Learn how to use DigiKey’s myLists to coordinate and simplify parts purchasing. The sharable lists are scalable: from small student purchases, direct transfer from PCB design tools, or even staged parts lists for PCB production runs.
This article introduces DigiKey’s myLists and provides a series of use cases showcasing the tool’s versatility. Use the index on the right to jump to the section best describing your situation.
What is a Digikey myList?
DigiKey’s myLists provide an easy method to coordinate a purchase up and across multiple levels of your organization. They are like shopping carts but without the added complexity of passwords. They allow an engineers, technicians, and student to create a lasting parts list for future use. The list may be shared publicly or with registered coworkers.
Chances are, you have already seen myLists functions on a product page. An example is the onsemi 2N3904BU as shown in Figure 1. The blue circled button allows us to add the part to a myList as opposed to the shopping cart.
DigiKey’s myLists are particularly effective for the printed circuit board developer. Programs such as kiCad allow you to transfer the Bill Of Materials (BOM) directly into DigiKey. This time saving feature is useful for a single printed circuit board or for a production run of 1000.
Figure 1: The DigiKey myList functionality (blue circle) is built into the individual product pages.
The DigiKey myLists provides a many-to-one shopping cart experience
The DigiKey myLists are like a staging area for your shopping cart. Instead of one shopping cart, we can have many lists which may then be used to fill a shopping cart when we are ready to complete the order. This is useful for recurring purchases of common components or consumables. It is also perfect for patch processing or just a simple scratchpad to capture ideas as you go about design business. It’s perfect for capturing the wishlist of parts as you think of new ideas.
As implied in Figure 1, the “Add to List” function is on par with the “Add to Cart” function. When we select “add to List” the box in Figure 2 appears which allows us to add the part to an existing list or create a new list.
Figure 2: This pop-up window allows you to select which of your DigiKey lists to use.
Use myLists for an orderly parts substitution
Supply chains present unavoidable challenges, especially when each part must be present before an assembly may be completed. It’s been my experience that unavailable or obsolete parts add confusion and delay as the technician and engineer often do not have direct purchasing authority. This often leads to a long email chain to resolve the situation.
The DigiKey myLists allow us to be proactive by embedding suitable alternative directly into the myList. For instance, figure 3 shows item 1 as a onsemi 2N3904BU. We have proactively added the Central Semiconductor 2N3904 PBFREE. For most application, these 2N3904 Jellybean components are equivalent.
When we pass this list to your company’s purchasing department, they can independently select the alternative part. You can have confidence that the correct part was selected and that your parts will arrive as soon as possible.
Figure 3: Example of a proactive parts substitution of a Central Semiconductor 2N3904 PBFREE for the onsemi 2N3904BU.
Where can I learn more about DigiKey’s myLists
This video provides an excellent introduction to DigiKey’s MyLists:
Use case: education
Students can leverage DigiKey’s miLists in a variety of ways:
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Class parts lists: Many introductory classes have been moved to an on-line format. This includes many introductory analog and digital electronics classes. Instructors can develop class specific lists for each class. This may include parts lists for electronics 101 or digital 102. Students enrolled in both classes can transfer each list into their DigiKey shopping cart for a single delivery from DigiKey.
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Student purchases: Capstone student projects present logistical challenges. Some colleges will assist with the parts purchase. The myList is a good way for students to “turn in” their parts list. They can be quickly reviewed and then placed into a single list. This is another example of the many-to-one functionality where many students may submit their parts request. The instructor can consolidate the lists and then pass a single shopping cart to purchasing.
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PCB prototype: Mylists can be developed directly from a student PCB design using KiCad. See the use case as listed below.
Use case: field technicians
Technicians are responsible for the repair and maintenance of a variety of equipment including industrial control systems. Some shops provide a central logistics “cage” while other shops delegate logistic responsibility directly to the technicians. Either way, the technician is involved in the logistics operation.
Here are some ideas for using myLists:
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Common parts: commonly used parts could be placed into lists. For instance, a list could be maintained for each machine. This will save time as the part and preidentified substitution are easily found. For instance, if there is a critical equipment casualty, the technician may use the list to quickly locate a part that was purchased in the past.
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Consumables: There may be times when a maintenance procedure calls for replacement of a collection of parts. This parts collection could be pre-staged in a list.
Use case: wishlist
Do you maintain a future projects list?
One way to organize ideas is to place the parts into a personal myList. After you have reviewed the datasheet, drop the part into the myLists so that you can engage with the ideas when you have more time.
Use case: PCB prototype
KiCad is a popular tool used for PCB design. There is a DigiKey myLists addon that may be used to automatically populate the list directly from the BOM. The process is described in this TechForum article.
In my opinion, this technique is best used as an iterative process. Early in the design process, the tool can be used to verify the availability of the parts. This will inform the schematic and PCB layout as obscure or unavailable parts can be identified and eliminated from the design. Later, the BOM can be purchased using the previously described myLists process.
Use case: PCB production
Like the PCB prototype use case, we can develop a list for each assembly. For example, you may be responsible for procuring the components fort a 1000-unit production run. A list could be maintained for each of your assemblies. This expedites purchasing and provides a mechanism for locating alternative parts.
Parting thoughts
DigiKey myLists are a reliable and useful logistics tool for a variety of customers. This article provides a brief introduction with a variety of use cases. Be sure to review this video for more information.
Get started today with DigiKey myLists.
How do you use myLists to simplify and enhance your ordering experience?
We would love to hear from you.
Best wishes,
APDahlen
Related information
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About this author
Aaron Dahlen, LCDR USCG (Ret.), serves as an application engineer at DigiKey. He has a unique electronics and automation foundation built over a 27-year military career as a technician and engineer which was further enhanced by 12 years of teaching (interwoven). With an MSEE degree from Minnesota State University, Mankato, Dahlen has taught in an ABET-accredited EE program, served as the program coordinator for an EET program, and taught component-level repair to military electronics technicians. Dahlen has returned to his Northern Minnesota home and thoroughly enjoys researching and writing articles such as this.