An introduction to the PLM system and how the core features work together
SavantPLM is a Product Lifecycle Management system that gives your team a central place to manage part numbers, bills of materials, vendor information, and inventory locations. All data is stored in the cloud and shared across everyone in your workspace in real time.
SavantPLM is the main workspace where all of these features live. It is accessible from the navigation bar once your workspace subscription is active.
The Part View is the primary screen for working with individual part numbers. You can create a new part or load an existing one by entering its part number in the search box at the top and clicking Load.
Each part record stores a wide range of attributes, organized into sections:
To create a new part, enter a part number that does not yet exist and click Load. The system will offer to create the part record. To edit a field, click the Edit button to unlock the form, make changes, then click Save.
Part numbers are the primary key — each part number is unique within your workspace. Revision is tracked separately and does not create a new record.
The Part Search view lets you find parts across your entire workspace using one or more filters simultaneously. You can search by:
Results are displayed in a paginated table. Clicking a part number in the results opens that part in the Part View.
The BOM view displays the bill of materials for a given assembly part number. Load a part number to see its full multi-level BOM, including all sub-assemblies and purchased parts with quantities.
BOMs are created and edited by clicking the BOM button inside the Part View, or by navigating directly to the BOM view from the BOM link in the portal sidebar. Each row in the BOM links to a child part number, so you can navigate through the assembly hierarchy directly.
The BOM view supports:
Where Used answers the question: what assemblies is this part used in? Enter a part number and the system searches all BOMs in your workspace to find every assembly that references that part, at any level.
This is useful when you need to assess the impact of a part change — for example, identifying all products that would be affected if a component is revised or discontinued.
Inventory Locations define the physical places where parts are stored — facilities, rooms, and bins. These locations are used when recording inventory balance records so you know exactly where stock is held.
Locations are organized in a hierarchy:
Inventory balance is recorded at the BIN level. For detailed instructions, see the Inventory Locations help page.
Vendors are the suppliers and manufacturers you source parts from. Adding a vendor to your workspace makes it available in the Vendor drop-down on the Part View, so you can associate a part with its supplier.
Each vendor record stores the vendor name and any relevant contact or sourcing information. To add a vendor, go to Vendors in the SavantPLM sidebar and click Add Vendor.
Once a vendor is created, it appears in the Vendor drop-down when editing a part in the Part View.
SavantPLM includes a formal change order process to manage controlled updates to parts and assemblies.
These workflows are accessible from the SavantPLM sidebar and help ensure that part changes are tracked, reviewed, and communicated in a controlled manner.
If you have questions or need assistance, please visit our Contact page to get in touch with our support team.
For more detailed documentation on specific topics, see the SavantPLM Help index.