Questions
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the experts at IK Elektronik:
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Fax +49 37465 4092-100
 Does IK Elektronik supply consumers and private
individuals too?
How much does it cost to develop a wireless module and
how long does it take?
How many items do you have to order to make it worth
commissioning a special development?
Who owns the results of the development?
Can I order pure development services from IK or does IK
Elektronik have to make the product too?
How does product development function at IK Elektronik?
How does IK Elektronik guarantee the quality of its
products?
Does IK Elektronik just develop high frequency components
or general electronics, software, casing etc too?
Does IK Elektronik cooperate with other partners in its
development and production work?
Can I use staff from IK Elektronik as consultants at my
company?
Which companies are IK Elektronik’s competitors?
How large are the lot sizes that IK Elektronik
manufactures?
How does IK Elektronik handle its customers’ information
and documents?
Does IK Elektronik also manufacture outside products as a
service company?
What opportunities are there of purchasing products from
IK Elektronik over a fairly long period?
To which regions of the world does IK Elektronik supply
goods?
How is the testing equipment for high frequency
components made at IK Elektronik?
I have a wireless component, which needs to be modified
or improved. Can IK Elektronik help me with this?
I have a wireless device and would like to check whether
the built-in antenna and high frequency circuit are working to the best
possible degree. Can I get in touch with IK Elektronik?
How does IK Elektronik handle the certification of units,
e.g. according to R&TTE or FCC?
Does IK Elektronik also develop or produce WLAN,
Bluetooth, ZigBee or other standard solutions? |
Answers
Does
IK
Elektronik supply consumers and private individuals too?
No. IK Elektronik is a service provider for other companies and does
not supply any products or services to consumers. |
How
much does it cost to develop a wireless module and how long does it
take?
This very much depends on the requirements and the specifications. The
costs normally range between € 5,000 and € 200,000. The development
costs are several weeks or man months in some cases, but seldom man
years and the development period itself typically lasts 6-12 months
before the product is ready for series production. IK charges a daily
rate of € 550 for engineering services. Usually contracts for work and
services are agreed with a fixed price.
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How many items do you have
to order to make it worth commissioning a special development?
It is impossible to quote a fixed number. If a comparable product can
be used “off the shelf”, it is usually more expensive for small numbers
of items than a customized product, which has been developed and then
manufactured. This largely depends on the supplier. In practice, lot
sizes of a few thousand are a threshold, above which it makes financial
sense to embark on a new development. The primary issue, which
determines whether a special development is commissioned or not, is
often the fact that no standard product meets the particular technical
requirements.
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Who owns the results of the development?
If the customer pays for the development work in
full, it receives all the documents and information as its own
property. |
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Can I order pure development services from
IK or does IK Elektronik have to make the product too?
IK Elektronik provides development services, regardless of whether the
item goes into production or not at a later date. The development and
production work can be ordered separately. But after the development
work, an order is often placed with IK Elektronik for production too so
that the customer can continue to make use of the special facilities
and expertise at IK Elektronik. |
How does product development function at IK
Elektronik?
After the initial contact, personal discussions are usually held on one
or more occasions between IK Elektronik staff and the potential
customer in order to clarify the exact requirements. These talks are
usually held at the potential customer’s premises. These discussions
normally take place after a confidentiality agreement has been signed
by both parties. Sometimes the customer already has concrete
specifications and this can accelerate the process considerably. After
the most important details have been clarified, IK Elektronik prepares
an individual quotation and this sets out the technical and commercial
details and a deadline for completion. If an order is placed, members
of staff at IK Elektronik work their way through the various stages,
which have been laid down and for which a quotation was provided.
Usually a project manager and two developers work on a project
together. The complete development process normally starts with
laboratory set-ups and breadboards or with the construction and
delivery of demonstrators. A, B and C prototypes follow and finally the
documentation, which is usually certification in line with the relevant
standards. It goes without saying that we start production as early as
possible in order to ensure verifiability and the simple manufacturing
process for the product being made, regardless of whether production is
due to take place at IK Elektronik or at the customer’s premises. |
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How does IK Elektronik guarantee the
quality of its products?
The whole company (production, development and all the ancillary
processes) has DIN ISO 9001:2008 and DIN ISO 14001:2009 certification.
Every department at the
company follows procedures to the letter. Suppliers of goods are
selected and monitored by quality assurance agreements or strict checks
are implemented. Last but not least, the employees’ excellent
qualifications and willingness to work hard and the latest technology
provide the high quality of services and products that are needed at IK
Elektronik. |
Does IK Elektronik just develop high
frequency components or general electronics, software, casing etc too?
