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Author: Johnny Liu, CEO at Dowway Vehicle
Published: March 2026
Category: Automotive Digital Engineering / PLM

Johnny Liu leads Dowway Vehicle and works closely with vehicle engineering teams, manufacturing integration programs, and automotive digital transformation projects. This article explains how Yonyou PLM supports modern automotive R&D from requirement definition to manufacturing coordination and lifecycle traceability.

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Automotive R&D Is Becoming a Digital Engineering System

Automotive engineering has changed dramatically with the rise of electric vehicles and intelligent driving technologies. Vehicle development is no longer limited to mechanical engineering. Modern vehicles combine mechanical systems, electronic control systems, software platforms, and large amounts of engineering data.

Because of this shift, automotive research and development now involves multiple interconnected disciplines, including:

• product requirement definition
• CAD and CAX engineering design
• simulation analysis
• process planning
• manufacturing preparation
• supply chain collaboration
• after-sales service support

In traditional development environments, these functions are often managed in separate systems. As a result, many automotive companies experience problems such as data silos, inconsistent document versions, delayed design changes, and weak collaboration between engineering and manufacturing teams.

For example, body structure data may not synchronize with chassis development updates, leading to assembly interference problems. Electric powertrain data may not connect with manufacturing preparation systems, increasing production rework costs. Managing multiple configuration variants of a vehicle platform can also create complex BOM management challenges.

Yonyou PLM was developed to address these issues by creating a digital engineering platform designed for the automotive lifecycle.

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Definition: What Is Yonyou PLM in Automotive Engineering?

Yonyou PLM is a product lifecycle management system designed to manage engineering data, product structures, and development workflows across the entire automotive lifecycle.

The platform connects requirement management, engineering design, BOM management, process planning, manufacturing coordination, and supply chain collaboration within a single digital environment. This integration allows automotive companies to manage product data consistently from concept development to production and service.

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Architecture of Yonyou PLM for Automotive Development

Yonyou PLM uses a three-layer architecture designed to support complex automotive development programs.

The architecture includes:

• foundation support layer
• core function layer
• engineering application layer

This layered design allows automotive companies to build scalable engineering systems that support collaboration across departments and development sites.

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Foundation Layer: Cloud-Native Platform Infrastructure

The foundation layer runs on the IUAP platform, which is part of the Yonyou BIP enterprise innovation framework.

Cloud-Native System Architecture

The system supports flexible cloud deployment options, including:

• public cloud environments
• private cloud infrastructure
• hybrid cloud systems

This flexibility allows automotive companies to scale their development systems while maintaining control over sensitive engineering data.

Microservice Architecture

Yonyou PLM uses a Spring Cloud microservice architecture. Core functions such as document management, BOM management, change management, and project management operate as independent services.

This architecture offers several advantages:

• independent service deployment
• easier upgrades
• improved reliability
• support for large numbers of concurrent users

Compared with traditional monolithic systems, microservice architectures can improve system performance significantly when handling large engineering datasets.

Data Standardization

The platform includes built-in data libraries for engineering and manufacturing applications. These include:

• standard parts libraries
• common component libraries
• standardized material attributes
• document templates

The system also supports automotive standards such as VDA and ISO 26262, helping engineering teams maintain consistent data structures.

Security and Access Control

Automotive engineering data requires strong protection. Yonyou PLM supports several security mechanisms:

• role-based permission control
• data confidentiality classification
• operation log tracking
• document watermarking
• OAuth2 authentication for system integration

Domestic IT Ecosystem Support

The platform is compatible with domestic computing environments such as:

• Huawei Kunpeng processors
• UnionTech UOS operating systems

This compatibility supports localization strategies for automotive manufacturers adopting domestic infrastructure.

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Core Functional Modules of Yonyou PLM

Yonyou PLM includes several modules designed to manage the entire automotive development lifecycle.

Requirement Management

The requirement management module allows engineering teams to capture and track different types of requirements, including:

• market requirements
• customer requirements
• regulatory requirements

Requirements can be linked to engineering tasks, simulations, and validation activities.

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Definition: What Is a Super BOM in Automotive Product Development?

A Super BOM is a unified product structure that contains all possible components and configuration options for a vehicle platform.

Instead of creating separate BOM structures for each variant, a super BOM organizes shared components and variant-specific components within one master structure. Configuration rules determine which components are used for each vehicle configuration.

This method significantly reduces BOM maintenance complexity in multi-variant vehicle programs.

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BOM Lifecycle Management in Automotive Development

Managing product structures is one of the most complex aspects of automotive engineering.

