Change Management · part of Engineering & PLM

Engineering Change Management Software Know what a change will hit before you approve it.

Raise an ECR, see every assembly, order, PPAP approval and FMEA it touches, route it through your approval steps and let the ECN release the new revisions when the work is done.

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The basics

What is engineering change management?

Engineering change management is the controlled process for changing a released part, BOM or document. A change request (ECR) proposes and assesses the change, approvers decide, and a change notice (ECN or ECO) carries it out: tasks get done, new revisions are released and everyone affected is told.

Most changes go wrong after the approval, not before it. The ECR form gets signed, but nobody checked the 11 open orders for the old part, purchase keeps buying the old seat ring, and the customer's PPAP approval quietly goes stale. Six months later an auditor asks who decided, and the answer is in someone's email.

Features

ECR, ECN and engineering change order software in one process

Engineering change requests with impact

List the affected parts, BOMs and documents on an ECR, and rate the impact on cost, quality, production, inventory, suppliers, customers and safety. The impact view shows stock, open orders, routings and quality records for each item.

Approval workflows you design

Build multi-stage approval flows without a developer. Each stage can need all approvers, any one, or a set number, can return or reject, and can run only when a condition on the form is met.

Engineering change notices that finish the job

An approved ECR creates its linked ECN. The ECN carries tasks for each department with owners and due dates, and releases the in-work part revisions it lists when it closes.

BOM change requests

A BCR adds, removes, replaces or changes the quantity of BOM lines, with effectivity and stock disposition. Closing it writes the new BOM revision.

Cost of the change, worked out

With Product Costing on, the before and after cost of each changed part is calculated from the BOM and routing changes, instead of a number someone typed.

One inbox and a full audit trail

Approvers act on every pending change from one inbox. Each request keeps its comments, attachments, linked requests and an audit log of every action.

Connected

Change Management doesn't live alone

ECNs release part revisions and BCRs revise BOMs in PLM. An approved ECR flags the PPAP approvals of the parts it lists, a 4M change can be raised from an ECR or ECN, and Product Costing works out the cost impact.

Standards and industries

Engineering change process for IATF 16949 and AS9100 suppliers

IndustryStandardWhat you get
AutomotiveIATF 16949, AIAG PPAPChange assessment, approval records and re-approval of affected PPAP parts
Aerospace and defenceAS9100DControlled design changes with interchangeability recorded and released revisions
General manufacturingISO 9001Review, authorisation and record of changes to products and documents
FAQ

Engineering change questions

Still unsure? Ask our team.

What is an engineering change request?

An engineering change request, or ECR, is the proposal to change a released part, BOM or document. It states the problem, the proposed solution, the affected items and the expected impact, and it goes through approval before any work starts.

What is an engineering change order?

An engineering change order, or ECO, is the instruction to carry out an approved change. Many companies call it an engineering change notice, or ECN. In YourBrand the ECN holds the implementation tasks and releases the new revisions when it closes.

What is the difference between an ECR and an ECO?

The ECR asks whether a change should happen. The ECO or ECN makes it happen. In YourBrand approving an ECR creates the linked ECN automatically, so the two stay connected in the record.

What is the difference between an ECO and an ECN?

Usually nothing but the name. Some companies use ECN for the notice sent to departments and ECO for the order to implement. YourBrand uses ECN, and you can rename forms to match your own procedure.

What does the engineering change order process look like?

Someone raises an ECR, the affected departments assess impact, approvers decide stage by stage, an ECN is created, each department completes its tasks, the new part and BOM revisions are released, and the ECN is closed. Every step is logged.

Can we change the forms and approval steps?

Yes. Administrators edit fields, sections and tabs in the form designer and approval stages in the workflow builder. Requests already raised stay on the version they started with.

Does it handle document changes too?

Yes. Document change requests create, revise or obsolete controlled documents, with distribution to departments and read acknowledgements. Closing one publishes the new document revision.

Approve changes knowing what they touch

We walk through it with your own parts and documents. It takes about 30 minutes.

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Related: Engineering & PLM suitePLM software4M change managementPPAP softwareIATF 16949