Skip to content
SPECIFICTION
Get listed

Cascadia PLM

cascadiaplm.com

From $254.17/mo Free plan Open source WebWindowsmacOSLinuxAPISelf-hosted
Visit cascadiaplm.com
Spec score 9.3 #1 of 47 in Bill of Materials Software

What it is

Cascadia PLM connects requirements, parts, bills of materials, engineering changes, and work orders in a product lifecycle record for manufacturers. Its core includes documents, multi-level BOMs, workflows, lifecycles, revision schemes, a file vault, search, import and export, APIs, and a 3D viewer. Engineering change orders can have separate workspaces for review before a team merges them. Item types, workflows, lifecycles, and permissions can be configured in TypeScript files and reviewed through pull requests. Documentation describes converting STEP and IGES files to STL and GLB for browser-based 3D viewing. Cascadia is self-hostable, with documented Docker Compose, single-server, distributed high-availability, and Kubernetes deployments; managed cloud is also offered. The free core includes REST and SysML v2 APIs, while managed-cloud API access is an optional paid add-on. Self-Hosted Core costs nothing. Managed Cloud — up to 20 editors costs $850 a month, billed $10,200/yr annually, and includes up to 20 editor seats and unlimited viewers. The maker describes the product as built for engineering and manufacturing teams.