Yonyou PLM supports full BOM lifecycle management, including:

• engineering BOM creation
• process BOM generation
• manufacturing BOM conversion
• configuration management

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Definition: EBOM, PBOM, and MBOM

Automotive product structures are represented in three different forms:

EBOM (Engineering BOM)
Represents the product structure from the design perspective.

PBOM (Process BOM)
Represents the process planning structure used by manufacturing engineers.

MBOM (Manufacturing BOM)
Represents the final assembly structure used in production lines.

Yonyou PLM supports automatic transformation between these structures, ensuring engineering changes are reflected throughout the manufacturing lifecycle.

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CAX Integration in Automotive Engineering

Engineering design tools remain the core of automotive development. Yonyou PLM integrates directly with CAX tools such as:

• CATIA V5 and V6
• UG / NX
• AutoCAD

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Definition: What Is CAX Integration?

CAX integration refers to the connection between PLM platforms and engineering tools such as CAD, CAM, and CAE software.

Through this integration, engineers can access PLM data directly within design software and synchronize design models automatically with lifecycle management systems.

Yonyou PLM supports integration with simulation tools such as ANSYS and ABAQUS, allowing simulation results to be linked directly to engineering models.

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Change Management in Automotive Development

Engineering changes occur frequently during vehicle development. These changes may result from regulatory updates, performance improvements, or cost optimization.

Traditional change processes rely heavily on manual coordination and document transfers. This approach often causes delays and incomplete implementation.

Yonyou PLM provides a structured change management process to control engineering modifications.

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Definition: Closed-Loop Change Management

Closed-loop change management is a process that tracks engineering changes from request submission through review, execution, verification, and final release.

This approach ensures that every change is evaluated, approved, implemented, and documented within the engineering lifecycle.

Yonyou PLM uses CMII-based change workflows to manage change requests, analyze impacts, coordinate reviews, and ensure proper execution across engineering and manufacturing teams.

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Engineering Implementation Case

A domestic electric vehicle manufacturer implemented Yonyou PLM to improve its R&D workflow.

Before implementation, the company faced several problems:

• complex BOM management across multiple vehicle variants
• weak coordination between design and manufacturing teams
• paper-based change approval processes
• engineering data stored across different systems

After deploying Yonyou PLM, the company implemented:

• super BOM configuration management
• integration with CATIA and ANSYS tools
• structured change management workflows
• centralized engineering data management

After six months, the company reported significant improvements:

• BOM management efficiency improved by 60 percent
• BOM accuracy increased to 99.8 percent
• production preparation time reduced from 15 days to 7 days
• change approval cycles reduced from 7 days to 3 days
• vehicle development cycles shortened from 18 months to 12 months

The system also helped the company meet industry standards such as IATF 16949 and ISO 26262.

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Advantages of Yonyou PLM in Automotive Engineering

Yonyou PLM offers several advantages for automotive development programs.

Industry-Specific Framework Support

The system supports automotive development frameworks such as:

• APQP
• IPD
• CMII

Enterprise System Integration

Through the Yonyou BIP platform, the system integrates with enterprise systems including:

• ERP platforms
• MES manufacturing systems
• supplier management platforms

Scalable System Architecture

The microservice architecture allows the system to scale with growing development programs.

User-Friendly Interface

The platform interface is designed for engineering teams and manufacturing specialists, making adoption easier for organizations.

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Frequently Asked Questions

How do automotive companies manage multi-configuration vehicle BOMs in Yonyou PLM?

Short Answer
Companies use a super BOM with configuration rules to generate multiple vehicle configurations.

Expanded Answer
Yonyou PLM stores all possible vehicle components in a super BOM. Configuration rules define which components belong to each variant. This approach simplifies BOM maintenance and supports rapid configuration generation.

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How does Yonyou PLM convert EBOM into manufacturing BOM structures?

Short Answer
The system automatically converts EBOM data into PBOM and MBOM using predefined transformation rules.

Expanded Answer
Engineering design data is converted into manufacturing structures by linking process routes, materials, and production information during BOM transformation.

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How does Yonyou PLM integrate with CAD systems?

Short Answer
The platform provides plug-ins that connect directly with design tools.

Expanded Answer
Engineers can access component libraries, upload models, and synchronize design structures with PLM data directly from CAD tools such as CATIA and NX.

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How does Yonyou PLM control engineering changes?

Short Answer
The system uses structured workflows based on CMII change management principles.

Expanded Answer
Engineering changes move through stages including request submission, impact analysis, review, execution, and verification, ensuring traceability and proper implementation.

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How does Yonyou PLM integrate with ERP and manufacturing systems?

Short Answer
The platform connects PLM with ERP, MES, and supplier systems through the Yonyou BIP integration framework.Expanded Answer
Engineering data flows automatically to manufacturing planning, production systems, and supply chain platforms, enabling full lifecycle digital collaboration.