Skip to main content

​
Overview

Knowlix PLM provides a structured workflow for managing product changes throughout the entire product lifecycle. Engineering change orders track every modification to bills of materials and manufacturing operations, with version history, stakeholder approvals, and controlled rollout to production. Key features:
  • Engineering change order (ECO) management
  • Configurable ECO types for different change categories
  • Version-controlled bills of materials with full history
  • Verification stages with required approver workflows
  • Component and operation comparison between versions
  • Design file management per BOM version
  • Rebase resolution for concurrent ECOs on the same product

​
ECO Types

ECO types categorize change orders into separate project tracks, allowing team members to focus only on the changes relevant to their function. Examples of ECO types:
  • New Product Introduction (for design and engineering teams)
  • BOM Updates (for production planners)
  • Component Substitutions (for procurement)
  • Firmware Updates (for software engineers)
  • Regulatory Compliance (for quality and legal teams)

​
Creating an ECO Type

Navigate to PLM > Configuration > ECO Types and click New.
  • Name - the label for this change category; appears on project cards in the PLM Overview
  • Email Alias - when configured, emails sent to this address automatically generate new change orders in the leftmost stage of the project

​
Editing ECO Types

Open any existing type from the ECO Types list to modify the name or email alias.

​
Stages

Within each ECO type’s Kanban view, stages represent milestones in the review and approval process. Default stages are New, In Progress, Validated, and Effective, but all stages are fully customizable. Stage types:
  • Verification stage - requires designated approver sign-off before changes can proceed
  • Closing stage - either applies changes to production or closes the ECO as cancelled

​
Configuring a Verification Stage

Hover over the stage name, click the Actions icon, and select Edit. In the stage popup, check Allow to Apply Changes and add at least one approver in the Approvers section. Set the approval type to control how strictly the approval is enforced.

​
Configuring a Closing Stage

Edit the stage and enable:
  • Folded in Kanban View - keeps completed ECOs from cluttering the active board
  • Allow to Apply Changes - ECOs moved here update the production BOM immediately
  • Final Stage - marks this as the end of the pipeline; ECOs here are considered closed
To create a cancellation stage that archives ECOs without applying changes, enable Folded in Kanban View and Final Stage but leave Allow to Apply Changes unchecked.

​
Engineering Change Orders

​
Creating an ECO

Navigate to PLM, select the appropriate ECO type project, and click New on the Engineering Change Orders page. ECO form fields:
  • Description - a summary of the change being made
  • Type - the ECO type category this change belongs to
  • Apply On - Bill of Materials or Product Only
  • Product - the product being modified
  • Bill of Materials - the specific BOM to revise (auto-populated if only one BOM exists)
  • Company - restrict the change to one company or leave blank for all companies
  • Responsible - the person managing this ECO
  • Effective - when the change takes effect: As Soon as Possible (applied immediately upon approval) or At Date (scheduled for a specific date)
  • Tags - optional labels for organizing and prioritizing ECOs
After completing the form, click Start Revision to begin. This action creates a versioned copy of the BOM, stores it in the Revision smart button, assigns the next version number (V2, V3, etc.), and displays the stage indicators at the top of the ECO form.

​
Changing Components

Click the Revision smart button to open the archived working copy of the BOM. This version is flagged with a large Archived label to distinguish it from the active production BOM. In the Components tab, make changes:
  • Adjust quantities on existing components
  • Add new lines using Add a Line
  • Remove components using the trash icon

​
Comparing Component Changes

Return to the ECO form and open the BoM Changes tab to see a color-coded comparison:
  • Blue text - components added in the revision that do not exist in production
  • Black text - components present in both versions
  • Red text - components removed in the revision
Changes remain isolated in the working revision and do not affect production until explicitly applied.

