What is a part file?

The 3D model is often a STEP file, and the requirements are those on the drawing, such as material, general tolerance and roughness. The file belongs to the part, not to a single request or order. It is only useful when it is clear which information belongs to which revision.

How does the part file work in practice?

Without a part file this information tends to be spread across email, a network folder, the ERP and a colleague's memory. That costs search time and raises the chance of pricing from an outdated revision or a requirement nobody checked. An estimate can be defended when you can trace what it rests on: which revision, which requirement, which quantity and who recorded the requirement. On a new revision or a repeat order the part file shows what changed since the last price. What else belongs in it depends on the market; in aerospace or medical work it often points to material certificates and inspection reports, which belong to an order or lot rather than to the part itself.

What is the part file often confused with?

A part file is not a request: a request can hold several parts, and each part has its own part file. Nor is it the technical file for CE marking, which collects the documentation a manufacturer uses to show that a machine meets European requirements. And it is not a bill of materials, which lists what an assembly is made of.

How do you see the part file in Blake?

In Blake the model, drawing and revisions sit with the part. The drawing values appear as proposals, with the name and time of whoever confirmed or corrected them. A repeat part can be set beside its last priced estimate. More on requests.