// ROBOTICS AND SMART FACTORIES TERM
Engineering Change
An engineering change refers to any modification or alteration made to a product's design, components, or manufacturing process after its initial release or during its lifecycle. These changes are formally documented and managed.
TECHNICAL DEFINITION
An engineering change (EC) is a formal modification or revision to a product's design, components, documentation, or manufacturing process, initiated to correct defects, improve performance, reduce cost, or comply with new regulations, managed through an Engineering Change Order (ECO) system.
BACKGROUND
The Fourth Industrial Revolution, also known as 4IR, Industry 4.0 or the Intelligence Age, is a neologism describing rapid technological advancement in the 21st century. It follows the Third Industrial Revolution. The term was popularized in 2016 by Klaus Schwab, the World Economic Forum founder and former executive chairman, who asserts that these developments represent a significant shift in industrial capitalism.
READ MORE ON WIKIPEDIASYNONYMS & ALIASES
- Design Change
- Product Revision
- ECO
- Modification
USAGE NOTE
Managing engineering changes effectively is critical to avoid production disruptions and ensure product quality.
DEVELOPERS
Organizations developing technology related to Engineering Change.
Siemens offers Teamcenter, a leading Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) solution that provides comprehensive capabilities for managing engineering changes, revisions, and configurations across the entire product lifecycle, critical for agile and resilient manufacturing in Industry 5.0.
PTC's Windchill PLM platform is a key technology for managing engineering change orders (ECOs), engineering change requests (ECRs), and product configurations, enabling manufacturers to efficiently track and implement design changes while maintaining data integrity.
Through its ENOVIA brand, Dassault Systèmes provides collaborative PLM solutions that are instrumental in managing engineering changes across the extended enterprise, ensuring traceability and impact analysis for manufacturing processes and the digital twin.
SAP's PLM portfolio, deeply integrated with its ERP solutions, offers robust functionality for managing engineering changes, product structures, and manufacturing master data, crucial for maintaining consistency and compliance in global production.
Aras Innovator provides a flexible and scalable PLM platform that specializes in managing complex engineering changes, allowing companies to quickly adapt product designs and manufacturing processes to new requirements and maintain a complete digital thread.
Oracle Cloud PLM offers integrated solutions for product data management, bill of material (BOM) management, and robust engineering change control, streamlining the process of implementing and communicating design modifications throughout the supply chain.
Autodesk Vault, their data management software, helps manage and track engineering changes, revisions, and release processes for CAD data and related documents, improving design collaboration and ensuring that manufacturing has access to the most current information.
Propel offers cloud-native Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) and Product Information Management (PIM) solutions that streamline engineering change management, quality processes, and product collaboration, helping manufacturers innovate faster and get products to market.