Important Notice to OpenBOM Customers: OpenBOM PDM Development and Communication from Kenesto

At OpenBOM, we are dedicated to continuously improving the OpenBOM Platform to provide the best possible solutions for managing product data and collaboration. In this article, we’d like to update you on our recent developments in OpenBOM PDM functions and provide an important notice regarding our relationship with Kenesto.

Our Commitment to Continuous Innovation

At OpenBOM, we focus on delivering cutting-edge solutions that exceed our customers’ expectations and address their evolving needs. With our rapid development cycle, working in 3-4 week sprints, we have made substantial progress since we began this journey, rolling out an impressive 106 releases to date. These consistent improvements demonstrate our commitment to innovation and ensure a smooth experience for our users during this transitional phase.

Customer-Centric Vision

Our vision at OpenBOM is built around continuous improvement and agile development, with a core focus on listening to our customers and learning from their experiences. By combining customer feedback with our technological advancements, we create solutions that drive long-term success and sustainable results.

The Introduction of PDM Features

Back in 2022, we took a step forward by introducing PDM (Product Data Management) features into OpenBOM, aimed at addressing the growing need for managing work-in-progress CAD files. To support this, we partnered with Kenesto to OEM and white label their vault technology, which we branded as OpenBOM Drive.

However, over time, it became clear that Kenesto’s technology did not align with our long-term strategic goals. While the Kenesto technology served a purpose initially, we realized that it no longer met the evolving needs of OpenBOM and our customers. If you are interested in the technical details behind this decision, we would be happy to discuss them in more depth. Please reach out to us for more information.

OpenBOM’s Solution: Design Projects

As part of our commitment to providing the best possible experience for our customers, we developed our own technology and product to better fit our strategy. This new solution, called Design Projects, offers enhanced functionality to manage CAD and other files, including version control, file lock, check-in/out and protection against overwriting files during concurrent work. You can find more information about the functions online and in the OpenBOM Design Projects Live Demo webinar.  This feature has many important advantages over Drive, is available to all OpenBOM subscribers, and meets the demands of engineers working with file-based CAD systems to support collaboration.

Communications from Kenesto

Unfortunately, we need to address recent communications from Kenesto, which caused confusion among some of our customers.  If your OpenBOM subscription includes Drive, Kenesto is obligated to continue this service pursuant to the terms of our agreement with Kenesto. We have reached out to all affected customers personally and directly. If you have not received our message, please contact our support so we can provide clarification and help you.

Ensuring a Smooth Transition

Transparency is a core value at OpenBOM, and we are committed to keeping you informed throughout this transition. We expect Kenesto to fulfill their contractual obligations as we sunset the partnership and your services should not be impacted. At the same time, while we expect service to continue uninterrupted, we recommend that you back up your OpenBOM Drive files to local folders to ensure against any possible disruptions.

We Are Here to Help

If you have any questions or concerns, we encourage you to contact us via OpenBOM Support. Our team is ready to assist you and ensure a seamless transition as we move forward with our new and improved PDM capabilities.

Thank you for your continued trust in OpenBOM.

Best regards,

Oleg Shilovitsky
CEO and Co-founder, OpenBOM