Spec sheet

What it does
Cascadia PLM is a product-lifecycle system for hardware companies managing parts, documents, engineering changes, requirements, tasks, and traceability.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
Product
Cascadia connects requirements, parts, bills of materials, engineering changes, and work orders in a product lifecycle management record for manufacturers.Read 3 Oct 2026 · cascadiaplm.com
Intended users
The maker describes Cascadia as built for engineering and manufacturing teams, including teams moving from spreadsheets and defense or maritime engineering teams.Read 3 Oct 2026 · cascadiaplm.com
Deployment
Cascadia is self-hostable and documents Docker Compose, single-server, distributed high-availability, and Kubernetes deployments.Read 3 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
API
The free core includes REST and SysML v2 APIs; managed-cloud API access is an optional paid add-on.Read 3 Oct 2026 · cascadiaplm.com
Integrations
The pricing page lists optional Solid Edge and SolidWorks add-ins, and configurable ERP, MES, or CRM connectors including Epicor, Global Shop, and Odoo.Read 3 Oct 2026 · cascadiaplm.com
Security
The security documentation describes role-based and program-based access controls, session security, CSRF checks, and same-origin CORS by default.Read 3 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
Support
The documentation directs users to installation and quick-start guides, troubleshooting, FAQs, GitHub Discussions, and GitHub Issues.Read 3 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
AI assistant
The LLM assistant can search and modify PLM records, create ECOs, analyze change impact, and launch design sessions, with permission checks and audit logs.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
AI providers
The assistant documents Anthropic and OpenAI adapters as supported, while Google Gemini and Ollama adapters are listed as planned.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
API authentication
API tokens are supported alongside database-backed sessions and OAuth providers such as GitHub, Google, and Microsoft.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
CAD
The documentation describes STEP and IGES conversion to STL and GLB, plus browser-based 3D viewing.Read 3 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
CAD generation
Natural-language CAD generation uses the Zoo API, while simpler parametric parts can be generated through CadQuery workers.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
CAD viewing
STEP and IGES files can be converted to STL and GLB for browser viewing, with Three.js used for visualization.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
Change management
Each engineering change order can use an isolated workspace that teams review and merge when ready.Read 3 Oct 2026 · cascadiaplm.com
Company size signal
The Cascadia PLM LinkedIn organization page displayed 26 followers when crawled.Read 14 Oct 2026 · linkedin.com
Compliance positioning
The maker describes Cascadia as ITAR-ready and says self-hosting within the customer’s own boundary supports its ITAR deployment approach.Read 3 Oct 2026 · cascadiaplm.com
Configuration
Item types, workflows, lifecycles, and permissions can be configured in TypeScript files and reviewed through pull requests.Read 3 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
Core capabilities
The core includes parts, documents, requirements, multi-level BOMs, workflows, lifecycles, revision schemes, file vault, search, import/export, APIs, and a 3D viewer.Read 3 Oct 2026 · cascadiaplm.com
Document control
Documents are version-controlled in a vault with check-in and check-out operations.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
Documentation depth
The public documentation includes installation, quick start, architecture, API references, deployment guides, feature manuals, FAQ, and troubleshooting pages.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
ECO-as-Branch
Each engineering change order receives an isolated branch so teams can work in parallel and merge approved revisions later.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
Enterprise search
A global search endpoint searches across item types while scoping results to the user's program and design permissions.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
Extensibility model
Item types, workflows, lifecycles, and permissions are defined in TypeScript and can be reviewed through pull requests.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
FreeCAD integration
A public FreeCAD 1.x workbench provides linking, check-in/check-out, property synchronization, and guided ECO workflows; assembly/BOM push is marked a Phase 2 placeholder.Read 14 Oct 2026 · github.com
GitHub activity
The public GitHub organization lists Cascadia-App, Demo-Data, and FreeCAD-Connector repositories; Cascadia-App showed 33 stars and 10 forks when opened.Read 14 Oct 2026 · github.com
Import limits
Excel and CSV imports support files up to 10 MB and batches of up to 500 items, including BOM parsing.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
Independent company statement
Founder Kai Kircher said he started Cascadia PLM to solve his own change-management and PLM architecture problems and is building it openly.Read 14 Oct 2026 · linkedin.com
Installation requirements
The installation guide recommends Node.js 22 LTS, npm 10+, PostgreSQL 18+, and Git 2.x; Docker Desktop is optional for queues, CAD conversion, and containers.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
Licence
The core PLM is licensed under GNU AGPL-3.0-or-later; commercial licensing is offered for organizations that cannot use AGPL or need enterprise capabilities.Read 14 Oct 2026 · github.com
Limit: CAD connectors
The repository states native Solid Edge and SolidWorks connectors are on the roadmap and not yet implemented.Read 14 Oct 2026 · github.com
Limit: database choice
The FAQ says MySQL and SQLite are unsupported because the application relies on PostgreSQL-specific features.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
Limit: maturity
The founder describes the project as early with substantial work still ahead, consistent with the documentation's pre-release warning.Read 14 Oct 2026 · linkedin.com
Limit: open issues
The public repository shows open issues for removing parts, deleted ECO branches remaining visible, and design-library behavior.Read 14 Oct 2026 · github.com
Parts and BOMs
The product supports multi-level bills of materials, assemblies, material and cost data, and where-used queries.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
Praise: open deployment
The founder's public announcement highlights free self-hosting, containerized deployment, and avoidance of proprietary Windows, Oracle, and SQL Server licensing.Read 14 Oct 2026 · linkedin.com
Pre-release status
The introduction labels Cascadia active-development software in late Phase 2 or early Phase 3 and says it is not yet recommended for production without evaluation.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
Reporting
Saved report definitions can query any item type, run with audit logging, and export CSV files.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
Requirements traceability
Requirements can be linked to parts and tests to provide end-to-end traceability.Read 14 Oct 2026 · cascadiaplm.com
REST API
Cascadia exposes a REST API for integrations, including item, file, search, and import operations.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
Security controls
Documented controls include secure SameSite cookies, hashed session tokens, login lockout after ten failures, CSRF checks, same-origin CORS defaults, and upload path sanitization.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
Self-hosting
Deployment options include Docker Compose, single-server installations, distributed high-availability setups, and Kubernetes.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
Storage integrations
Vault files can use local filesystem storage or S3-compatible object storage, with RabbitMQ available for background jobs.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
SysML API
The documentation describes standards-based SysML v2 API interoperability for external systems-engineering tools.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
System requirements
The FAQ lists Node.js 20+, PostgreSQL 18+, 4 GB RAM, and 20 GB storage as minimums; production guidance is 8 GB or more RAM and 100 GB or more storage.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com
Workflow engine
Configurable lifecycle state machines support guards, approval voting, transitions, and side-effect actions.Read 14 Oct 2026 · docs.cascadiaplm.com

