Rules for Assigning Enterprise Item Numbers (EIN)

An EIN is a string of characters that distinguishes a product from others objects in the system. When you open a product, the EIN appears in the identity card. An EIN also appears for each object in the child product list. Depending on how your administrator has configured your system, you either enter the entire EIN, parts of it, or select the EIN from a list. The EIN might also be optional or required.

You cannot assign the EIN to a product if the selected product:

  • Is not in the Private, In Work, or Frozen maturity state.
  • Is Reserved by another user.
  • Belongs to another project.

This page discusses:

Rules for Common Enterprise Item Numbers

Unless your administrator requires you to use unique EIN values, you can use the same value for multiple products without limit. However, your administrator might still require you to use a specified numbering format.

Rules for Unique Enterprise Item Numbers

If your system requires EIN values to be unique, these rules apply for adding or updating EIN values for products:

  • EIN values must be unique throughout the system for all products and their subtypes.
  • If there is no required format, you can enter an EIN using any alphanumeric or special character string that is unique in the system.
  • The system verifies uniqueness only when you assign or update EIN values; it does not verify EIN values that are already in the database.
  • The system allows duplicate EIN values of "None."
  • EIN values are not case-sensitive.

Rules for Revisions

The EIN values that you assign must be the same for all revisions of the same product. However, your administrator can change this requirement.

The rules below apply for adding or updating EIN values for product revisions.

  • When you create a product, only one revision (A.1, the revision you created) exists. Its EIN shows as None. You can modify the EIN as required.
  • When you revise a product, the EIN value of the most recent revision (whether None or an assigned value) is copied to the subsequent revision that you create.
  • You can enter an EIN for only one revision within a revision chain. However, the EIN is not copied to the other revisions. If you assign an EIN to other revisions of the product, you must use the same EIN that has already been assigned in the revision chain. Otherwise, you can leave the EIN as None.
Note: Your administrator might configure the system such that the same EIN is not required across all revisions of a product. Regardless of whether the same EIN is required across revisions, the EIN is copied from the most recent revision to the next as you create it. Afterward, you can modify the EIN values as required.

Enforced Enterprise Item Numbers

If a product has revisions with different assigned EIN values, you can modify the EIN for any revision. However, you can only select a value that already exists in the revision chain. You cannot introduce new EIN values to a revision chain.