High frequency technology is the major focus in any development. But
each product has other components too, which are also developed at IK
Elektronik. The company has software developers, microcontroller
specialists, electronics experts and design engineers in the
development department for this purpose.
In the fields of construction and software IK Elektronik has
experienced and specialised partners.
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Does IK Elektronik cooperate with other
partners in its development and production work?
The development and production work takes place at IK Elektronik’s
premises at the Hammerbrücke site, which has all the technical and
personnel resources that are needed. We work with external partners,
e.g. during the certification process (testing laboratories), when
making mechanical components and rarely when mounting printed circuit
boards. |
Can I use staff from IK Elektronik as
consultants at my company?
No. But it is possible to purchase development capacity for particular
tasks at IK Elektronik – for example, laboratory work or expertise for
your own developments. |
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Which companies are IK Elektronik’s
competitors?
In the field of development, engineering offices or research
institutes, which have specialized in high frequency technology, are
our main rivals. Engineering offices for general electronics
applications are not normally in a position to provide developments in
the high frequency technology field. The competitors mentioned here are
often not able to provide any subsequent production and manufacturing
issues are not given adequate attention. In the field of
production, all electronics manufacturers compete with each other, but
there are few who can compete with IK Elektronik in production terms on
account of its high degree of specialization in high frequency
components. |
How large are the lot sizes that IK
Elektronik manufactures?
This is something that the customer decides depending on its
requirements. Medium-sized lot sizes of several thousand up to ten
thousand are typical. But we also make pilot runs and very small lots.
Some products have lot sizes of more than 100,000 per annum.
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How does IK Elektronik handle its
customers’ information and documents?
As a pure service provider, IK Elektronik treats all documents and
information from customers as top secret and only uses them in
conjunction with the customers’ order. |
Does IK Elektronik also manufacture outside
products as a service company?
IK Elektronik mostly manufactures products that it
has also developed, but some outside products too. |
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What opportunities are there of purchasing
products from IK Elektronik over a fairly long period?
Products developed as part of a customer order usually have a
serviceable life of several years. Outline agreements are ideal for the
production process. They can be agreed to cover periods of no more than
18 months. Deliveries are normally made on the basis of individual
requests or clear-sighted planning, e.g. over 3 months. The details are
agreed on an individual basis. |
To which regions of the world does IK
Elektronik supply goods?
IK Elektronik has specialized in the European market and normally
delivers goods to customers’ manufacturing sites in Germany. But
exceptions to this rule can be agreed. |
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How is the testing equipment for high
frequency components made at IK Elektronik?
All the testing equipment is developed and manufactured at the company
and is used in the production process. This means that specialist
support is available at any time. The construction of testing equipment
may be ordered by customers as a project or IK Elektronik may assume
responsibility for this. Whatever the case, the construction of testing
equipment is subject to the same strict requirements with regard to its
development process as the product development process itself. |
I have a wireless component, which needs to
be modified or improved. Can IK Elektronik help me with this?
Of course. We will be happy to help you within the
scope of our resources – to successfully complete a development
process, for example. |
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I have a wireless device and would like to
check whether the built-in antenna and high frequency circuit are
working to the best possible degree. Can I get in touch with IK
Elektronik?
IK Elektronik is happy to provide support here and prepares measurement
reports, which may also contain the 3D directional characteristics for
transmitted??? signals. This service is normally only offered to the
manufacturer of the unit. |
How does IK Elektronik handle the
certification of units, e.g. according to R&TTE or FCC?
The development work on a wireless component or a wireless device has
normally been completed when certification is obtained at an approved
testing laboratory. IK Elektronik works with several German labs. IK
Elektronik employees are usually present at the laboratory during the
measurement tests so as to be able to carry out any necessary minor
corrections quickly. The certification measurements usually only take a
few days. The cost of certification – for a wireless module, for
example – ranges between € 2,000 and € 10,000, depending on the
laboratory and the scope of the tests. |
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Does IK Elektronik also develop or produce
WLAN, Bluetooth, ZigBee or other standard solutions?
Checks are made during the design phase for new products to see whether
standard solutions could be used – and if possible, they are. But we
have discovered that, in order to fulfil our customers’ requirements,
it is usually better to use proprietary solutions – or there are
various reasons why standard solutions cannot be used at all. |
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