Plans and prices

Self-Hosted Core Free Free forever Unlimited users · Core PLM · AGPL-3.0 · Customer infrastructure Read 14 Oct 2026 · cascadiaplm.com
Self-Hosted Core Free Unlimited editors · unlimited viewers · core PLM under AGPL-3.0 Read 3 Oct 2026 · cascadiaplm.com
Managed Cloud $850 a month From $850/mo Dedicated instance · Editor-seat pricing · Unlimited viewers · Upfront add-ons Read 14 Oct 2026 · cascadiaplm.com
Managed Cloud — up to 20 editors $850 a month $10,200/yr · billed annually Up to 20 editor seats · unlimited viewers Read 3 Oct 2026 · cascadiaplm.com
Managed Cloud — up to 50 editors $1,750 a month Up to 50 editor seats · unlimited viewers Read 3 Oct 2026 · cascadiaplm.com
Commercial License — Pilot $2,090, paid once 90-day pilot · credited toward year one on conversion Read 3 Oct 2026 · cascadiaplm.com
Managed Cloud — up to 100 editors $3,000 a month Up to 100 editor seats · unlimited viewers Read 3 Oct 2026 · cascadiaplm.com
Commercial License — Growth $3,050 a year Annual Teams up to 50 · self-hosted or managed hosting on customer hardware Read 3 Oct 2026 · cascadiaplm.com
Commercial License $30,000 a year From $30K/yr No AGPL obligations · Self-host or vendor-managed · On-premises, private cloud, or GovCloud Read 14 Oct 2026 · cascadiaplm.com
Commercial License — Enterprise $60,120 a year Annual Unlimited editors and viewers · CAD, enterprise connectors and SSO included · ITAR / AWS GovCloud add-on: +$30–50K/yr Read 3 Oct 2026 · cascadiaplm.com
Managed Cloud — 100+ editors Priced on request 100+ editor seats · unlimited viewers Read 3 Oct 2026 · cascadiaplm.com

Every Cascadia PLM plan and price →

Strong points and limits

Strong points

  • Connects requirements, parts, BOMs, changes, and work orders.
  • Supports review of engineering changes in isolated workspaces.
  • Free core includes REST and SysML v2 APIs.
  • Offers self-hosted and managed-cloud deployment.
  • Includes a browser-based 3D viewer.

Limits

  • Managed-cloud API access is an optional paid add-on.
  • Managed Cloud — up to 20 editors costs $850 a month.
  • Commercial License — Enterprise costs $60,120 a year.

Who it suits

Cascadia PLM suits engineering and manufacturing teams connecting product requirements, parts, changes, and work orders. The maker also describes it for teams moving from spreadsheets and defense or maritime engineering teams.

Cascadia PLM in depth

Read the full write-up

Overview

Cascadia PLM is product lifecycle management software for organizing engineering records and managing changes to them. It is strongest for manufacturers that want configurable, self-hosted PLM; its free core is unusually broad, while managed hosting starts at $850 a month.

Parts, requirements, multi-level bills of materials, documents, and work orders sit within a shared product record. Engineering change orders can be handled in isolated workspaces, so teams can review and merge proposed changes without folding unfinished work into the main record. That structure suits teams replacing spreadsheets or seeking formal change control, but the configuration and deployment options are likely more relevant to organizations prepared to manage technical systems than to buyers seeking a turnkey, minimal tool.

For category comparisons, see Product Lifecycle Management Software and Bill of Materials Software.

Key features

Product records and change control

The core covers parts, documents, requirements, multi-level BOMs, workflows, lifecycles, revision schemes, file vault, search, import/export, APIs, and a 3D viewer. This breadth lets teams keep related product definition and revision work together rather than splitting those functions across separate records. Isolated change-order workspaces add a useful review step before changes are merged.

Configuration and integrations

Teams can configure item types, workflows, lifecycles, and permissions in TypeScript files and review changes through pull requests. That approach gives technically equipped teams a controlled way to manage configuration, but is less appealing if administrators expect to make every change through a visual interface. Optional Solid Edge and SolidWorks add-ins and configurable ERP, MES, or CRM connectors—including Epicor, Global Shop, and Odoo—can connect it to adjacent engineering and operations systems.

CAD, AI, and APIs

Documentation describes conversion of STEP and IGES files to STL and GLB, with browser-based 3D viewing. AI features work with OpenAI, Anthropic, Gemini, and Ollama. REST and SysML v2 APIs are included in the free core; managed-cloud API access is a paid add-on, an important distinction for teams building integrations around the hosted service.

Deployment and security

Cascadia can be self-hosted, with documented Docker Compose, single-server, distributed high-availability, and Kubernetes deployments. Its security documentation describes role-based and program-based access controls, session security, CSRF checks, and same-origin CORS by default. The maker calls it ITAR-ready and says deployment within a customer’s own boundary supports its ITAR approach; the Enterprise plan’s separate GovCloud add-on carries an additional charge.

