A valve can appear in a P&ID, a line list, a 3D model, a purchase order, a vendor document, an inspection report, and a maintenance system. The physical valve is one object. Its digital representations often behave as unrelated records.
The problem is not solved by copying all data into another database. It is solved by establishing identity, authority, and lineage.
The governed record
A federated asset record answers four questions: what object is this, which system owns each attribute, which revision is approved, and what evidence supports the current state?
In practice, that means reconciling the equipment tag, service, line, specification, vendor identifiers, model object, document references, and inspection history. Conflicts do not disappear; they become explicit exceptions for professional review.
The operating principle
iPDM Pro connects the records without replacing their source systems. AI may propose a match. Deterministic rules test the identifiers and required attributes. An authorized professional decides whether the match is accepted.
One valve, one governed record does not mean one giant source system. It means one auditable identity across the systems the organization already uses.