Guides for keeping old electronics in service
What to do when the supplier is gone, the data is lost or the parts are discontinued. Written from everyday practice in purchasing and engineering.
PCB reverse engineering: from an old board back to a complete data package
When the original manufacturer is gone and the documentation is lost, the board itself is often the only source of truth. We measure it, recapture it and turn it into manufacturing data that any modern PCB fabricator and assembler can work with.
Read the guideObsolescence management: what to do when electronics are discontinued
Machines, aircraft systems and plants run for decades. The electronic components inside them often disappear after a few years. Obsolescence management is the discipline of seeing this coming – and having a plan when it happens anyway.
Read the guideReplacing obsolete components without risking the board
One discontinued chip can stop the production of an entire assembly. Finding a replacement is part engineering, part purchasing – and the cheapest offer on the broker market is rarely the safest.
Read the guideFrom hand-soldered through-hole to machine-assembled SMD
Many legacy boards were designed for through-hole components and hand or wave soldering. Rebuilding them is a chance to modernise: surface-mount parts are easier to source and allow automated assembly. But not every part should change.
Read the guideSingle-sided to multilayer: how many layers does your board have?
The number of copper layers is the single most important factor for how easily an old board can be recaptured. Here is how the common types are built and how you can tell them apart.
Read the guideRecovering old PCB data: from films and dead CAD formats to current files
Sometimes the data still exists – but nobody can open it. A Protel project from the 1990s, Gerber files without aperture lists or a box of photo films. In most cases this can be converted into data today's fabricators accept.
Read the guideLeaded or lead-free: what changes when an old board is rebuilt
Most legacy boards were soldered with tin-lead. Today many fabricators and component suppliers work lead-free by default. That is usually fine – but it has to be a conscious decision, not an accident.
Read the guideGlossary: the terms around old boards and new manufacturing data
Purchasing, engineering and the fabricator often use different words for the same thing. Here are the terms you will meet in our offers and reports.
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