About Part Float for MBOM

This section describes how assemblies and structures become updated when one or more of their child parts is revised.

This page discusses:

Floating Defined

Floating is the process that occurs when a user updates an assembly or structure MBOM when a new revision of a part is available. When the user updates the revision, the new revision "floats" to all levels of the MBOM that use the part. Floating occurs only when the new revision is available and the user initiates it.

Note: If the options described below are not available, contact your administrator to request part floating to be enabled.

Who can Apply Floating

All users can see that later revisions are available; however, only users with these roles can float parts to later revisions:

  • Design Engineer
  • Senior Design Engineer
  • VPLMCreator
  • VPLMProjectLeader

Enabling Floating

By default, the float feature is enabled. If floating is disabled, contact your administrator.

Replacement of a part with its Latest Revision

You can update a part in an EBOM to the part's latest revision, regardless of whether the revision is released or unreleased.

Whenever you replace a part with its latest revision, remember that:

  • If there are multiple higher revisions exist for a given part, the part is updated to the latest revision, regardless of whether the latest revision is released or unreleased.
  • A child part will not be updated to an unreleased version if its parent is released.
  • The revision is updated only in the BOM that is on screen. No other BOMs in the database are affected.
  • You can select which obsolete parts are not updated.
  • Updating to later revisions that have FN or RD values different from the current revision is allowed.

Replacement of a Part with its Latest Released Revision

You can update a part in an EBOM to the latest released revision of the part.

Whenever you replace a part with its latest released revision, remember that:

  • Parts are replaced with only the latest released part. Unreleased revisions are ignored. However, if the latest revision is unreleased, the revision indicator will continue to be shown after the update.
  • The revision is updated only in the BOM that is on screen. No other BOMs in the database are affected.
  • Obsolete parts, whether parent or child, are not updated.
  • Updating to later revisions that have FN or RD values different from the current revision is allowed.

Replacement of a Part with a Selected Revision

You can update the part with any of the higher revisions based on parent part maturity.

You can update the revision of a part to any later revision, not necessarily the latest revision. The later revision can be either released or unreleased.

Whenever you replace a part with its latest released revision, remember that:

  • A child part will not be updated to an unreleased revision if its parent is released.
  • Only one part at a time can be updated to the revision you select. The part itself must first be selected before you can select the updated revision.
  • If a part appears in more than one instance at the same level in the BOM, you cannot update all instances at the same time (since multiple instances of a part cannot have the same revision at the same BOM level).

Revision Management

You can update the revision of one or more parts to any later revision, not necessarily the latest revision. The later revision can be either released or unreleased. This feature lists all the parts in the BOM that have later revisions. You can then select for each part the revision to which you want to update. The changes take affect throughout the BOM. Only one revision can be selected for each part.

Selecting Multiple Revisions

If a part is listed multiple times at the same level in a BOM, each instance of that part must have the same revision.

For example, an assembly can include a revision 3 and revision 4 of a sprocket but only at different levels of the BOM. No one level of the BOM can contain both revisions.

Floating Configured Parts

Several rules determine the behavior of BOMs that contain configured parts. These rules determine which revisions of parts (and of their parents where applicable) can be updated.

  • A revision of a released, configured parent part cannot be updated.
  • All configured parts in a configured WIP BOM retain their revision number when the BOM is released.
  • When a pending effectivity change for a released, configured part goes into effect, the revision of the part's parent remains unchanged.
  • A released child of a released, configured parent part can be updated.