Don’t know all the abbrevations yet? Don’t worry we have covered some of them below:
- API – Application Programming Interface
Interface available between software and cloud services for data exchange and interaction - ATO – Assembled To Order
A process where standard parts are put together into a finished product after the customer orders. - BIM – Building Information Modeling
Process to capture digital representations (3D, info, meta) of buildings and their components (3D, meta, etc). Commonly uses the open file format .ifc for data exchange. - BOM – Bill of Materials
Data defining a specific product. See eBOM and mBOM for variations. - CAD – Computer Aided Design
Software that helps with the design of a product in 2D and 3D. - CPQ – Configure Price Quote
Software for configuring, pricing and quoting -often used in sales of complex customizable products. - CMS – Content Management System
The system providing a website or intraweb - CRM – Customer Relationship Management
Software for running commercial operations, often used by sales teams - CTO – Configure To Order
A process where a product is built from a set of mix-and-match choices selected by the customer. - Customer self service app
An application that enables the customer to do work that otherwise a sales person would have done for the customer - Design Automation
Automated software for automating processes around CAD. Most commonly used when designing a product but can also be used with product configuration. - eBOM – Engineering Bill of Materials
Defines a product from it’s design intent and key components - ERP – Enterprise Resource Planning
Software that helps to manage the main business processes in a company. - ETO – Engineered To Order
A process where a product is custom-designed and built from scratch to meet a specific customer request - GenAI – Generateive Artificiall Intelligence.
Synonym for engineering headache - Knowledge-based configuration
Synonym for Product Configuration - Mass Customization
On-demand manufacturing of configured and customized products with a high level of automation that enables pricing comparable to traditional mass-manufactured products. - MTO – Made To Order
A process where a product is manufactured from start to finish only after a customer places an order. - MTS – Made To Stock
A process where products are manufactured in advance based on demand forecasts and stored in inventory. - mBOM – Manufacturing Bill of Materials
Defines how a product should be actually built on the factory floor. Includes eBOM together with exact details needed for the assembly line (eg. glue, tools, labeling, manufacturing order) - PDM – Product Data Management
A system to that handles technical engineering and design data - PIM – Product Information Management
A system that handles commercial and public data. Often used in marketing and CMS - PLM – Product Lifecycle Management
A system that handles a products entire life cycle from conceptual design to supply chain and recycling - RFQ – Request For Quote
Enable clients to send in a request for a quote. Commonly done with a web form or e-mail. - SaaS – Software as a Service
Software services commonly run in the cloud that is billed regularly - Space Planner
Software where the user moves around objects freely in a space. Can contain product configuration. Usually supports import of CAD files (dxf, 3D-BIM/STEP) and can exports CAD drawings with dimensions. - STEP – Standard for the Exchange of Product model
File format .stp or .step for 3D CAD information according to ISO 10303 - Visual Configuration
Product Configuration with visual feedback of the final product with every choice made during the configuration. Can also refer to configuration by interacting with a 2D / 3D visualization directly. - VPS – Virtual Private Server
Common hosting alternative for web services - UI – User Interface
- UX – User eXperience
