ECO lifecycle explained
An Engineering Change Order (ECO) is the execution vehicle for an approved change. It holds the BOM, phase-in dates, and action list. The ECO lifecycle has five statuses with clear gates between each.
Status overview
Section titled “Status overview”| Status | What is happening | Who acts |
|---|---|---|
| Draft | ECO created, BOM being prepared, phase-in calculated | Coordinator |
| Released | Action list generated and published, notifications sent | System → departments |
| In progress | Departments executing their action items | Department users |
| Verified | All actions complete, coordinator confirms correctness | Coordinator |
| Closed | BOM effectivity applied, EC auto-archived | System |
Lifecycle flow
Section titled “Lifecycle flow”1
Draft
The ECO is created from an approved EC. The coordinator uploads the BOM, reviews affected items, runs the phase-in calculation, and prepares the action list. All data is editable in this state.
2
Released
The coordinator clicks Release. Redline validates that all phase-in dates are set, generates the action list, and sends N1 notification emails to each department. Phase-in dates are locked.
3
In progress
Departments work through their action items. Each department receives only their own actions. Status updates (acknowledged → in progress → done) flow back to the ECO.
4
Verified
When all actions are complete (done or skipped), the coordinator verifies the change was implemented correctly. This step is optional — controlled by the
verification_step_required setting.5
Closed
Redline applies BOM effectivity updates to the ERP data — closing old lines and opening new ones with the correct effective dates. The parent EC is auto-archived.
What triggers each transition
Section titled “What triggers each transition”| Transition | Trigger | Validation |
|---|---|---|
| Draft → Released | Coordinator clicks Release | All affected items must have a phase-in date |
| Released → In progress | First action item status update | Automatic |
| In progress → Verified | All actions done/skipped + coordinator confirms | All action items must be in a terminal state |
| Verified → Closed | Coordinator clicks Close | Verification must be complete |
| In progress → Closed | Coordinator clicks Close (if verification not required) | All action items must be in a terminal state |
ECO numbering
Section titled “ECO numbering”ECO numbers are auto-generated using the format configured in Settings → Numbering. Example: ECO-2026-0001. The sequence increments atomically — no duplicates, no gaps.
Relationship to EC and ECR
Section titled “Relationship to EC and ECR”An ECO is always created from an Engineering Change (EC). The EC may have originated from an approved ECR, or it may have been created directly. The ECO inherits all affected items and phase-in data from the EC.
ECR (optional) → EC → ECO → Action List → Execution → Close