There is nothing “magic” about how an antenna is manufactured. Many antennas are basically lengths of wire. Basic antennas can simply be etched onto PC boards or made of discrete wires. There are, however, a few potential problems to be aware of in the manufacturing process.
The Crucial Part of Antenna Construction: Maintaining the Correct Dimensions
The two arms of a dipole can simply be a pair of wires clamped in the correct position. They can also be made out of two traces on a PC board. Many antennas can either be PC board or wires; it does not make much difference.
Building the antenna is usually simple. Potential problems arise when it comes to sticking with the necessary dimensions. The horn, for example, is a little trickier, as it is actually a three-dimensional device that needs to be built per a given shape.
Another case is the parabolic dish. The parabolic dish may be easy enough to create when small, but as the dish becomes larger, manufacturing tolerances become increasingly significant, until a practical size limit for the dish is met. At that point, creating a larger dish is not beneficial.
The Significance of Small Errors in the Manufacturing Process
Antennas with a large mechanical element like the dish or horn are among the hardest to build — not because dealing with the material is difficult, but because little errors can cause large changes in performance.
As the frequency of the antenna goes up, the room for error tends to go down. Little changes in size and shape and material may cause notable changes in performance.
For PC board-based antennas operating at high frequencies, tolerances in the PC board characteristics can significantly diminish the performance of the antenna. The solution is to use high-quality PC board material, which can be expensive.
In general, low frequency antennas are easy to manufacture, while very high frequency antennas require some care. And, of course, antennas with a large mechanical element (such as the parabolic dish) need care in the construction.
Feed and Tuning Networks
Even if the antenna is correctly manufactured, it is important that feed and tuning networks are the correct size and shape. The concern when dealing with these issues is accurately transferring the designs to the real world without introducing error.
Location
Finally, many times the device that holds the antenna defines where the antenna will be placed and what shape it will take.
It is also important to know what other components the antenna will be placed next to.
Knowing these constraints on the front end mitigates manufacturing headaches — as long as the device is manufactured to the specifications established by simulation and testing.
ARSI 
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