PLM Suite - SODOO Documentation

Overview

The PLM Suite brings full Product Lifecycle Management capabilities to SODOO. Built by OmniaSolutions and specifically ported to Odoo 19.0, it manages the entire lifecycle of engineering products — from initial design and CAD file management through engineering change orders, BOM creation, and production handoff.

The suite is especially valuable for manufacturing companies that use SolidWorks, AutoCAD, or FreeCAD, as it provides a two-way link between CAD software and the Odoo product database, keeping BOM data synchronized automatically.

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PLM Modules

ECO

Change Orders

3D

In-Browser Viewer

CAD

File Management

ECO Management

Engineering Change Orders with approval workflows and revision tracking

CAD Integration

SolidWorks, AutoCAD, FreeCAD file linking and BOM sync

BOM Management

Engineering BOM, Manufacturing BOM, and comparison tools

3D Viewer

View STEP and STL files in-browser without plugins

Auto Weight Calculation

Automatic weight propagation from components to assemblies

PDF Work Orders

Printable manufacturing work order reports with BOM details

Source: The PLM Suite is sourced from github.com/OmniaGit/odooplm (branch: 19.0). It has been tested for Odoo 19.0 Community Edition compatibility and is included in SODOO's custom_addons/plm_suite/ directory.

Core PLM Module

The plm module is the foundation of the entire suite. It introduces the concept of Engineering Documents, Engineering Change Orders (ECO), and Revision Management into Odoo's standard product and manufacturing modules.

Engineering Change Orders (ECO)

An ECO is the formal mechanism for proposing, reviewing, approving, and implementing changes to a product design or manufacturing process. Every change — no matter how small — is tracked through an ECO, creating a complete audit trail.

ECO Lifecycle

Draft ECO

→

Engineering Review

→

Management Approval

→

Approved & Released

Revision Management

Every product in the PLM system has a revision letter (A, B, C, ...) or number. When a design change is approved through an ECO, the revision is automatically incremented and the previous revision is archived.

PLM State	Description	Editable
Draft	Under development, not yet released	Yes — engineers can freely edit
In Review	Submitted for engineering review	Limited — only reviewer changes
Released	Approved for production use	No — requires new ECO to change
Obsolete	Superseded by newer revision	No — archived for reference only

Best Practice: Enable the plm_product_only_latest module to ensure that only the latest approved revision appears in sales orders and purchase orders. This prevents accidentally quoting an obsolete product version.

CAD Integration

The PLM Suite integrates directly with major CAD software. When an engineer saves a CAD assembly, the corresponding Odoo BOM is automatically updated — eliminating manual data entry and the risk of BOM-CAD discrepancies.

Supported CAD Software

SolidWorks

Add-in for SolidWorks 2020+

Push assemblies and parts from SolidWorks directly to Odoo. BOM structure, part numbers, and file attachments are synchronized automatically.

Auto BOM Sync File Attach Part Numbers

AutoCAD / DraftSight

DWG/DXF file management

Link DWG and DXF drawings to Odoo product records. Revision-controlled drawing storage with version history directly in Odoo.

DWG/DXF Version History Drawing Link

FreeCAD

Open-source CAD support

Push parts and assemblies from FreeCAD to Odoo via the OmniaSolutions FreeCAD macro. Ideal for open-source manufacturing workflows.

FreeCAD Macro STEP Export Open Source

Generic File Management

Any CAD format

Attach any CAD file (STEP, IGES, STL, PDF) directly to product records with automatic version tracking and access control.

STEP/IGES STL/OBJ PDF Drawing

Automatic Engineering Code Generation

The plm_auto_engcode module automatically generates part numbers (engineering codes) based on configurable naming rules. This ensures consistent, sequential numbering without manual administration.

