System Blueprints

What Is a System Blueprint?#

A System Blueprint is a paid engineering engagement that produces a complete technical and financial roadmap for your test system. It answers the question every complex test project eventually hits: "What exactly are we building, what will it cost, and how long will it take?"

Typical engagements run 2-4 weeks for well-defined requirements. Open-ended scopes — where requirements need collaborative exploration — run on a time-and-materials basis (roughly 120 hours billed monthly) and take longer.

The Blueprint is a standalone deliverable. You own the report outright. There's no obligation to build with FixturFab afterward. Pricing starts at $6,000 for well-defined scopes.

What You Get#

The engagement produces a Blueprint Report — a single comprehensive document covering every dimension of your test system:

System Design

• Block diagram of the complete system architecture
• Bill of materials for all hardware, instrumentation, and integration components
• Final system estimate with line-item cost breakdowns

Test Plan

• Identification of key functional test areas and individual test cases
• Test cases tied to specific test points and connectors on your board
• Instrumentation requirements for each test area
• FMEA (failure mode and effects analysis) for critical test paths

Fixture Selection — Cartridge/adapter and accessory recommendations matched to your board geometry and testing requirements

Instrumentation Selection

• Specific instrumentation recommendations (make/model)
• Required software modules for each instrument
• Custom development requirements — what needs to be built vs. bought

Data Management & Operational Requirements — Compliance reporting, analytics dashboards, maintenance scheduling, and service documentation

Qualification & Acceptance Plan — Formal criteria the finished system must meet before deployment

Three Paths After Your Blueprint#

Once you have the Blueprint Report, you decide what happens next.

Self-integrate. Take the Blueprint and build the system yourself. Configure fixtures in Studio, purchase instrumentation from Shop, and build your test automation on our open-source Python frameworks: pytest-f3ts for hardware functional testing, test-runner for deployment and operator GUI, and f3ts-hardware-utils for instrumentation control. This path is faster, cheaper, and builds internal capability your team keeps forever.

Take it elsewhere. The Blueprint Report is yours. Use it to scope the project with any integrator or build team. No strings attached.

Proceed with FixturFab Turnkey. The Final System Estimate and architecture from the Blueprint become the starting point for a Turnkey Test System engagement. No re-scoping, no surprises — the architecture work is already done.

What to Bring#

A productive Blueprint engagement starts with your team's existing documentation:

• PCBA manufacturing files — Gerbers, ODB++, or IPC-D-356
• 3D PCBA model — STEP format preferred
• Test point list — Mapping of accessible test points on the board
• Detailed test plan — Functional requirements, pass/fail criteria, coverage targets
• Instrumentation preferences — If your team has existing equipment or vendor relationships (optional)
• Physical DUT — A sample board for hands-on evaluation (optional)

Do You Need a Blueprint?#

Not every test project needs formal architecture work. Be honest about whether yours does.

You probably don't need one if:

• You're testing a single board with standard bench instrumentation
• Your test engineer has built similar systems before
• The fixture connects directly to common equipment (DMM, power supply, scope)
• You're already using our open-source frameworks — they define the system architecture for you

A Blueprint adds value when:

• You have complex test requirements you haven't fully scoped
• This is your team's first production-scale test infrastructure
• You need formal documentation for regulatory or quality environments
• You want expert architecture review before committing $50K+ to a build
• You're unsure whether you need a full Turnkey system or just a Custom Fixture — the Blueprint clarifies scope and could save you significant cost

That last point matters. Blueprint engagements sometimes reveal that the "complex system" a team envisioned is actually a well-chosen fixture plus standard instrumentation. Paying $6K to avoid a $50K overinvestment is a good trade.

The Process#

Discovery meeting. A 1-on-1 requirements discussion with a FixturFab engineer. We'll cover your product line, testing goals, and timeline. NDA executed if needed. You'll leave with budgetary pricing and a proposed engagement timeline.

The Blueprint itself progresses through three milestones:

1. Test Plan Outline — FixturFab presents our intended test approach for initial review. This is where we align on scope before investing detailed engineering effort.
2. Test Plan Review — Customer signs off on the complete Test Plan and Test Point List. This locks the technical scope for the rest of the Blueprint.
3. Blueprint Report Review — We walk through the entire package together: system design, instrumentation selection, cost estimates, qualification plan. Q&A about next steps — whether that's self-integration, another vendor, or a Turnkey build.

The milestone structure keeps customers involved at every decision point. There are no surprises at delivery because you've reviewed and approved the approach at each stage.

Get Started#

Ready to scope your test system project? Contact us to discuss requirements and determine whether a Blueprint engagement is the right starting point.