A module can be thought of as a limited, partial MDS. Modules can only be used within your own company, and cannot be sent, proposed, published, or assigned to an Organization Unit. Modules can be added to an MDS, and are useful for a set of components or materials frequently used in full MDSs.
For example, if you produce a wide range of products which are mounted using a common set of bolts into a common enclosure, the bolts and enclosure could constitute a module which you incorporate into the various MDSs which utilize these parts. This same
“subset” functionality can also be achieved using an MDS, but modules are quicker and easier to create and maintain because they do not have customer or supplier information. A never-released module in edit mode can be converted to an MDS, but this capability is lost once the module is internally released or if other versions exist. More information on modules is provided later in this document (see 3.3.1).
Once Datasheet or Module is selected, the menu opens a submenu from which to choose the type of MDS or module. From this submenu, the user may choose to create a component, a semi-component or a material. Once chosen, the type cannotz be changed. The two most commonly created MDS types are Material and Component. Let us start with Material.