Original Date: 01/23/1995
Revision Date: 01/18/2007

To reduce cycle times and improve product quality, prototypes play an increasingly critical role in product development at Sandia National Laboratories (SNL). Consequently, SNL developed an integrated approach to prototype development at its Electronic Prototype Laboratory. This lab provides SNL with a total prototyping capability where customers can bring CAD data on a floppy disk and obtain prototypes ranging from PWBs to complete assemblies.

Capabilities at the Electronic Prototype Lab include artwork generation, PWB fabrication (single-sided, double-sided, and multilayer up to 16 layers), bare board test, through-hole and SMT attach, autodrill and autoroute, lead form, and more. In addition, the lab has published a book listing the components that are stocked as well as accepted component footprints. Designers can use this information to facilitate the prototype process and to assist them with component selection. The prototype lab also offers customers different levels of prototype printed wiring boards such as Type A, available in a few days' time, doubled-sided with plated through-holes (but little or no checking or testing); and Type B which is available in a few hours, double-sided with no plated through- holes and no testing. This tailoring allows designing a "quick and dirty" prototype with very little time investment.

The Electronic Prototyping Lab has become an integral part of many of SNL's projects. Benefits include a reduction in cycle time afforded by placing working products in the designer's hands as quickly as possible, as well as allowing for expeditious proof of concept activity. This Electronics Prototype Laboratory is a valuable asset to the entire concurrent engineering philosophy.

For more information see the Point of Contact for this survey.