ERPs

The minute you start making things in Electronics, you realize it is very beneficial to specify at least a few details, for later use.

A physical object is made of parts, and each of them have the basic need of being identified, specified, and bound to a range of characteristics that will make it work in the interaction with the ranges of the other parts it operates with.

It starts with the simple need of creating a bill of materials for the board you are designing. Each component usually has several alternatives, identified in different ways by different manufacturers, and possibly in yet different ways by different sources. The common solution to this is to create your own identification, or codification system, and define each part number to the extent necessary for the design of the assembly, for its use in manufacturing, and for the tracking of it in the financial / bookkeeping / accounting world.