Pricing

The free Self-Hosted Core plan costs nothing and provides unlimited editors and viewers, core PLM, and an AGPL-3.0 license. It includes REST and SysML v2 APIs, making it a substantial starting point for teams able to host and operate the software themselves. It does not include managed-cloud hosting, and managed-cloud API access is a paid add-on.

Managed Cloud — up to 20 editors costs $850 a month (billed $10,200/yr; billed annually) and includes up to 20 editor seats with unlimited viewers. Managed Cloud — up to 50 editors costs $1,750 a month for up to 50 editors and unlimited viewers; Managed Cloud — up to 100 editors costs $3,000 a month for up to 100 editors and unlimited viewers. These tiers make hosting a per-month commitment that scales with editor count, while viewers remain unlimited. Managed Cloud — 100+ editors has custom pricing and unlimited viewers.

The Commercial License — Pilot costs $2,090, paid once for a 90-day pilot, credited toward year one on conversion. It offers a time-limited route to evaluate a commercial license rather than a perpetual free deployment. Commercial License — Growth costs $3,050 a year (billed Annual) for teams up to 50, with self-hosted or managed hosting on customer hardware. Commercial License — Enterprise costs $60,120 a year (billed Annual) and includes unlimited editors and viewers, CAD, enterprise connectors, and SSO. Its ITAR / AWS GovCloud add-on costs +$30–50K/yr, so organizations needing that deployment path should account for a substantial extra charge.

There is no free trial. The main trade-off is clear: the free core avoids license cost but requires self-hosting, while paid cloud tiers exchange that operational responsibility for annual-billed managed hosting. Growth and Enterprise suit teams that need commercial licensing and customer-hardware deployment; Enterprise is the stated tier for included CAD, enterprise connectors, and SSO.

Platforms

Cascadia supports API, Linux, macOS, self-hosted, web, and Windows. The documented deployment range—from a single server to Kubernetes and distributed high availability—gives infrastructure teams options beyond a single installation model. Buyers seeking a hosted service can choose managed cloud instead of operating that infrastructure themselves.

Who it's for

Cascadia is aimed at engineering and manufacturing teams, including groups moving from spreadsheets and defense or maritime engineering teams. It is a good fit when requirements, parts, BOMs, revisions, and change workflows need to live in one configurable system, especially if the team can self-host or has a reason to keep deployment within its own boundary. Teams that want the free option but cannot take on hosting, or that need managed-cloud APIs without an add-on, should weigh those costs before choosing it.

Pros and cons

Pros: The free self-hosted core includes a wide set of PLM functions, APIs, and unlimited editors and viewers, which gives technically capable teams room to begin without seat caps.

Pros: Isolated engineering change workspaces support review before merge, a practical safeguard for teams governing revisions.

Pros: Self-hosting and documented deployment choices support teams with infrastructure requirements, including the maker’s stated ITAR deployment approach.

Cons: The free core is self-hosted, so organizations that want the maker to host the service must move to paid managed cloud.

Cons: Managed-cloud plans are billed annually and cap editor seats at 20, 50, or 100 on the priced tiers; larger teams move to custom pricing.

Cons: TypeScript-file configuration and pull-request review favor teams comfortable with code-based administration over buyers seeking exclusively visual configuration.

Alternatives

Dokuly is worth considering for teams seeking free, open-source, self-hosted PLM with a Docker stack; Cascadia is the stronger fit when its stated change workspaces, broader configuration, or managed-cloud option matter. PDXpert PLM may suit Windows-centered teams that prefer a paid product with a three-week fully functional evaluation and a read-only subscription option. NETVIBES is a paid alternative with a free plan and trial, and runs on web, Android, iOS, and self-hosted deployments.

Creo, Oracle Fusion Cloud PLM, Aptean Industrial Manufacturing ERP Traverse Edition, Centric PLM, and Infor Public Sector are also alternatives to compare.

Verdict

Choose Cascadia PLM if your engineering or manufacturing team needs connected product records and controlled changes, and can make use of either self-hosting or its managed cloud. The broad free core and configurable deployment are its strongest reasons to choose it. Look elsewhere if you need a no-cost hosted service, want managed-cloud API access included, or prefer administration that does not involve TypeScript configuration and pull requests.

Verdict

Cascadia PLM combines product records, change workflows, and configurable self-hosted deployment. The free core includes key PLM functions and APIs; managed-cloud plans start at $850 a month for up to 20 editors.

Where Specifiction places it

Alternatives to Cascadia PLMAll alternatives →