Kari Rantakoski PCB Documentation Mistakes That Cost Time, Yield, and Money In PCB manufacturing, documentation is not paperwork—it is the contract between design and production. When that contract is unclear, incomplete, or contradictory, problems are inevitable. At Comtec L... Jan 20, 2026 Comtec Labs blog
Kari Rantakoski Test Points: Small Detail, Big Impact In many PCB projects, test points are treated as a minor detail. If they are added at all, they are often squeezed in at the very end of layout, after routing, placement, and mechanical constraints ar... Jan 20, 2026 Comtec Labs blog
Kari Rantakoski The PCB Tolerances That Silently Kill Manufacturing Yield Many PCB designs fail not because of obvious mistakes, but because of tolerances that are too tight to be realistic. On paper, everything looks correct. In production, yield quietly collapses.At Comte... Jan 20, 2026 Comtec Labs blog
Kari Rantakoski Via-in-Pad in PCB Design – Powerful Tool or Hidden Manufacturing Risk? Via-in-pad is one of the most debated techniques in modern PCB design. Used correctly, it enables compact layouts, improved signal integrity, and routing feasibility for fine-pitch components. Used un... Jan 20, 2026 Comtec Labs blog
Kari Rantakoski Why DFM Should Start at Project Kickoff DFM is not a final checklist. It is a part of a good design process. Design for Manufacturability (DFM) is often misunderstood as a late-stage review step. In reality, it is a mindset that must guide ... Jan 20, 2026 Comtec Labs blog
Kari Rantakoski PCB Panelization: Do’s and Don’ts PCB panelization is often treated as a minor manufacturing detail. Something to be solved after layout is finished, or delegated entirely to the factory. In practice, panelization decisions have a dir... Jan 20, 2026 Comtec Labs blog
Kari Rantakoski PCB Stackup decisions designers often underestimate PCB stackup is often treated as an electrical detail—something to define quickly so routing can begin. In reality, stackup decisions influence nearly every downstream manufacturing step: fabrication y... Jan 19, 2026 Comtec Labs blog
Kari Rantakoski 3 PCB Design Decisions That Make Manufacturing Harder – And How to Avoid Them In PCB projects, manufacturing problems rarely come from dramatic design errors. Much more often, they originate from perfectly reasonable design decisions that were made in isolation—without full vis... Jan 19, 2026 Comtec Labs blog
Kari Rantakoski The Most Expensive PCB Problems Are Found Too Late Some boards pass every electrical check, simulate beautifully, and even function in the lab—yet still fail where it hurts most: cost, yield, and scalability . These are economic failures , and they’re... Jan 19, 2026 Comtec Labs blog
