Hi Friends! Hope you’re well today. Happy to see you around. In this post, I’ll walk you through How to Install PCBWay Plugin for KiCAD PCB Software.
Before we move further, let’s get a brief overview of KiCAD PCB Software.
KiCAD is a free and open-source electronic design application mainly developed to draw schematics and PCB layouts. It is open-source which means anyone can use it to develop and modify electronic designs. The tool can effortlessly run on Windows, macOS and Linux. The main window of the application comes with 8 different software tools used to make PCB layouts and schematics.
Hope you’ve got a sneak peek at the software. Now we’ll get to know how to install the PCBWay Plugin for KiCAD.
How to install PCBWay Plugin for KiCAD PCB Software?
When you install PCBWay Plugin for the KiCAD, you can instantly send the PCB layout to the PCBWay for the production of your required boards.
To install PCBWay Plugin, go to the KiCAD website. The following page will appear when you visit the website.
Click the “Download” button encircled in red. When you click it, the following image will turn up.
Here you will see the list of operating systems you can pick from. Click the required system. For instance, if you click the windows operating system, the following image will come up.
Based on your system requirement, you can choose between the 64-bit and 32-bit. When you click anyone of them, the following image will come up.
Here you’ll see the different downloading links based on your location. The recommended option is the “Worldwide” with the link from GitHub.
When you click this option, the software will start downloading.
Once downloaded, right-click the software and click “open”.
When you click it, the window will open up. Then click the “next” and then “install” when you click it, your installation will start as follows.
Once installation is completed, click the “Finish” as follows.
Then start the software. Once you start it, the following options will appear. You can either import the settings from the previous version or you can start with default settings to start it from scratch as follows.
When you start with the default settings, the following window will appear. Go to the “Tools” section and select “Plugin and Content Manager”.
The list of plugins will open up. Scroll it down and find the “PCBWay Plug-in for KiCAD” as follows.
Click “install” and then click “Apply Changes” and the PCBWay plug-in for KiCAD will be installed through which you can send your PCB layout to the PCBWay with just one click.
When you click PCBWay Plug-in button on Kicad, the following files will be exported to your project:
1. Gerber files used for production
2. IPC-Netlist file
3. Bom-file that comes with the information of components
4. Pick and Place-file in assembly
When you click "Save to Cart" to immediately placing an order after you upload the files, the PCBWay team of professionals will cross check the files before starting the final production.
About the Company PCBWay
Choosing the right manufacturer is tricky, especially when everyone claims to be the best in the market. In this read, we’re covering the most renowned PCB manufacturing company that has been serving the electronic industry for over a decade now.
PCBWay is a china-based PCB fabrication house. It is a one stop shop for both PCB and PCBA (printed circuit board assembly). From single layer, double layer and multiple layers to flex, rigid and rigid-flex boards, they have you covered. They come with 50 engineers on board that make sure the manufactured board run through a stringent inspection processes. They ensure the customers’ demands are properly met so they keep coming back for what the company has to offer.
Deliver what they Promise
They strive to meet the customers’ expectations by standing on their words. A few customers have seen the slight change in price of the final product. But that’s not their fault. It’s on the customer side since they didn’t pay special heed to matching the parameters of the production files. So, keep in mind… before you submit an order, make sure the parameters of Gerber and production files exactly match with the ones you put online during the submission of order in an instant quote. If they don’t match, you may see the slight change in price for the production of the final product.
Keep you Updated
When your order process is complete, they will send you three emails: First email will tell you about the order status, whether it’s been approved or rejected. Second email is about the successful payment and production management and the third one is for the products being shipped. This way, you remain thoroughly updated about the processes your product will go through. Know that, you can ask for the change in parameters of the product before the production process is scheduled. However, if your product already goes through the initial stages and has reached the certain stage of product, you cannot ask for the change and the parameters will remain the same you initially put during the order submission.
High Delivery Rate
They value your time and money. They know how it’s important to deliver products on time so folks working on their electronic projects can develop and execute their projects in a timely manner. PCBWay takes pride in achieving a 99% delivery rate. They work 24/7 from Monday to Friday to make sure the final products are delivered as promised.
V5 Members and Reward Points
The best thing about PCBWay is that when you become their regular customer and buy more PCBs, you become a part of their V5 members. These members can enjoy 5% off on upcoming orders. Additionally, you get Beans when we put your order online. Beans are rewards points that come in handy to buy electronics products from their online shop.
That’s all for today. Hope you find this article helpful. If you have any questions regarding the installation of the PCBWay Plugin, you can ask in the section below. We’d love to help you in the best way possible. Thank you for reading the article.
