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ECN management software - every engineering change, implemented on time
An ECN is released in R&D - then it has to reach BOM, drawings, suppliers, stores, quality, PPC, sales and costing. Track every department's action against a committed date, decide old stock and cut-off, escalate delays automatically, and close each ECN with proof.
- Import from PLM / Teamcenter Excel
- Audit trail for IATF & ISO
- Cloud or on-premise
What is Qubha's ECN Management software?
It is software that tracks every engineering change notice from R&D release to closure in the plant. ECNs are imported from your PLM export or entered by hand, with each affected part, its old and new revision, stock disposition and cut-off date. Every department head acknowledges the ECN, then each department completes its actions in order against a date it commits to. Late actions are escalated automatically. PPC plans implementation, M.E. verifies, and PPC and Quality give final approval before the ECN is closed.
Every step is kept in an append-only history, so you can show IATF 16949 and ISO 9001 auditors exactly how each engineering change was controlled. Built by Qubha Infotech, Chennai; runs in the cloud or on your own server. Works with 4M Change Management for man, machine, method and material changes.
Engineering changes the auditor can follow, end to end
Auditors pick an engineering change and ask how it was controlled. Every answer is on the ECN.
| The auditor asks | Where Qubha ECN answers it |
|---|---|
| "List the engineering changes this year." | The ECN tracker, filtered by status, type, customer or year, exported to Excel. |
| "Which parts and revisions changed?" | Affected parts with part number, revision, old and new part numbers and change summary. |
| "Did every department know about it?" | Acknowledgement by each department head, with name and time. |
| "What happened to the old stock?" | Disposition (use up, rework, scrap), stock at supplier, in-house and WIP, OK and not-OK quantities. |
| "When did the old part stop?" | Cut-off date of the old part and effective date of the new one, set by PPC. |
| "Were BOM, drawings, supplier and SOP updated?" | Required activities in each department stage - the stage cannot be completed until they are filled. |
| "Who approved the closure?" | M.E. verification and separate PPC and Quality final approval, kept in the history. |
From R&D release to closed, in six steps
Each department sees only its own actions, with the date it committed to.
- Step 1
Register
Import from PLM Excel or enter the ECN and its parts.
- Step 2
Acknowledge
Every department head confirms the ECN.
- Step 3
Department actions
BOM, drawings, supplier, stock, cut-off, cost - in order.
- Step 4
Implement
PPC plans the date; actual date recorded.
- Step 5
Verify
M.E. verifies the change in production.
- Step 6
Approve & close
PPC and Quality sign off; ERP update confirmed.
An ECN on e-mail is an ECN half implemented
ECNs on e-mail and Excel
- Old-revision parts still produced or bought after the change.
- Suppliers keep working to the old drawing.
- Nobody decides old stock until it is obsolete and written off.
- ERP, SOP and standard cost updated late - or never.
- Months later, nobody can say when the change really went in.
With Qubha ECN Management
- Cut-off date set by PPC for every old part.
- Supplier actions tracked - stock, drawing sent, implementation date.
- Stock decided early - use up, rework or scrap, with quantities and cost.
- ERP, SOP and cost updates are required activities, not reminders.
- Implementation date and cycle days recorded for every ECN.
Everything engineering, PPC and every department need
ECN register
Every change, one tracker.
- ECN detailsNumber, revision, title, why and cause, type, category
- Customer & projectWith priority, lead time, owner and target date
- Release statusPrototype, build check, fitment check, production, obsolete
- IntroductionImmediately or as a running change
PLM & Excel import
No retyping from R&D.
- Teamcenter / PLM exportECNs and parts read straight from the Excel file
- Dry run firstValidate, see row errors, then apply
- No duplicatesExisting ECNs are skipped, not overwritten
- Parts from ExcelAdd affected parts from a sheet on any ECN
Affected parts & stock
What changes, and what happens to the old.
- Old and new partPart numbers, revisions, replaces and replaced by
- Stock dispositionUse up, rework, scrap or no stock
- Stock everywhereAt supplier, in-house, WIP; OK and not-OK
- Cut-off & costCut-off and effective dates; old and new cost, rework/scrap cost
Department flow
Each department, its own actions.
- HOD acknowledgementEvery department confirms before work starts
- Sequential stagesM.E., Purchase, Store, Quality, Production, PPC, Sales, Finance
- Committed datesEach department commits its own target date
- Required activitiesA stage cannot close with blanks
Escalation & closure
Late is visible - and escalated.
- RemindersAutomatic when a committed date is missed
- EscalationTo the HOD, then back to the department
- Implement & verifyPPC plan, actual date, M.E. verification
- Dual final approvalPPC and Quality, plus ERP update confirmed
Dashboard & reports
Where every ECN is stuck.
