Engineering change orders in Vault

[NigelHay]

We don't currently use Vault so excuse me if I ask rather basic questions. We currently use Inventor 2023 on subscription, we have separate Engineering Change & MRP systems. We are looking to change the MRP system &, as part of that are re-evaluating the change order system.

Currently, drawing changes are obviously done by CAD users but the change system is owned & administered by QA. Changes often involve production, electronics & others. If we were to start using Vault, is it only accessible to CAD users or can others view, comment & authorise proposed changes?

[bonnrhee]

You can use Vault Professional or Vault Office for users to participate in change orders.  Usually, Vault Professional is for cad users and Vault Office is for non cad users.  IE, Vault Office users cannot edit cad files.  If you have users that need to view only, you can use the Vault Thin Client.  Files and ECO's are viewed in a browser and doesn't consume a license.  

[Gabriel_Watson]

Unless you are handling all your Change Requests via Vault PLM, you will most likely need a more robust implementation that allows for MRP/ERP changes to revert into PLM/PDM change orders, which requires some customization. Take a look at Coolorange as the "gold standard" implementation for that:
https://www.coolorange.com/powergate

But you can also work with a Value-Added Reseller in your area (I know SolidCAD folks and could say they're capable) to help implement a PLM solution such as Fusion. Here's a video from IMAGINiT which is also very experienced in doing that:
https://resources.imaginit.com/product-lifecycle-management/connecting-autodesk-fusion-lifecycle-plm...

Bottomline is that there are some free solutions for viewing ECOs and files, but to participate in the lifecycle of changes you would need key players to possess a license of Vault or Fusion Manage.

P.S.: also keep in mind the limitations to Vault's ECO workflow. In Fusion Manage you are allowed to mix and match workflow states/milestones and permissions of who approves/moves what, but in Vault you have a few limitations on how much you can customize.

[tomasz.sztejka]

One very constraining thing in Vault it is, as far as I tried, that if You open a change request on certain part then You can't open an another one until previous is processed. This prevents us from using it as a "hey, can You change that?" issue handling platform, because users won't be able open many change requests on the same product. Thous we can use it only as a change processing platform.

[NigelHay]

Thanks for your comments, lots to think about.

I'll check out the links suggested by Galaxybane, we are currently using a consultant to advise on a new MRP/ERP system. Tomasz's comment is a little concerning as we have many change orders concurrently raised by different departments. These are not just design changes but for any document which has been formally released.

[CGBenner]

@NigelHay 

Back when I was the Vault admin, I had 16 users on 5 licenses.  2 were CAD users and the rest I had permissions set up (through a Group) such that all they could do was view files, and view/edit Change Orders.  This was so that the Project Managers could request an ECO, create markups using Design Review (gone now) and then interact with the ECO until the changes were approved.  I was the Change Administrator, so everything went through me.  I had clear process documentation for all of the users, especially the non-CAD users, and made sure that they only had the permissions they needed to do only what I wanted them to do.  

All of this is pretty easy in a very small company, and today there are may more tools available.  I share this story only to give you more food for thought.  I agree with @Gabriel_Watson in that you might want to bring a reseller into the discussion to help you make sure you are asking the right questions for your company.  Good luck!