Bill of Materials (BOM)

The Bill of Materials (BOM) is a document created during the product development process, serving as a comprehensive list of everything needed to construct a finished product.

In simple terms, the BOM is a snapshot of the product configuration at a given time.

What is the Bill of Materials?

The Bill of Materials is a formal document that serves as part of the overall documentation package created during the design phase to convey the design and engineering department's intent.

Key functions and characteristics of the BOM include:

Structure Definition:

The BOM lists the product's Parent/Child relationships, detailing the necessary parts, assemblies, and materials.

Content:

It details part and material information that must be incorporated, often specifying quantities and the entity (e.g., assembly, vendor, or standard part).

Process Integration:

Creating bills of material is a common activity completed in the Design Output Stage of product development. This activity involves taking information gathered from designers and engineers and incorporating it into the BOM.

Management:

While often viewed as ancillary to the main product drawing/configuration documentation, the BOM activities may be handled by a computerized system, such as an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system.

Role in Quality Management and Control

The creation and proper control of the BOM are crucial activities within an organization’s Quality Management System (QMS) and are considered part of Design Control requirements.

Review and Approval

The BOM (or "parts lists") documentation must be checked and approved after design changes are made, prior to being released for manufacturing.

Final Review

The completed BOM is typically reviewed during the Design Output Stage Design Review (which can be considered a Final Design Review) to ensure it is satisfactory before the product moves toward production.

Configuration Control

The BOM is considered a snapshot of the configuration. Its approval is valid only at the time of review because parts listed in it (especially commodity parts) may change independently of other, more specialized parts associated with the design. Any proposed changes to the BOM must be requested and executed in a controlled fashion

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