- ECN dashboardOpen, overdue, due today, awaiting PPC, implementation %
- Department timeAverage processing time per department
- Ageing & trendAge buckets; opened vs closed by month
- Inbox & e-mailMy queue, editable mails, daily summary, Excel export
Every department's part of the change, in order
Once every department head has acknowledged the ECN, the stages run in sequence. Each department commits a date, fills its required activities - stock counts, supplier dates, cut-off, cost - and hands over to the next.
- Your stages - set the departments, activities and time limits; skip stages by ECN type.
- Data where it belongs - stock, cut-off and cost entered in each stage are copied onto the affected parts.
- Who and when - every acknowledgement and completed stage is time-stamped.
Old part out, new part in - on a known date
For each affected part the ECN records the old and new revision, what to do with existing stock, how much is at the supplier, in stores and in WIP, the cut-off date of the old part and the cost impact.
- Use up, rework or scrap - decided before stock becomes obsolete.
- Cut-off date - so production and purchase stop the old part together.
- Cost impact - current and new cost, annual volume and rework or scrap cost.
See which ECNs are late - and which department holds them
A live dashboard for engineering, PPC and management, and a daily e-mail that keeps open ECNs from being forgotten.
- Overdue and due today - with the most overdue ECNs listed.
- Department-wise processing time - find the bottleneck.
- Cycle days and on-time closure - measured for every ECN.
Every kind of engineering change
New part release
New part numbers released to the plant.
Release status change
Prototype to build check, fitment check and production.
Tolerance & design change
Tolerance increase or decrease, part design and drawing changes.
Part number change
Part number replaced, with old and new tracked.
Structure change
Part added to or removed from the top assembly.
Paint & finish
Paint colour and finish changes.
ECN software vs Excel ECN register vs e-mail
| What matters | Qubha ECN | Excel register | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Department actions | Sequential stages with committed dates | A status column | Reply-all threads |
| Old stock & cut-off | Disposition, quantities and cut-off per part | Sometimes noted | Lost in threads |
| Delays | Automatic reminder and HOD escalation | Manual follow-up | Manual follow-up |
| Closure | Verified, PPC + Quality approval | Marked "done" | Never formally closed |
| History | Append-only, who and when | Overwritten | Scattered |
| Audit preparation | Ready every day | Days of clean-up | Days of searching |
ECN management questions
What is an ECN (engineering change notice)?
An engineering change notice (ECN) is the formal document R&D or engineering releases when a part, drawing, BOM, tolerance, material or finish changes. The plant must act on it: update the BOM and drawings, tell suppliers, decide what to do with old stock, fix the cut-off date of the old part, update costs and records, and confirm the change is implemented.
What is ECN management software?
ECN management software tracks each engineering change from release to closure. Ours records the ECN and its affected parts, gets every department head to acknowledge it, routes actions to each department in sequence with committed dates, escalates delays, and closes the ECN only after implementation, verification and final approval.
Can we import ECNs from Teamcenter or our ECN register?
Yes. ECNs and their affected parts are imported from an Excel export of the PLM system, such as Teamcenter, or from an existing ECN register. The import is validated first as a dry run, row errors are logged, and ECNs that already exist are skipped.
Which departments take part?
Any you configure. A typical flow is M.E. for BOM and drawing update, Purchase for supplier stock and drawing to supplier, Store, Quality for OK and not-OK stock, Production for WIP, PPC for the cut-off date of the old part, Sales for rework or scrap cost from the customer, M.E. for ERP and SOP update, and Finance for standard cost.
How is old stock handled?
Each affected part records the stock disposition - use up, rework, scrap, rework or scrap, or no stock - with stock at the supplier, in-house and in WIP, OK and not-OK quantities, the cut-off date of the old part and the effective date of the new one.
What happens when a department is late?
Each department commits its own target date. If it is missed, the system sends a reminder, then escalates to the department head, and can return the stage to the department, on a schedule you set. Overdue ECNs show on the dashboard.
How does it help in IATF 16949 and ISO 9001 audits?
Auditors check that engineering changes are reviewed, controlled and implemented, and that the plant can show evidence. Every ECN keeps an append-only history of who acknowledged, acted, verified and approved it and when, with the part revisions, stock decisions, cut-off dates and final PPC and Quality approval.
How does it solve internal issues with engineering changes?
Common problems are old-revision parts still being produced or bought, suppliers working to old drawings, obsolete stock written off late and costs not updated. With each department's action tracked to a committed date and escalated when late, these gaps are closed before they reach the customer.
Can it run on our own server?
Yes, in the cloud or on your own server. It works in any web browser on desktop, tablet or phone.
Who makes it?
Qubha Infotech Pvt Ltd, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India - the same team builds, installs and supports it.
Part of the Qubha shop-floor platform
Engineering change control alongside your other quality systems.
Close every ECN - on time, with proof
See an ECN go from PLM import to department actions, cut-off and final approval in a 30-minute demo.