PCB Copy in Tel Aviv — Full Reverse-Engineering Without Leaving Your Lab
PCB copy for Tel Aviv clients works through a straightforward remote process: ship the physical board to our facility, and we return production-ready Gerber files, a verified BOM, and a netlist-checked schematic. Israeli hardware teams — from defense-adjacent startups in Herzliya to medical-device firms near Rabin Science Park — regularly use this workflow to recover legacy designs, source second suppliers, or restart production when original documentation is lost. Turnaround for a standard 2–8 layer FR-4 board runs 5–8 working days from the moment we receive the sample.
Why Tel Aviv Teams Need Remote PCB Copy Services
Israel’s electronics ecosystem is R&D-heavy. Prototypes move fast, and production often happens overseas. When the original design house closes, a key engineer leaves, or a contract manufacturer drops support, the only artifact left may be the populated board itself. A PCB copy service bridges that gap.
Common scenarios we handle for Tel Aviv-area clients:
- Legacy military or defense sub-assemblies — boards designed 10–20 years ago with no surviving CAD files, now needing a re-spin for component obsolescence.
- Medical-device sustaining engineering — IEC 60601-compliant boards where the CM changed and the new fab needs native Gerber + stackup data.
- Startup IP recovery — a prototype PCB built by a freelance contractor who delivered only assembled units, not source files.
- Second-source qualification — duplicating a single-vendor board so a backup fab can quote against the same data package.
What You Receive: Deliverable Package
| Deliverable | Format | Detail Level |
|---|---|---|
| Gerber files (all layers) | RS-274X / Gerber X2 | Copper, mask, silk, drill, outline, paste |
| Bill of Materials | Excel / CSV | Designator, value, package, MPN, alternates where identified |
| Schematic | PDF + editable (Altium / KiCad / OrCAD on request) | Netlist-verified against physical board |
| Stackup report | Layer order, dielectric thickness, copper weight, impedance notes | |
| Centroid / pick-and-place | CSV | X-Y coordinates, rotation, side |
Every file set undergoes a DRC pass before delivery. For boards with controlled-impedance traces — common in RF and high-speed designs coming out of Israel’s telecom sector — we include a measured-vs-calculated impedance comparison in the stackup report.
How PCB Copy Works for Clients Shipping From Tel Aviv
Step 1 — Initial Assessment
Email photos of both sides of the board plus any known specs (layer count, board thickness, special materials). We reply within one business day with a fixed-price quote. Most quotes for 2–6 layer boards land between $600 and $2,400 depending on complexity and component density.
Step 2 — Ship the Sample
Send one populated unit via DHL or FedEx from Tel Aviv. Declare as “electronic sample for engineering analysis, no commercial value.” Israeli customs rarely flags outbound engineering samples, but we can provide an import reference letter if your logistics team needs one. Transit to our lab typically takes 3–4 business days.
Step 3 — Board Imaging and Deconstruction
We photograph and scan each layer using a 2400 DPI optical scanner. For multilayer boards (4+ layers), we micro-section or chemically strip layers one at a time, imaging each copper plane. Trace widths down to 3 mil (0.076 mm) and via diameters down to 8 mil (0.2 mm) are captured accurately.
Step 4 — CAD Reconstruction
Our engineers rebuild the design in Altium Designer or KiCad, cross-referencing scanned images against physical measurements. Every net is checked for continuity. BOM components are identified by package, markings, and — where markings are worn — by circuit function and measurement.
Step 5 — Verification and Delivery
The completed file package is delivered via encrypted link. You review, we iterate on any discrepancies at no extra charge within the first revision cycle. Average total turnaround: 5–8 working days for boards up to 8 layers; 10–14 days for 10–16 layer HDI designs.
Shipping and Customs: Israel-Specific Notes
Tel Aviv is well-served by international couriers, so logistics are rarely a bottleneck. A few specifics worth noting:
- Export controls: If the board is part of a defense or dual-use system, confirm with your export-compliance officer before shipping. We do not require the board to be functional — depopulated or damaged boards are fine for PCB copy purposes.
- Return shipping: The original board is returned with the file package if requested. Some clients prefer us to retain it for 90 days in case re-measurement is needed.
- NDA coverage: We execute mutual NDAs under either Israeli or international arbitration terms before any board ships. Data is stored on encrypted, access-controlled servers and purged on request after project close.