                    
Example Engineering Code Pattern:
  PRD-MEC-2024-00001     (Product-Category-Year-Sequence)
  DRW-ELE-2024-00042     (Document-Category-Year-Sequence)
  ASM-HYD-2024-00007     (Assembly-Category-Year-Sequence)

BOM Management

The PLM Suite provides advanced BOM management capabilities beyond Odoo's standard manufacturing BOM. It introduces the concept of the Engineering BOM (eBOM) — the structure as designed by engineers — separate from the Manufacturing BOM (mBOM) used in production.

eBOM vs mBOM

Feature	Engineering BOM (eBOM)	Manufacturing BOM (mBOM)
Owner	Engineering team	Manufacturing / Operations
Structure	Reflects design intent (as-designed)	Reflects production reality (as-built)
Components	All designed components including phantom assemblies	Only procurable/manufactured items
Change Control	Controlled via ECO	Updated when eBOM is released

BOM Comparison

The plm_compare_bom module allows you to compare two BOMs side-by-side — for example, comparing the current revision against the previous one, or comparing an eBOM against an mBOM to identify discrepancies.

BOM Domain Filter: In Odoo 19, the product type field changed. BOM domain filters must use [('type', '=', 'consu'), ('is_storable', '=', True)] instead of type='product' which was removed in Odoo 19.

Automatic Normal BOM Generation

The plm_automate_normal_bom module automatically creates the standard Odoo Manufacturing BOM from the Engineering BOM when an ECO is approved. This ensures production always uses the latest approved design without manual BOM transcription.

3D Viewer

The plm_web_3d module adds an in-browser 3D model viewer to Odoo. Engineers, sales reps, and customers can rotate, zoom, and inspect 3D models directly in their web browser — no CAD software required.

Supported File Formats

STEP (.step, .stp)

ISO standard CAD exchange format. Full geometry and assembly structure preserved.

STL (.stl)

3D printing and rapid prototyping format. Surface mesh representation.

OBJ (.obj)

Widely supported polygon mesh format with material definitions.

glTF / GLB (.gltf, .glb)

Web-optimized 3D format with PBR material support. Best browser performance.

3D Viewer in Sales

The plm_web_3d_sale module extends the 3D viewer to the Sales module. When creating a quotation, sales representatives can click on a product to see its 3D model — helping customers visualize products before purchasing.

Performance Tip: For large assemblies with many components, use the glTF format rather than STEP. glTF is specifically optimized for web delivery and loads significantly faster in the browser, especially on mobile devices.

Document Management

PLM document management goes beyond simple file attachments. Every document is revision-controlled, linked to specific product revisions, and managed through the same approval workflow as engineering changes.

Document Types in PLM

Engineering Drawings

2D technical drawings linked to 3D models and product revisions

Specifications

Material specs, tolerance definitions, and acceptance criteria

Assembly Instructions

Step-by-step assembly procedures for production workers

Test Reports

Quality test results linked to specific product lots

Certifications

CE, ISO, and other certification documents with expiry tracking

Multi-site Documents

Documents shared across multiple manufacturing sites (plm_document_multi_site)

Spare Parts Management

The plm_spare module extends PLM to manage spare part BOMs and maintenance manuals. This is essential for after-sales service, field maintenance, and spare parts ordering.

Spare Part BOM Features

Define spare part lists linked to the main product BOM
Mark specific components as "serviceable" spare parts
Generate spare parts catalogs automatically from BOM data
Link spare part ordering directly to Odoo's Purchase module
Track spare part consumption from maintenance work orders

Automatic Weight Calculation

The plm_automatic_weight module automatically propagates weight data from individual components up through assembly levels. When a component's weight is updated, the total weight of all parent assemblies is recalculated automatically.

1

Set Part Weight

Enter weight on component

→

2

BOM Multiplication

Qty × weight per line

→

3

Sub-assembly Sum

Sum all BOM lines

→

4

Assembly Updated

Parent weight auto-updated

PLM Workflow

The PLM Suite provides configurable approval workflows for every major PLM action — document release, ECO approval, revision promotion, and BOM release. Workflows can be customized per product category.

