Bill of Materials

In a production control environment, a bill of

materials (BOM) is a data model used to
represent the relationship of a part to another
part. Suppose we produce and sell bicycles.
Suppose further that we have a certain bicycle
named ExtremeCycle101, and that the parts
that go into producing this type of bike can be
partly illustrated as shown below.

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 ExtremeCycle101

. .
HandleBarX FrameX SeatB919 Wheel111

Frame101 PedalZ1 Rim120 Spoke12

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The diagram above informs us that an ExtremeCycle101 I
an assembly (it has component parts) that is constructed
from those types of parts shown at the second level
(HandleBarX, FrameX, SeatB919, Wheel111, ).
HandleBarX is a part, it is not an assembly. Note that
FrameX is another assembly made from a specific frame
and pedals. The type of diagram shown above is called a
parts explosion; it can show in great detail the various part
that are required to build the part shown at the top, at the
root. In some enterprise, a parts explosion could detail
hundreds or thousands of parts. Another common way to
illustrate this information is in a table such as:

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Part Component Quantity
ExtremeCycle101 HandleBarX 1

ExtremeCycle101 FrameX 1

ExtremeCycle101 SeatB919 1

ExtremeCycle101 Wheel111 2

FrameX Frame101 1
FrameX PedalZ1 2
Wheel111 Rim120 1
Wheel111 Spoke12 21