Teams across the Middle East use a similar remote workflow. Engineers handling equipment maintenance projects in Dubai, for instance, follow the same DHL-based sample-ship process with comparable transit times.
Capability Limits — What We Can and Cannot Copy
| Parameter | Supported Range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Layer count | 1–16 | Beyond 16 layers: case-by-case feasibility review |
| Min trace/space | 3 mil / 3 mil | Below 3/3: requires SEM imaging, adds 3–5 days |
| Board materials | FR-4, Rogers, polyimide flex, aluminum-core | Ceramic substrates quoted individually |
| Component pitch | Down to 0.3 mm (BGA, QFN, 01005) | X-ray imaging used for hidden-pad packages |
| Embedded components | Embedded passives identified; embedded die flagged | Die-level copy not offered |
| Firmware / IC readout | Separate service; authorization required | See NDA and ownership verification policy |
Rigid-flex boards — increasingly common in Israeli wearable and aerospace designs — are fully supported. We document the flex zone bend radius, stiffener locations, and coverlay details in addition to standard Gerber layers.
How Tel Aviv Compares to Other Markets We Serve
Israel’s tech density means the boards we receive from Tel Aviv tend to be higher-complexity than average — more multilayer HDI, more controlled-impedance RF, more fine-pitch BGA. That aligns our Tel Aviv project mix closely with what we see from clients in Japan’s electronics corridor and from Korean hardware teams. Shipping times from Ben Gurion Airport to our lab are comparable to those from Singapore — typically 3–4 business days door to door.
Pricing Signals for PCB Copy From Tel Aviv
We quote per-project, not per-layer or per-component, so you get a fixed price before shipping. Typical ranges:
- Single or double-sided, low-density: $400–$800
- 4–6 layer, moderate BGA count: $800–$1,800
- 8–12 layer HDI, controlled impedance: $1,800–$3,500
- 14–16 layer, blind/buried vias: $3,000–$5,500+
Rush service (3 working days for ≤6 layer boards) is available at 1.5× standard pricing. Volume discounts apply when copying multiple board variants from the same product family.
Quality Checks Built Into Every Project
Every PCB copy project passes through three verification gates before file delivery:
- Layer-to-layer registration check — overlay alignment verified to ≤0.5 mil across all layers.
- Netlist comparison — extracted netlist compared against physical continuity measurements on the original board.
- DRC against target fab rules — if you specify your preferred fabricator, we run their design rules against the output Gerbers. Default DRC uses IPC Class 2 tolerances.
Clients who need to fabricate immediately after receiving files — a common urgency pattern with Shenzhen-based production partners — can request a fab-ready certification note confirming the files passed DRC for a named manufacturer’s process.
Check feasibility for your project
Send the chip marking or board details and tell us what you need to recover. Add clear photos if available.
Request a feasibility reviewCan I ship a populated board from Tel Aviv, or does it need to be bare?
Populated boards are preferred. Components help us identify part numbers and verify circuit function during schematic reconstruction. If you can only send a bare board, we can still extract Gerber files, but BOM accuracy depends on any reference documentation you provide alongside the sample.
How do you handle boards with conformal coating or potting compound?
We remove conformal coating (acrylic, silicone, urethane) chemically or mechanically before imaging. Potted sections require more time — typically 1–2 extra working days — and there is a small risk of trace damage on very thin flex substrates under heavy epoxy potting. We flag this during the quote stage.
Is PCB copy legal for boards I designed but lost the files for?
Yes. Recovering your own design data from a physical board you own is standard engineering practice. We require a signed declaration of ownership or authorized use before starting work. For boards involving third-party IP, we recommend consulting your legal counsel and can structure the engagement under NDA with appropriate safeguards.
What if some component markings are sanded off or unreadable?
Our engineers identify unmarked components by measuring electrical characteristics (resistance, capacitance, inductance) in-circuit and cross-referencing package dimensions against manufacturer databases. For ICs with removed markings, we can often narrow the part to a family based on pin count, die size (via X-ray), and circuit context. Exact MPN identification is not always possible — we note confidence levels in the BOM.
Do you offer prototype fabrication from the copied files?
We do not operate a fab line, but we partner with vetted fabricators who can produce prototype quantities (5–20 pcs) directly from the Gerber package we deliver. We can coordinate this as a turnkey add-on if you prefer a single point of contact from copy through first-article boards.
Working on a board like this?
Send the chip marking or two photos. You get feasibility, lead time and price within 24 hours, and the check costs nothing.
Get a free quote