Part III: Working with Assemblies
FIGURE 12.7Creating a flexible subassembly
Organizing for the BOM
The Bill of Materials, or BOM, is a table that is placed either into a drawing of an assembly or in an
assembly itself. This table shows the parts used in the assembly and includes other information,
such as part numbers, quantities, descriptions, and custom property data.Cross-Reference
SolidWorks BOM functionality is discussed in depth in Chapter 24. n
Businesses often represent assemblies and subassemblies in various ways by using MRP
(Manufacturing Resource Planning) or ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) software. The methods
that accountants and manufacturers use to organize assemblies are not always the same as those
that engineers or designers might choose, but some companies require the BOM on the drawing to
match the MRP or ERP Bill of Materials.Best Practice
When you are forced into modeling something in an unnatural way to satisfy an outside requirement such as
special BOM requirements, it might be best to detach the unnatural part and model normally. In the situation
mentioned here — where MRP is forcing how the assembly is put together by requiring the BOM to match
MRP — I recommend separating the BOM from the assembly structure rather than building an assembly that
makes other SolidWorks’ functions difficult. This ensures that the BOM becomes a manually maintained
document.. Alternatives to this approach would be to make configurations or entirely new assembly documents
to drive the BOM. n