The long-awaited expansion is finally here! Yes, now over 150,000 local parts are available in the Open Parts Library (OPL), from essential passives to microcontrollers. With a greater selection of parts, the easier it is to slash the lead time for full turnkey Seeed Fusion assembly to just 7 working days
What is the Seeed PCBA Open Parts Library (OPL)?
The first Open Parts Library was announced over ten years
ago around the same time as the PCB Assembly service. Back then it was a purchasable
kit of 100 sample parts that were available to use with the assembly service.
Things have moved on immensely since then, but the essential purpose of the OPL
has remained the same. Cheaper, faster and more convenient PCBA.
Fundamentally, all the parts in the OPL are available locally on Seeed’s doorstep, in Shenzhen. The Seeed OPL contains tried and tested parts that Seeed uses in its products and keeps its own warehouse. Eagle and KiCad libraries are available for most of these parts and quality is guaranteed. However, there is only so much Seeed can keep in stock. The Shenzhen OPL remedies this and contains 200 times more parts from the biggest supplier of parts in the Silicon Valley of Hardware. Like parts in the Seeed OPL, these parts are available almost immediately and can be used together. With so much choice, it’s even easier to get expedited turnkey PCB assembly.
What are the advantages of using the OPL?
Faster: The most valuable advantage to using the OPL
is the ability to slash PCBA turnaround times. Imported parts can take weeks to
arrive at best and extend the lead time to a month or more. By using local
parts, this time is cut to a mere few days. So once the bare PCBs come fresh off
the production line, assembly can begin right away and you can get full turnkey
PCB assembly in as little as 7 working days.
Cheaper: As everyone knows, most things are made in China.
So, by sourcing parts closer to where they were made makes them cheaper. Use
local brands to cut costs even more with compatible parts for a fraction of the
cost.
Convenient: All parts are searchable on a single page
complete with datasheets, and Eagle and KiCad libraries are available for Seeed
OPL parts for peace of mind and accelerated design.
What parts are included in the Seeed OPL?
There are currently over 170,000 parts in the OPL, divided
into over 50 different categories including thousands of capacitors and
resistors, the most popular microcontrollers and ICs, cheaper compatible connectors,
sensors, optoelectronics, crystals, switches and more from big brands such as
Microchip, ST Electronics, Texas Instruments, ON Semiconductor, DIODES, TE
Connectivity, Hirose and Molex and Asian favorites including JST, CJT, YAGEO
and Everlight.
How can I take advantage of the OPL?
Just browse the categories via the Open Parts Library page or find parts search directly via the search box. Isolate your selection by searching within a category. Build your BOM file using the Seeed Fusion template and just fill in the manufacturer part numbers. The smart online quotation platform will automatically match the part and provide a full quotation in seconds. Get a quotation here.
Can’t source all parts from the OPL? You still combine them with imported parts and take advantage of the lower part cost.
The OPL is vital to making the most of the Seeed Fusion PCB
Assembly service and everyone and anyone can use them.
Over the years, Seeed PCBA users have consistently reminded
us of the biggest limitation of the OPL, the selection of parts. The coveted 7
days turnaround time hinges on whether all parts can be sourced from the OPL,
meaning the selection of available parts is crucial. So, this new 8-fold increase
from 20,000 to 160,000 parts represents the biggest milestone in the OPL’s expansion
and we hope this results in an exponential increase in usage. Thank you all for
your perseverance and we hope it was worth the wait.
But the story doesn’t end there – we are currently working on filling in the blanks and re-categorizing the parts and in the long term we intend to upgrade the OPL platform for better usability and implement live translations. Meanwhile, thank you so much for the ongoing support and please do let us know your thoughts. Check out the new OPL.