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Welcome to Cascadia PLM

Cascadia is an open-source, code-first Product Lifecycle Management system built for engineering and manufacturing teams moving away from Excel into a well-managed, auditable system — without compromising development speed. It replaces traditional PLM stacks (Aras Innovator, Windchill, Teamcenter) with a Git-inspired engineering data model, a TypeScript-native configuration surface, and a modern web UI — all licensed under AGPL-3.0 and deployable on your own infrastructure.

What makes Cascadia different​

  • ECO-as-Branch change management — Every Engineering Change Order gets its own isolated database branch. Parallel teams work without stepping on each other; revisions are assigned atomically at merge time. Read more →
  • Code-first configuration — Item types, workflows, lifecycles, and permissions live in TypeScript files reviewed via pull requests. No UI-based customization wizards, no proprietary configuration formats.
  • Unified item model — Parts, Documents, Change Orders, Requirements, Tasks, Work Instructions, Issues, and TestCases share one versioning system, one search surface, and one API. Read more →
  • AI-native — An LLM chatbot with access to the PLM schema, plus a multi-stage Design Engine that drafts requirements, BOMs, and CAD from natural-language input. Works with OpenAI, Anthropic, Gemini, and Ollama. Read more →
  • CAD-aware — Built-in STEP/IGES → STL/GLB conversion via a Python microservice, parametric generation via Zoo API / KCL, and a browser 3D viewer powered by Three.js.
  • Self-hostable — Docker Compose for dev, single-server for small teams, distributed for HA, Kubernetes for large deployments. PostgreSQL + RabbitMQ + S3-compatible object storage.
Get StartedLearn the SystemDeploy It
IntroductionSystem ArchitectureDocker Compose
InstallationECO-as-BranchSingle Server
ConfigurationTwo-Table PatternKubernetes
Quick StartSecurity ModelCloud Database

Core Item Types​

Item TypePurpose
ProgramTop-level organizational container — whether that's a contract or a project
DesignContainer for each BOM structure or digital-engineering effort
PartManufacturing parts with BOM relationships, material properties, cost and lead-time tracking
DocumentSpecifications, drawings, and other engineering documents with check-in/out
Change Order (ECO)Engineering change management with branch-based isolation and approval voting
RequirementRequirements tracking with verification method and acceptance criteria
TaskWork items with Kanban visualization, priorities, and due dates
Work InstructionManufacturing procedures with template/execution separation
IssueDefect and problem tracking — Engineering, Quality, Production, or elsewhere

Feature Highlights​

  • Git-style versioning — branches, commits, tags, and revision letters assigned on merge. Learn more →
  • Bill of Materials management — multi-level BOMs, where-used queries, cross-design references. Learn more →
  • Workflow engine — state machines with approval voting, guards, and side-effect actions. Learn more →
  • File vault — check-in/check-out with lock hierarchy, storage on local filesystem or S3. Learn more →
  • Enterprise search — unified search across all item types with access scoping. Learn more →
  • Import/Export — bulk Excel/CSV import with BOM structure parsing. Learn more →
  • Reporting — saved report definitions with CSV export and audit logging. Learn more →
  • 3D CAD visualization — STL, OBJ, GLB viewing directly in the browser. Learn more →
  • SysML v2 API — standards-based interoperability with external systems engineering tools.

Open Source under AGPL-3.0​

Cascadia is free software. Read the source, run it anywhere, contribute improvements back:

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