can let the tech know what driver versions are compatible for the chipset.
5. Board Mapping – Some components may need to be replaced on the PCB. Other projects may require a map in order to correctly install various additions. Plugging the wrong wire into the PCB could cause irreparable damage without a brand to label the connector.
6. Device Identification – By looking at the PCB, a technician should be able to gather enough information from the various labels to ascertain exactly what the component does. This could help expedite repairs, installations or even future purchases if the tech finds the product to be of quality.
7. Patent Protection – Some individuals will have the PCB branded in order to help protect patent rights. In today’s world, those that control the most efficient technology make the most money. Protecting a PCB from being used in an unofficial capacity could help your organization earn revenue from the leasing or sale of that technology.
8. Assembly Assistance – Much like the repairs mentioned above, branding a PCB can help during the initial installation of the board. Each important aspect of the electronic device can be connected to obvious controls on the board itself. For instance, game controllers will often display where certain buttons connect to the board for the whole unit to work correctly.
9. Bad Labels – Printed labels that attach to the PCB can be beneficial. However, these labels tend to age and fall off of devices, especially when introduced to large amounts of heat. Direct board branding removes this issue since it doesn’t incorporate paper or glued labels that can fall off.
10. Pride – Nothing is finer to a developer than seeing their company logo being used on successful technology. Even if the PCB will never be seen by direct consumers, the sheer thought of the logo existing internally for years to come can fill one with a sense of pride.
The PCB is an important aspect of any electronic device. It needs to be a quality product as your reputation could be on the line. Contact PCB Solutions for your circuit board needs, and take advantage of branding the unit. It could have more of an impact on your organization than you realize.