The quick answer
Edit the assembly item, open its Manufacturing subtab and click the plus icon beside Bill of Materials on the sublist. Name the BOM, save it, then save the item. Open the BOM and use Create New Revision to add the first revision with an Effective Start Date and its components. Until that date arrives, the item's line reads No Active Revision. After it, the line shows the revision name and its start date. In this example WG-500 BOM moves from No Active Revision to WG-500 Rev A, effective 10/01/2026.
The screenshots show sample data. Person and operating-company names are fictional, and the item, BOM, revision and component names are examples. Use your own records and values when following the steps.
Before you start
You need Assembly Items and Advanced Bill of Materials, an assembly item that has no bill of materials yet, and the component items for its first revision. Your role needs permission to create bills of materials and revisions.
The BOM form and the revision form are separate forms. In a live account the plus icon typically opens the BOM form in its own window and the item form stays open behind it. The screenshots here show each form in the same page, so after you save the BOM the item form comes back with the new BOM already on the sublist. In the recording this guide follows, the first BOM added this way was marked Master Default Yes, and that may not hold in every account. Check that column on your own item, and see the questions below if it differs.
01. Open the assembly for editing
From the Lists menu, point to Accounting and choose Items. The list shows WG-500 Wooden Wagon 18 in as an Assembly. Click Edit beside WG-500, then open the Manufacturing subtab. The Bills of Materials sublist has no lines, only an empty entry line.
02. Create the BOM from the sublist
On the entry line, the Bill of Materials list offers - New - and the BOMs that already exist. Here those are TR-210 BOM and BL-120 BOM, and both belong to other assemblies. Click the plus icon beside the field. The open icon beside it opens the BOM that is chosen, so it stays dimmed until you choose one.
The Bill of Materials form opens. Type WG-500 BOM in Name. Leave Available For All Assemblies checked so any assembly can use the BOM, keep Alder Street US as the Subsidiary, and click Save. Choose Restrict To Assemblies instead when the BOM holds components that only one product uses.
03. Save the item with the new BOM
The item form comes back on the Manufacturing subtab with WG-500 BOM already on the sublist. Current Revision reads No Active Revision, because the BOM has no revision yet. Master Default reads Yes, and a new entry line is open below it. Click Save on the item.
The saved item lists the same line, with no dates. A BOM with no revision carries no components, so the item has nothing to show for it yet.
04. Add the first revision
Click WG-500 BOM in the sublist. Its Revisions subtab has no records, and Used On Assembly is checked because the item now lists the BOM. Click Create New Revision.
Name the revision WG-500 Rev A and type 10/01/2026 in Effective Start Date. Pick BP-10 Birch Panel, WS-04 Wheel Set and SA-02 Steel Axle as the components. Each line starts at Component Yield 100.0% and BOM Quantity 1. Change BOM Quantity to 4 on the panel and to 2 on the axle, then click Save. Leave Effective End Date blank. A revision with no end date stays open-ended. When a later revision follows, end the earlier one before the later one starts. Date ranges on one BOM cannot overlap, and gaps between them are allowed. Each revision holds the full component list for that version.
05. Read the item again
On WG-500 BOM, WG-500 Rev A is now listed with its start date. Open the Assemblies subtab and click WG-500, then open the Manufacturing subtab. The line reads WG-500 BOM, Current Revision WG-500 Rev A, Effective Start Date 10/01/2026 and Master Default Yes.
Current Revision shows the revision whose dates include today. This example uses a start date on or before today, so the name shows right away. A start date in the future would leave the line at No Active Revision until that date. Work orders choose a revision by their Production Start Date, so an item that reads No Active Revision today can still have a revision for a later production date.
Check the result
- After you save the item, WG-500 BOM is on the sublist with Current Revision No Active Revision.
- WG-500 BOM shows Used On Assembly checked and no revisions until you create one.
- WG-500 Rev A lists three components at Component Yield 100.0%, with BOM Quantity 4, 1 and 2.
- The item's line reads WG-500 Rev A, 10/01/2026 and Master Default Yes.
Common questions
How do I add a bill of materials to an assembly item?
Edit the item, open the Manufacturing subtab and use the Bills of Materials sublist. Choose an existing BOM from the Bill of Materials list, or click the plus icon to create a new one. A BOM can be linked to an assembly before it has a revision. To fill a work order with components, the assembly needs an applicable BOM and an active revision with component lines for the work order's Production Start Date, so create the revision from the BOM record afterwards.
What does the plus icon on the Bills of Materials sublist do?
It opens a new Bill of Materials form for this assembly's line. Saving that form creates the BOM and returns you to the item. The - New - choice in the Bill of Materials list is the other way to start a new BOM, and the open icon opens the BOM that is chosen.
Why does my assembly show No Active Revision?
The BOM exists, but no revision is in effect for today. It may have no revision yet, or its revisions may start in the future or have already ended. Open the BOM, check the Revisions subtab and the effective dates, and add or adjust a revision.
Does the first bill of materials become the Master Default?
Not reliably enough to count on. In the recording this guide follows, the first BOM added from the plus icon showed Master Default Yes on the sublist before the item was saved, and some accounts may behave the same way. Read the Master Default column on your own item. If it is blank, check the box on the line, or set it from the BOM's Assemblies subtab, and check any default for a location. When an assembly has several BOMs, one is the Master Default, and a BOM can also be the default for a location.
Why is Current Revision still No Active Revision after I added a revision?
Current Revision looks at today's date. If the revision's Effective Start Date is in the future, or its Effective End Date has passed, the line keeps No Active Revision. A work order uses its own Production Start Date to pick a revision, so check that date too.
Can I create the BOM from the Bills of Materials list instead?
Yes. Both ways end with a BOM on the assembly and a revision. Starting from the item fits an assembly that exists and has no BOM. Starting from Lists, Supply Chain, Bills of Materials fits a BOM you want to build once and reuse across several assemblies, which you attach from the BOM's Assemblies subtab. For a BOM that exists already, open that record instead of creating a duplicate.
What does Used On Assembly mean on the BOM?
NetSuite sets it once an assembly lists the BOM, and you cannot edit it. It shows that at least one assembly lists the BOM. It does not limit which assemblies can use the BOM. Available For All Assemblies and Restrict To Assemblies do that.