BOM Management Software: The Key to Fast & Accurate PCBA Quotes

sdowney40
Jun 20
4 min read

Boardera BOM management software providing AI BOM scrubbing and sourcing features that parse all part numbers and instantly process the file

In the world of electronics manufacturing, quoting speed and accuracy can determine whether a project is won or lost. The manufacturers’ ability to quickly return a clean, competitive quote depends heavily on how the Bill of Materials (BOM) is handled. While many teams have embraced digital quoting tools, far too many still spend hours manually reformatting and cleaning messy spreadsheets — an outdated approach to BOM scrubbing that introduces risk and slows the quoting process.

BOM management is necessary for unlocking more efficiency in electronics manufacturing quoting. The manual effort of cleaning and preparing BOM files can be automated with AI-powered BOM scrubbing, a feature that should be prioritized while looking for a Configure-Price-Quote (CPQ) tool for electronics manufacturing.

What is BOM Scrubbing?

BOM scrubbing is the process of reviewing, validating, and cleaning a Bill of Materials before it is used to source parts or integrate into an ERP or manufacturing system. In PCB assembly, effective BOM scrubbing ensures that the data handed off for procurement and production is complete and reliable.

The purpose of BOM scrubbing is to prepare a clean, complete dataset that enables confident quoting and smooth downstream integration. An effectively scrubbed BOM is structurally uniform and easily ingestible by most ERP systems, with clearly labeled columns, assigned values, and resolved inconsistencies. DNP and DNI parts are clearly identified and excluded from costing calculations. Substitutions are properly annotated and traceable to approved sourcing logic. Quantity fields align with reference designators to prevent mismatched orders. Critically, the BOM is enriched with data from sourcing integrations, such as part lifecycle status, suggested distributors, lead times, and pricing options.

Traditionally, manufacturers received BOMs from customers often riddled with issues, requiring engineering or quoting teams to reformat headers, validate part numbers, and manually cross-reference DNP instructions and alternate parts. Hours were spent prepping the BOM, which was not only time-intensive but introduced considerable risk for human error and reduced quoting throughput. However, with the rise of modern BOM scrubbing capabilities in CPQ software for electronics manufacturing, this process has been transformed. Today, BOMs can be uploaded directly to quoting platforms where AI-driven systems automatically parse the file, and prepare the dataset for procurement, cutting hours of manual work down to minutes.

Why Automation is Essential

AI-powered BOM management tools allow users to import files and receive automatic parsing. It will scrub the BOM for errors and inconsistencies and enrich it with real-time sourcing information like contract pricing, lead times, and availability in a matter of seconds. This kind of real-time scrubbing and component validation is the only way to reduce time-consuming formatting errors and risks associated with manual processing. In working with many long and complex MPNs, it is quite possible for someone to mistake a 0 for an O. Automatically parsing the BOM file not only mitigates these risks but also saves your team valuable time.

Automated BOM scrubbing ensures manufacturers begin each quote with a clean, reliable file, setting the stage for accuracy across sourcing and delivery. When quoting teams are supported by automated BOM tools, they’re able to move faster, quote more confidently, and respond to customers first, without sacrificing control. In a competitive landscape where speed and precision win jobs, that’s not just an advantage, it’s a requirement.

Manual vs. Automated BOM Scrubbing

Manual

Requires significant time investment, with manual review often taking 5 minutes per line and several hours of effort to prepare a full BOM for quoting.
Introduces unnecessary risk of human error, as more than 50% of BOM files contain issues that require precise corrections.
Delays in RFQ turnaround occur when hours are spent correcting part number and formatting errors, often resulting in lost bids under time-sensitive conditions.

Automated

Parses BOM files in seconds, automatically assigning headers to columns, even in poorly formatted conditions.
Detects issues instantly, flagging the errors and bringing them to the attention of the user with suggested solutions early in the quoting process.
Improves quoting efficiency significantly, reducing BOM preparation time and improving response times by up to 50%.

While it is important to have someone in-house reviewing BOM files who knows the company's needs and can effectively communicate with staff, well-structured BOM scrubbing automation improves efficiency in quoting. CPQ software for manufacturing like Boardera, combines the capabilities of a feature-rich BOM management tool while still providing users with the option to manually review and edit as much, or as little as desired.

What to Look for in BOM Management Software

Not all BOM management tools are built equally. To enable fast, accurate quoting, the software should deliver more than just sourcing. Look for features like:

Intelligent data interpretation to understand and parse content within BOM files in any format despite it being messy or inconsistent. Assign headers to columns and rows even if they are not clearly labeled, understanding DNP/DNI parts, and recognizing and applying manufacturer names, values, and descriptions.
Part number detection and validation that understands the correct components to be sourced despite potential typos, outdated numbers, or vague descriptions. Components that are obsolete or with invalid part numbers will be flagged and replaced with alternatives.
Flexibility for custom pricing logic because in some cases you know your true costs better than the database. Your BOM management tool should allow you to step in and insert true costs for harder-to-source or specialty components that you may have your own negotiated price for.
Clear exception reporting to identify and provide visibility when issues inevitably arise. Keeping your quoting process transparent with reports that clearly list BOM discrepancies and sourcing conflicts to resolve.

Boardera offers AI quoting software for electronics manufacturing with BOM scrubbing automation that delivers all the capabilities above, and much more. Watch the video below to see how seamlessly Boardera's BOM management software is able to understand the content of a messy BOM file, scrubbing it for confident quoting and procurement within seconds.