8 Changes, Discussions, and Attachments

This chapter provides information about changes, discussions, and attachments as they relate to PCM.

8.1 Item and Response Changes

Sourcing projects serve as a knowledge repository of the items, BOMs, AMLs, RFQs, responses, and changes related to those objects. Changes to the items and responses in a project can be tracked on the Changes tab. You can view the changes made to the items and responses separately, and you can filter the data to view only items that have been added, deleted, or changed.

Changes to items and responses can be made in several ways:

When new change orders (ECOs, MCOs, and SCOs) are released for Item Master items contained in the project. Until you update the project with information from the Item Master, these changes are Unapplied Changes.
When you update the Quantity Per Assembly (QPA) for items with information from the Item Master. Other changes to item descriptions or flex fields are not recorded on the Changes tab.
When you add, modify, or remove project items either manually or using the Import wizard.
When suppliers submit RFQ responses.

To view unapplied item changes:

Open a project and select the Changes tab.
The default view of the Changes tab is the Unapplied Item Changes tab. All the unapplied changes like ECO, MCO, SCOs are listed in the table. Affected items for each change are listed in the Affected Item(s) column.

If for any reason, the manufacturing division changes the item content in a project for specific output, the changes are recorded in this view. You can link to the details of the ECO, MCO, or SCO. After viewing details of the change, you can decide whether to update the project with latest information from the Item Master.

To view item changes:

Open a project and select the Changes tab.
Click the Project Item Changes tab to view item changes. By default, the changes summary table and the added items are displayed. The Changes Summary table displays the number of changes made to the items in the project.
Select Items Added, Items Deleted, or Items Modified from the Views drop-down list to view the added, changed, or deleted items in the project.

Note:

You can view the item changes made in the project since the project was created.

To view response changes:

Open a project and select the Changes tab.
Click the Supplier Response Changes tab to view response changes. The table displays response changes made in the project.
Click the item number to edit the project item information.

8.2 Discussions

When you are negotiating with your suppliers and customers, you often need to conduct informal, threaded dialogue to finalize the quotes, discuss issues related to your projects and RFQs, and to share other relevant information.

Discussions in Agile PLM replace the conventional email messaging service. Discussions have features similar to the email model, which has a subject line, message area, priorities you can specify, and a notification list. You can reply to discussions the way you reply to an email. The discussion is sent to the recipients as a notification in their inbox. Only Agile users can participate in discussions.

The Discussions tab lists information about each message, including the number of replies, the message, the creator, and the notification list.

8.2.1 Adding Discussions

You can add discussions about different subjects. For example, MMY Suppliers have recently started using Agile PLM, and you need to send project information along with a welcome letter. You can send the welcome letter through the project discussion. You can add any number of discussions in a project.

To create and add discussions:

Open the object, for example, sourcing project, and select the Discussions tab.
Click Add. A new row appears in the Discussions table.
Click the Create New button. The Create New dialog appears.

Note:
You can also add an existing discussion by clicking the Search icon and searching for it.
Select the type of discussion from the Discussion Type field.
Enter the subject in the Subject field.
Enter discussion text in the Message field.
Select the priority of the message from the Priority drop-down list.
Click the Address Book button next to the Notify List field, and select the names of recipients.
Click Add. Users in the Notify List are sent a notification for the discussion.

8.2.2 Replying to Discussions

Replying to a discussion is similar to replying to an email. You can find the discussion notification in your Inbox. You must have the Discussion Participant role assigned to you to reply to a discussion.

You can access a discussion by clicking on the Discussion tab of the Agile PLM object, for example, RFQ, that is associated to the discussion. Alternatively, you can access the discussion from your Notifications inbox. From within your inbox, click the subject in the Regarding column to open the discussion.

To reply to discussions:

On the Discussion tab of the discussion object, click Reply. The Reply to Discussion dialog appears.
Enter the reply in the Message field.
To change the list of recipients, click the Address Book icon next to the Notify List field. Select the names of recipients.
Click Send.

Note:

You can send any number of replies in a discussion.

8.2.3 Removing Discussions

You should be the owner of the project to remove a discussion from the project. If you have the (Restricted) Discussion Participant role, you can delete the individual messages, or replies, in a discussion.

To remove discussions:

Open the project, and click the Discussions tab.
Click the row selection cell for the discussion that you want to remove.
Click Remove.

Note:

When you delete a discussion, any replies are also deleted.

8.3 Attachments

Attachments are electronic files that contain related information about a project, item, change, or other object. An attachment can be of any file type, such as a blueprint (a CAD diagram) of a mechanical device, the architecture explanation flowchart (an MS Word file), or a presentation file related to the object (.PPT, audio, or video). Agile supports viewing any type of file using AutoVue for Agile. You can either download it or view it from its own location.

The attachments added to the object are stored in a unique folder by default. You can add different versions of the same file and view the appropriate versions at any time.

You can reference the files and URLs related to a project on the Attachments tab of the project.

Attachment features are described in detail in Getting Started with Agile PLM. This section provides a brief summary of how you can use attachments in sourcing projects.

8.3.1 Project Objects that Can Have Attachments

In addition to the project itself, the following objects contained within a project can have attachments:

Items
Manufacturer parts
RFQs

8.3.2 Working with Attachments

You can attach most file types, but users viewing the file can open it only if the appropriate software is installed on their computers.

For example, if the file is a Microsoft® Excel (.XLS) file, you need to have Microsoft® Excel installed to view the file. The Attachments tab information shows the file description, name, version, type, and size, and the dates the file was modified and viewed.

For more details about working with attachments, see Getting Started with Agile PLM.

8.3.3 Viewing Attachments

You can either view a file attachment from Agile Web Client, or you can download it to your computer for viewing or editing.

To view an attachment in the AutoVue for Agile viewer:

Open the object for which you want to view an attachment.
Display the Attachments tab.
Select the row of the file that you want to view.
Click View > View. The file is opened in the AutoVue for Agile viewer.

Note:

AutoVue for Agile viewer does not support all file types. An error appears if you attempt to view an unsupported file type.

To save the attachment:

Open the object for which you want to view an attachment.
Display the Attachments tab.
Click the Get button for the attachment you want to download. Use can choose to use the Java tool or the standard browser capabilities to download the file.
Save the file to the desired location.

For more information on working with attachments, see Getting Started with Agile PLM Guide.