​
Changing Operations

Open the Revision BOM and switch to the Operations tab to modify manufacturing steps. Select any operation to open its details, make changes, and save. Add new operations with Add a Line and remove them using the Archive Operation option. The Operation Changes tab on the ECO form shows:
  • Operation - the name of the modified step
  • Step - the quality control point, if detailed instructions are attached
  • Step Type - the control type for the step
  • Type - Add, Remove, or Update
  • Work Center - where the operation takes place
  • Manual Duration Change - the change in expected completion time

​
Applying Changes

Once the ECO has been reviewed and moved to a verification stage, required approvers receive notifications. After approval, the Apply Changes button becomes available. Click it to:
  1. Archive the current production BOM
  2. Promote the revised BOM to active production status
  3. Move the ECO to the closing stage automatically
Verify the update by returning to the production BOM and checking the Version field in the Miscellaneous tab. It should match the version number shown on the ECO’s Revision smart button.

​
Version Control

​
Viewing the Current BOM Version

Open any BOM and go to the Miscellaneous tab. The Version field shows which revision is currently active in production.

​
Reviewing BOM History

From any BOM, click the ECO smart button and switch to List view. Apply the Done filter to see the complete revision history, including:
  • The ECO that made each change
  • The Responsible user who applied it
  • The Effective Date of each version
Click any historical ECO to review the components, operations, and design files that were active during that period. This is useful for product recalls, compliance audits, and customer complaints. If the Effective Date field is blank, the change was applied “as soon as possible” with no date recorded. Check the ECO’s chatter for a timestamp of when it moved to the closing stage.

​
Managing Design Files

Attach CAD files, technical drawings, PDFs, or other documentation to a BOM through the chatter’s attachment button. Files appear in the Files section. To manage design files within a specific ECO, click the Documents smart button on the ECO form. Hover over any attachment to access Edit, Remove, or Download options. Changes to these files are contained within the ECO and only update the production BOM when the ECO is applied. Archived files are not permanently deleted. They remain accessible in the ECO history of the version where they were removed.

​
Resolving Concurrent ECO Conflicts

When two ECOs modify the same BOM simultaneously, a conflict can arise if one is applied before the other. The outdated ECO will show a Previous ECO BOM Changes tab highlighting the differences. Click Apply Rebase to incorporate the changes from the already-applied ECO into the current working revision while preserving any new modifications made in this ECO.

​
Approvals

Approvals enforce review gates before changes reach production. When a required approver is assigned to a verification stage, the Apply Changes button is locked until that approver confirms the ECO.

​
Adding Approvers to a Stage

From the ECO type’s Kanban view, hover over the intended stage, click the Actions icon, and select Edit. In the popup, click Add a Line under Approvals and configure:
  • Role - the reviewer’s position (Engineering Manager, Quality Lead, etc.)
  • User - the specific person assigned
  • Approval Type:
    • Is Required to Approve - changes cannot proceed without this sign-off
    • Approves, But Approval is Optional - their approval is recorded but not blocking
    • Comments Only - the reviewer can provide feedback but cannot approve or block

​
Managing Pending Approvals

Approvers track their open tasks from the PLM Overview. Each ECO type card shows:
  • # Engineering Changes - all active ECOs in this type
  • My Validations - ECOs awaiting this user’s approval or currently rejected
  • All Validations - all pending approvals across all approvers
  • To Apply - ECOs where this user needs to apply the final changes

​
Approving an ECO

Navigate to the ECO in the verification stage. As the assigned approver, click Approve to confirm acceptance, then click Apply Changes to push the revision to production. The chatter records each action with a timestamp. If no approver has the “Is Required to Approve” type, Apply Changes can be executed directly without a prior Approve click.

​
Best Practices

Create one ECO type per major change category and limit access so each team sees only the ECOs relevant to their role. Always use verification stages with required approvers before the closing stage in any production environment to prevent unauthorized BOM changes. Set explicit Effective Dates on ECOs for time-sensitive changes to maintain accurate version history. Use the BoM Changes and Operation Changes comparison tabs before approving to confirm exactly what will change in production. Attach updated design files to the ECO before applying changes to keep documentation synchronized with the BOM version. Your Knowlix: “Show me all ECOs currently awaiting my approval” or “Which products have had more than 3 BOM revisions this year?” or “List all engineering change orders in the validation stage” or “What changes were made to the keyboard BOM in version 3?” or “Which ECOs have been open for more than 30 days without approval?” or “Create a new ECO for a component substitution on the assembly line product”