How To Manage Product And Process Changes In Odoo18 with ECOs

Engineering Change Orders in Odoo18 ( ECOs) are used when something in a product or its process needs to change. That could mean changing a component, updating steps in production, or switching out materials. All of this will be tracked in Odoo through Engineering Change Orders. Easily track revisions without losing any past information thanks to version control.

How to Create an Engineering Change Orders in Odoo18

Go to the PLM app.

Click New to make a new change order.

Fill in a few things:

• Description – Quick summary. What’s changing?
• Type – Pick the ECO type (like “BoM Update” or “Product Revision”).
• Apply On – Does the change affect just the product, or also the Bill of Materials?
• Product – Choose the product to modify.
• BoM – This fills in if one exists. You can switch to a different BoM if needed.
• Effective Date – Pick when the change should take effect. You can apply it later if needed.

Once done, click Start Revision. That creates a draft version for changes.

What Happens When You Start a Revision

• Documents button shows up — you can attach files there if needed.
• A new version of the BoM is created — V2, V3, etc.
• You can monitor your progress with ECO stage indicators in the corner.

Everything is saved in a draft version. It doesn’t touch production yet.

Changing Components in the New Version

• Click Revision to open the draft.
• Go to the Components tab.

You can:

• Update quantities
• Add new parts using Add a line
• Remove old parts with the trash icon

Odoo uses colors to show what changed:

• Blue = new part added
  Red = part removed
  Black = no change

Makes it easy to compare at a glance.

If You Need to Change Operations Instead

Sometimes it’s not about parts — it’s about how things get done.

To change steps in production:

• Open the revision.
• Go to the Operations tab.
• Click on an operation to open it.

Inside, you can:

• Edit fields (like time, description, etc.)
• Add new steps with Add a line
• Archive steps you’re removing

Changes will saved to draft. The changes remain in draft until the ECO gets approved.

See What Changed in Operations

To check what was updated:

• Go back to the ECO.
• Open the Operation Changes tab.

There, you’ll see:

• Blue = steps added
• Red = steps removed
• Black = steps that stayed the same

You’ll also see:

• Step name
• Type of change (add, remove, modify)
• What the step does (inspection, assembly, etc.)
• Which work center it belongs to
• Duration changes if any

Everything’s broken down clearly.

How to Apply the Changes

Once the ECO is reviewed and approved:

• Move it to Verification stage.
• Get final approval.
• Click Apply Changes.

That does two things:

• Archives the old version
• Activates the new one

Now, the updated BoM or operations will be used in production.

Make Sure It Worked

To confirm:

• Click the Revision button. It should not say “Archived.”
• Go to the Manufacturing app and find the product.
• Open its BoM and check the version.

The version should match the one from your ECO.

Track Pending ECOs

To see what’s still waiting:

• Open the PLM Overview.
• Check the BoM Updates section.
• Click Engineering Changes to open them.

Each entry shows what’s proposed, so you can check before approving.

Quality Control Steps

If a process step needs a check or instruction, you can add a quality control point.

Fields to fill:

• Title – Describe the check (e.g., “Check label alignment”).
• Per Control – Choose if it applies per product, per quantity, or per operation.
• Type – Pick one:
• Instruction
• Take a Picture
• Register Materials
• Print Label

After saving, go back to Steps View and make sure it’s in the right spot.

Engineering Change Orders in Odoo18 (ECOs) integrate product and process modifications, tracking everything from component changes to production updates without losing old data. Hope you learned everything about creating, revising, applying, and tracking ECOs.

Have more doubts? Contact Transines Solutions for expert Odoo18 implementation and customization services.