Visibility
Make requested changes and their context available to the relevant disciplines.
Can reviewers find the proposal, its reason and the records it concerns before work proceeds?
Engineering Change ManagementOne change.
One change.
A clear path forward.
Give a product change the context it needs. Connect the reason, the people and the work—from the first reported issue to a controlled release.
Explore engineering change managementConnect the proposed change to an accountable decisionWhat is engineering
What is engineering
change management?
Engineering change management coordinates the creation, review and formal approval of proposed changes. It connects the reason for a change with the product information, people and implementation work involved.
A revised drawing alone does not explain who evaluated the change or how it should be introduced. Start with one real example: an installation detail needs clarification. Identify the affected drawing, the person who must review it and the information the receiving team will use.
The configured process determines which records and reviews are needed. Finishing an edit is different from authorizing its release.
Understand the product definition behind a changeEngineering change management in Windchill
Watch a workflow demonstration showing how change information and assigned work come together. This is an earlier interface demonstration; screens and configured behavior may differ from your environment.
Evaluate the work the process makes clearerWhat are the benefits of
What are the benefits of
engineering change management?
A useful change process makes a decision easier to understand and carry out. Evaluate the outcomes against a familiar handoff, rather than treating a workflow diagram as proof of improvement.
Traceability
Retain a relationship between the decision and the information it changes.
Could a later colleague understand which definition was reviewed and why a new result was introduced?
Governance
Give the work a defined owner, review responsibility and release path.
Does each participant know what they are responsible for doing, checking or authorizing?
Use a recent handoff as the test
Bring a change where the team had to reconstruct an email trail or clarify which record to use. Agree what should be easier to locate, who needs to see it and how the receiving team confirms the outcome.
Explore WindchillHistory and signatures support process evidence. Compliance depends on the wider governed process, its configuration and validation.
Match the capability to the decision it supportsFrom proposal to release.
From proposal to release.
Keep every decision connected.
Use these capabilities to discuss how your organization handles a change. Start with the record or responsibility that is unclear; do not assume every change requires every available stage.
Standardized change processes
Choose a route appropriate to the decision.
Read capability details+
Basic, fast-track and full-track approaches support different review needs. Agree when a focused notice is sufficient and when change administration or review boards must participate.
Configurable change processes
Fit the review to the product and organization.
Read capability details+
A prototype clarification and a sustaining-production change may need different responsibilities and evidence. Define those differences before configuring the workflow.
Read capability details+
Record enough context for investigation, including the relevant product information. A report may originate from a customer or supplier; it is not itself a released design change.
Deviations and waivers
Make a temporary exception explicit.
Read capability details+
Identify its intended scope, duration and decision authority. Ask how affected teams will recognize the exception and what happens when it no longer applies.
Read capability details+
A notice describes the tasks and assignments needed to implement a change. It may refer to one or more requests, or be created without a preceding request when the administrator has configured that process.
Electronic signatures
Keep sign-offs connected to change information.
Read capability details+
Agree which actions require a sign-off and who can perform them. Retained comments and history help explain a decision; a signature alone does not establish regulatory compliance.
Workflow and task templates
Route defined work with the information people need.
Read capability details+
Name the expected output, review responsibility and records for each assignment. Include a way to return work for clarification or amendment rather than equating task completion with release.
Manufacturing-system publication
Scope how approved information reaches downstream systems.
Explore manufacturing process managementRead capability details+
A configured ERP Connector can publish product information to distribution targets. Define the supported records, mappings, release trigger and target handling; advanced two-way behavior requires additional configuration and customization.
Business rules
Check the information against agreed corporate criteria.
Read capability details+
Specify the conditions that make a record ready for the next activity. Review missing or inconsistent information with the responsible team; an automated check is only as meaningful as the criteria it applies.
Remote requirements
Bring linked requirement context into impact review.
Explore requirements managementRead capability details+
Where supported, OSLC traceability can connect requirements held in another system. Agree the authoritative source, access and relationship scope before relying on that context.
Connect the decision to the product and its usersIndustry demands.
Industry demands.
Changes with a clear scope.
A change means different work for different products. Use these industry situations to identify the affected definition, the people who need to review it and the information the receiving team must recognize. Follow the industry guides for the wider product-development context.
Aerospace & Defense
A proposed equipment change may apply to a particular program or configuration. Identify its affected product records and review responsibilities, then make the authorized scope recognizable to production and sustainment teams.
Program and configuration scope
Explore Aerospace & DefenseHow will the receiving team recognize which program or configuration the authorized change applies to?
Industrial Machinery
A machine improvement can change parts, assembly information and service preparation. Separate the work for a new build from the action needed for installed equipment, with a clear owner for each affected deliverable.
Build and installed-product handoffs
Explore Industrial MachineryDoes this change affect new production, installed machines or both—and who prepares each handoff?
MedTech
A device component or supplier change may require several disciplines to review its implications. Keep the proposal, affected product records and supporting evidence together so the responsible team can determine the work and approvals needed.
Product records and review evidence
Explore Medical DevicesWhich product records and supporting evidence need review before this proposed change can proceed?
Clarity before configurationChange questions.
Change questions.
From evaluation to release.
Start with the decision your team needs to control, then agree the records and responsibilities around it.
How does change management differ from revision control?
Revision control distinguishes versions of a product record. Change management coordinates the reason for a proposed change, its review, assigned implementation and release. The revision is part of the product definition; the change record provides the decision context.
What is the difference between a change request and a change notice?
A request supports evaluation of the technical and business justification for proceeding. A notice authorizes and organizes implementation. Terms such as ECR, ECO and ECN vary across companies, so agree the meaning of each record in your process.
Does every change need all four record types?
No. A problem report, request, notice and task serve distinct purposes, but the configured process determines which are used. Define the needed governance and decision responsibilities rather than adding every available stage to every change.
Does completing a task automatically approve the change?
Completion records that assigned work has been carried out. Required review, audit and release decisions still follow the workflow. A reviewer may request amendment or rework before the resulting records are released.
Can approved information reach ERP or other systems?
A configured integration can publish product information to a receiving system. Agree the owning records, field mapping, target handling and release trigger, then validate the exchange. This is a separate implementation scope; it is not established merely by having a change notice.
A practical change starts with contextBring the change.
Bring the change.
Connect the next decision.
Show us the review or handoff that slows your team down.
We’ll help frame a change-management path around your product information and the people doing the work.