How to verify a PCB manufacturer in China
Question this page answers
What should I check before choosing a Chinese PCB factory?
A practical checklist for verifying a Chinese PCB factory: legal entity, production address, certificate holder, subcontracting and review dates.
The short answer
Check four things before you compare quotations: the registered legal entity, the address where the boards are actually made, who holds the certifications, and which process steps are subcontracted. A company website answers none of these on its own.
1. Match the legal entity to the site
Ask for the Chinese registered name and the unified social credit code, then look it up in the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System (国家企业信用信息公示系统, gsxt.gov.cn). Compare the registered address with the factory address on the quotation. A trading company, a group parent and the manufacturing subsidiary are three different entities; only one of them will be the producer.
2. Check the certificate holder, not just the number
A UL file number is meaningful only when the certificate holder and the manufacturing location match the entity you are buying from. Look up the E-number in UL Product iQ and compare the applicant name and the recognised factory address. A certificate belonging to a sister plant does not cover the site quoting your order.
3. Separate capability by product series
Highest layer count, finest line width and smallest drill diameter on a website may come from three different processes. Ask for a capability table for the specific product series you are ordering, and ask which steps are performed in-house. Drilling, press lamination, surface finish and impedance testing are commonly outsourced.
4. Ask what happens when something goes wrong
Request the complaint handling path, the retest rule and the person responsible for an engineering change. A supplier that can name these in writing is usually easier to work with than one that only sends a capability brochure.
What ChinaPCB records
Each profile states the evidence level of its claims and the date they were last checked. Public information alone does not prove factory ownership or in-house production, and we say so on the profile rather than implying otherwise.
Sources and review
The public registries and certification databases named on this page are the primary sources we use. Every fact on a ChinaPCB factory profile is accompanied by its source and the date it was last checked. Where a claim could not be checked, the field is left unconfirmed instead of being filled with an estimate.
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About the author
ChinaPCB Editorial. ChinaPCB.org is an editorial directory operated by Weis Technology Co., Ltd.. Its operating entity and correction channel are published openly, and every factual claim on a factory profile carries an evidence level and review date.