Ever look at something and wonder how they keep track of all those parts? Or how about when you see two products, almost identical, but with slightly different labels and wonder how they keep track of the differences? This is the world of the Bill of Materials (or BoM for short, though don’t use that word in public spaces). With only this document, any manufacturer, anywhere, could (in theory*) rebuild the exact product specified within. * Clearly they would need the source files for PCBs, plastics, software, etc.… What Is a Bill of Materials (BoM) and What is it Used For A BoM is a document, which may be as simple as an Excel spreadsheet or as fancy as an Oracle Agile database, but in the end, it is a document that lays out what parts are used to assemble a product, how many, and a way to identify them. Before we get too deep, we need to define a few terms; your company or tool may call them something different, but speak of the same …