PCB Cleanliness Standards to Be Followed for Medical Devices

When something is quite literally a life or death situation like it is in the healthcare industry, there is no room for error. That is why every part of the industry operations, down to even the smallest of details like printed circuit board assembly needs to be done exactly right.

A big part of doing things right means keep everything clean. To the point where it is ridiculously spotless. So it is crucial that every PCB assembly manufacturer is following the proper cleanliness standards. When it comes to medical devices, these are the PCB cleanliness standards that need to be met.

Adherence to IPC-5704

The development of all medical devices is required to adhere to a specific set of quality control standards. The set of standards that specifically go over cleanliness requirements for unpopulated printed circuit board fabrication is known as IPC-5704. A large portion of this goes over the necessary steps for preventing and removing any sort of ionic contamination or other unwanted debris from a printed circuit board.

Ultrasonic Cleaners

As far as cleaning methods for a PCB assembly manufacturer goes, this method is the absolute best. This is because ultrasonic cleaning involves a temperature-controlled process that is completed at set time intervals. But of course, the solution that is used during this process is going to impact just how effective this method ends up being.

Automatic Washers

This process involves putting PCBs into baskets and then dipping them into a solution. Once they are removed from the solution, they are then dried off. But it is important to select a good solution so that none of the printed circuit board assembly materials suffer any damage.

Manual Cleaning

Although used a lot less commonly, there is also the option to clean a printed circuit board fabrication by using a manual method. The problem with this method is that it becomes nearly impossible to reach some of the areas, particularly on smaller PCBs. However, for certain components like microphones, the manual method is the only one that can be used.

By making sure to use the most appropriate method or a mixture of methods, any PCB assembly manufacturer should be able to properly adhere to the PCB cleanliness standards for medical devices. If you’re looking for a printed circuit board assembly that always adheres to these standards, then make sure to check out our products at Star Engineering.

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