1. Implementing Product Management
  2. Configure Extensible Flexfields for Change Types

Configure Extensible Flexfields for Change Types

You can configure extensible flexfields for a change type so that these fields appear at the header level on change orders, change requests, problem reports, and corrective actions.

You can configure extensible flexfields at the following levels:

  • All Change Types - this is at the top level of change types and includes predefined as well as copied change types. Extensible flexfields added at this level are inherited by predefined and copied change types.
  • Predefined change types - this is the second level of change types. Extensible flexfields added at this level are inherited to change types copied from the predefined change types.
    Note: Predefined change types include Engineering Change Order, Commercialization Change Order, Change Order Without Revision Control, Change Request, Deviation Request, Problem Report, and Corrective Action.
  • Change types copied from predefined ones - this is at the third level. Extensible flexfields added at this level aren't inherited to any other level.

Where the Extensible Flexfields are Available

  • Manage pages on change orders, change requests, problem reports and corrective actions
  • Create and edit pages on change orders, change requests, problem reports, and corrective actions
  • Change order details report
  • OTBI reports
  • Change audit report (if they’re configured in Product Hub audit policy)
  • Rest APIs
  • SOAP services
  • Number assignment and validation rules
Note: If you opt in to this feature, deploy extensible flexfields, and then opt out, the flexfields won’t be available on the Create, Manage and Edit pages for change orders, change requests, problem reports, and corrective actions. But they will still be accessible through REST API, SOAP services, and import.

Inheritance of Flexfields Across Change Type Hierarchy

  • Extensible flexfields are inherited down the hierarchy of change types.

    If you add them at the first (or top) level, they're automatically inherited at the second and third levels of the hierarchy. If you add them only to the second level, they're automatically inherited to the third level. So you can't manually add them at two different levels.

    For example, if you add the flexfields to the predefined Engineering Change Order change type which is at the second level, you can't also add the same to All Change Types which is at the first level. You'd have to delete them from the second level and then include them at the first level so that they're automatically inherited to the second level.
  • When you duplicate a change type that's copied from a predefined change type, the extensible flexfields added on the source change type won’t be copied over to the new change type.

Considerations for Flexfields Setup

  • It’s recommended to use the Manage Extensible Flexfields task to add or remove extensible flexfields.

    Although you can add or remove flexfields on the Attributes tab of the Edit Change Order Type page, you’ll have to use the Manage Extensible Flexfields task to add flexfields to the Pages tab (so they're visible in the UI), remove them, and deploy them.

  • The multiselect context segment must be the first attribute in the multirow attribute group on the Edit Context page. You can have only one multiselect context segment in an attribute group.
  • When you edit a multirow attribute group with a multiselect enabled attribute, if all the values of the multiselect attribute are deleted, then while saving the changes, the values in all other attributes in the multirow attribute group will be deleted.
  • You can't have the same values for these attributes:
    • Internal Name field on the item class.
    • Code field on the item extensible flexfields attribute group.
    • Internal Name field on the change type.
    • Code field on the change extensible flexfields attribute group.

  • The Associated Category column on the Pages tab (of the Edit Extensible Flexfield task) shows All Change Types even when you select a predefined or copied change type. Use the Associated Contexts tab to see the correct category.

  • If you haven’t opted in to the feature Use Simplified Change Management Interface, but have opted in to this feature, you won't be able to see extensible flexfields in the Product Information Management work area.

  • You can use XML format to export and import both value sets and extensible flexfields at the same time. If using CSV format, you must first export and import value sets, and then export and import the extensible flexfields.

  • Change order details report:

    If the column width in a multirow extensible flexfields table on the report exceeds the page width, the content is truncated in the PDF format. It’s recommended to use the HTML format in such cases.

    If the extensible flexfields are added in the Associated Contexts tab and not on the Pages tab of the Edit Extensible flexfields page, they appear in the change order details report only if they've a default value.

Add Extensible Flexfields for a Change Type

You can add extensible flexfields for a change type so that flexfields appear at the header level on change orders, change requests, problem reports, and corrective actions.

Here are the types of fields (or display types) supported in the Product Development and Product Information Management work areas:

  • Text field
  • Drop-down list - appears as a list of values from which you can select a value. It supports a smaller number of values.
  • List of values - appears as a list of values from which you can select or also perform a search to select the value.
  • Date and time
  • Multiple select list of values - note that this is supported only for PLM (Product Lifecycle Management) users.

Prerequisites:

  • It’s recommended that you create contexts (attribute groups) and context-sensitive segments (attributes) before adding flexfields for the change type.
  • Ensure that flexfields are deployed successfully.

After you’ve taken care of these prerequisites, follow these steps:

  1. In the Setup and Maintenance work area, access the Manage Extensible Flexfields task using the Search option in the Tasks panel tab.
  2. Search for the flexfield code EGO_CHANGE_EFF.
  3. Select the flexfield in the search results and click Edit.
  4. Expand All Change Types.
  5. Select the change type for which you want to configure extensible flexfields.
  6. Add extensible flexfields:

    Click the Associated Contexts tab in the Details section. The inherited flexfields appear in this section if you select a predefined change type or copied change type.

    To add additional flexfields:

    • Click Actions > Select and Add.
    • In the Select and Add dialog box, search for and select the flexfields. Click OK.
    • Click Save.
  7. Click the Pages tab in the Details section.
  8. Select or create the page where you want to place the flexfields.

    With the page row still selected, add the flexfields in the Associated Contexts Details section.

    Note: You can also migrate the extensible flexfields to different environments using Import and Export.
  9. Click Save and Close.
  10. Click Deploy Flexfield.

Add Extensible Flexfields to OTBI

To make extensible flexfields available in OTBI, here’s what you must do:

  • Edit the context sensitive segment and select the BI Enabled option (in the Business Intelligence section on the Edit Segment page).
  • Run the scheduled process Import Oracle Fusion Data Extensions for Transactional Business Intelligence.

  • Select ERP as the parameter instead of All to complete the process faster.

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