Manufacturing & engineering
PDM
Product data management
Definition
Product data management (PDM) is the controlled system used to store, version, relate, review, and release engineering files and their metadata. In CAD work it keeps models, drawings, assemblies, BOM information, permissions, and approval history tied to identifiable design states.
Also known as: product data management, CAD data management
Updated
What PDM controls#
A PDM system records more than file storage. It manages who may edit a file, which version a local workspace contains, how referenced parts and assemblies relate, what changed, and whether a design is still being worked on or has been released.
SOLIDWORKS PDM creates versions as files are modified or checked in, preserves their history, and can assign revisions through workflow states. Onshape's built-in PDM keeps document history, branching, merging, search, BOM data, and release workflows in the same cloud system as the CAD model.
PDM is not the same as PLM#
PDM concentrates on engineering data and its working or released states. Product lifecycle management has a wider scope that can connect engineering with sourcing, manufacturing, service, compliance, and other business processes.
The boundary varies by vendor, and the labels are often used loosely. The practical test is whether the system controls the exact CAD references and release package your team depends on, not which three-letter acronym appears on the sales page.
What it cannot decide#
PDM can require an approval and preserve its record. It cannot determine whether a tolerance is sensible, whether a STEP export is complete, or whether a machining setup is safe. Those remain engineering and manufacturing decisions.
Sources
Related terms
Engineering revision
An engineering revision is an identified, approved state of a part, assembly, drawing, or release package. Unlike an ordinary saved version, a revision communicates a controlled design change to manufacturing, purchasing, quality, and other downstream users.
Feature tree
A feature tree is the ordered list of operations, such as sketches, extrudes, cuts, fillets, and patterns, that builds a parametric CAD model. Editing an early feature replays every feature after it, which makes controlled changes possible and also makes the model depend on each earlier step.