Hi everyone,

I've been trying to find an SMT assembly house I can work with and the seve=
ral I've tried so far don't seem to be really fitting the bill in terms of =
cost. This is a cost sensitive item that I'm looking to "Kickstart".

The board itself is fairly simple, albeit small:

- 20.5 * 30mm footprint
- 18*passives, all 0603 (mainly capacitors and inductors, for what it's wor=
th)
- 1*(one) DFN48 6mm*6mm
- 1*1206=20
- 1*esoteric (castellated edge) part that's well known and easy to solder (=
SHT10)
- 1*CR2032 coin cell holder (through-hole and we'd like to keep it that way=
 for footprint reasons)

Board itself is regular 1.6mm FR4, ENIG finish. Reflow requirements weren't=
 set, so it was assumed to be leaded process (and thus cheaper).

Now, for quantity 100 units I was't expecting stellar pricing and was prepa=
red to negotiate on the basis of good faith and future business. But I've b=
een surprised that the glide-path for discounting for 1000 and 10,000 units=
.. The discount for 10,000 units was ~35% off of what 100 units would cost, =
and would have paid for a nice pick'n'place machine for yours truly. Becaus=
e it's a Kickstart, we're not 100% sure of what the first run will look lik=
e -- could be 100, 250, 500 or more units.

I'd prefer someone in Canada as there's less paperwork to get parts and boa=
rds across the border and back, but finding someone easy to work with, crea=
tive, and reasonably priced in the US or Mexico would be worth the hassle.

Any suggestions, heckles or advice welcomed.

TIA.

-m


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