Standard Approval Workflow

Action	Module	Approvers Required
Draft → In Review	plm	Lead Engineer or Department Head
In Review → Released	plm	Engineering Manager + Quality Manager
ECO Approval	plm	Configurable multi-level approval chain
BOM Release	plm_automate_normal_bom	Automatic after ECO approval
Custom Action	plm_workflow_custom_action	User-defined Python actions

Activity Validation

The activity_validation module adds a validation layer to Odoo activities. Before an ECO or document can progress to the next stage, all linked activities (reviews, inspections, sign-offs) must be completed and validated.

PDF Work Order Reports

The plm_pdf_workorder module generates professional PDF work order reports that include:

Complete BOM with component quantities and part numbers
Engineering drawings embedded as thumbnails
Assembly instructions linked to the work order
QC checkboxes for production sign-off
Barcode for scanning in the warehouse

Full Module List

The PLM Suite installed in SODOO includes 32 modules from the OmniaSolutions odooplm repository (branch 19.0). Enterprise-only modules have been excluded.

Module	Description
plm	Core PLM — ECO, revision management, CAD integration
plm_engineering	Engineering BOM support
plm_compare_bom	Side-by-side BOM comparison
plm_spare	Spare part BOM and maintenance manuals
plm_automatic_weight	Automatic weight propagation through BOM levels
plm_automate_normal_bom	Auto-generate manufacturing BOM from eBOM on ECO approval
plm_web_3d	In-browser 3D model viewer (STEP, STL, OBJ, glTF)
plm_web_3d_sale	3D viewer on quotation and sales order lines
plm_project	PLM-to-Project integration for engineering tasks
plm_auto_engcode	Automatic engineering code / part number generation
plm_auto_internalref	Automatic internal reference generation
plm_automated_convertion	Automatic file format conversion (e.g., STEP to STL)
plm_auto_translator	Automatic translation of product descriptions
plm_bom_summarize	BOM summarization — flat BOM view
plm_box	Packaging and box management
plm_breakages	Damage / breakage tracking
plm_client_customprocedure	Customer-specific custom procedure support
plm_consumption_plans	Material consumption plan management
plm_cutted_parts	Cut parts nesting and management
plm_date_bom	Date-effectivity for BOM lines
plm_document_multi_site	Multi-site document sharing
plm_pack_and_go	Pack and export product packages
plm_pdf_workorder	PDF work order report generation
plm_product_description_language_helper	Product description language assistant
plm_product_only_latest	Show only latest revision in sales/purchase
plm_purchase_only_latest	Filter purchase to latest revision only
plm_report_language_helper	Report language helper
plm_sale_only_latest	Filter sales to latest revision only
plm_suspended	Suspended product management
plm_web_revision	Web-based revision management UI
plm_workflow_custom_action	Custom Python actions in PLM workflows
activity_validation	Activity completion validation before stage transitions

Installation & Setup

Recommended Installation Order

1

Install plm

Core module first

→

2

plm_engineering

eBOM support

→

3

plm_web_3d

3D viewer

→

4

Extension Modules

As needed

Required Odoo Modules

mrp (Manufacturing) — required by plm core
product and stock — required for BOM management
sale — required for plm_web_3d_sale and plm_sale_only_latest
purchase — required for plm_purchase_only_latest
project — required for plm_project

CAD Client Setup

CAD Software	Client Tool	Installation
SolidWorks	OmniaSolutions SolidWorks Add-in	Install add-in MSI, configure Odoo URL and credentials
FreeCAD	OmniaSolutions FreeCAD Macro	Copy macro to FreeCAD macro directory, set Odoo URL
Any CAD	Manual file upload	Upload files via PLM Documents form in Odoo UI

Odoo 19 Product Type Change: In Odoo 19, type='product' (Storable Product) was removed. Use type='consu' with is_storable=True instead. BOM domain filters in PLM views have been updated accordingly in the SODOO version.