Carbon

Overview

Carbon brings ERP, materials planning, manufacturing execution and quality management together for discrete manufacturing. It covers product configuration, material planning, production work and quality records, with costs tracked through the same system. Its scope is aimed at manufacturers whose products and processes need structured specifications and traceability.

Product rules can generate bills of materials, routings and quoted prices, with revision control and effectivity dates. Carbon also supports multi-level BOMs, BOM comparison, change workflows and inventory integration. For category context, see Manufacturing ERP Software and Bill of Materials Software.

Key features

Configuration and cost planning

Rule-based BOM and routing generation helps define how configured products are built. Revision control and effectivity dates associate specifications with the appropriate product revision and period. Carbon can also calculate rolled-up costs and generate quoted prices from product rules.

Production planning and execution

Shop-floor tools include digital travelers, work instructions, QR and barcode tracking, and finite-capacity scheduling. Together, these functions connect planned production with recorded shop-floor activity.

Quality and traceability

First articles, nonconformances, corrective and preventive actions (CAPAs), and calibrations can be linked to production records. Serial and lot genealogy provide a way to follow products and materials through those records.

Integrations and developer access

Listed integrations include Onshape, SolidWorks, Slack, Linear, Jira, QuickBooks, Xero, Sage Intacct, Stripe, Ramp, Okta and Microsoft Entra. Carbon also provides a REST API, webhooks and an MCP server. Typed client generation is documented for TypeScript, Python, Go, Ruby, C# and PHP. For self-hosted deployments, API keys and MCP access require a commercial license.

Deployment and controls

Carbon can run as a managed cloud service, in a customer cloud account, through Docker, on-premises or in an air-gapped network. Air-gapped deployment is an Enterprise feature. The maker describes row-level security, granular permissions and complete record history, and lists ITAR-ready deployment, AS9100, ISO 13485, 21 CFR Part 11 and SOC 2 controls. It describes self-hosted deployment as supporting CMMC and ITAR requirements; Enterprise BYOC deployments include inputs for an SSP, POA&M and SPRS score.

The Community edition includes core ERP, MRP, MES and QMS under AGPL-3.0. Enterprise features require a commercial agreement. Enterprise engagements can include architecture, installation, legacy data migration, training and an SLA.

Pricing

Carbon advertises a 30-day trial that can be started without a sales call. A free plan is also listed. Paid plans are billed per user monthly:

• Starter: $40 a month per user. Includes automatic updates and backups, basic ERP, MES and QMS functionality, unlimited records, self-onboarding and community support.
• Business: $100 a month per user, with a 5-user minimum.
• Enterprise: Price not listed. Includes self-hosted or managed deployment, a forward deployed engineer, customizations, training and integrations, CMMC compliance, full setup and migrations, and SSO/SAML.

Platforms

Carbon is listed for API, Linux, self-hosted and web. Deployment options include managed cloud, a customer cloud account, Docker, on-premises and air-gapped networks, with air-gapped deployment reserved for Enterprise.

Who it's for

Carbon is built for discrete manufacturers. Its stated target industries include defense, aerospace, automotive, medical devices, electronics, robotics, energy, space, semiconductors and industrial equipment. Its combination of product rules, production records and quality traceability is relevant where configured products and controlled manufacturing processes need to stay connected.

Pros and cons

• Pros: Combines ERP, MRP, MES and QMS; supports configurable BOMs and routings, revision control, shop-floor tracking and production-linked quality records; offers several deployment choices and broad API access.
• Cons: Air-gapped deployment is an Enterprise feature; self-hosted API keys and MCP access need a commercial license; Enterprise pricing is not listed; Business requires at least five users.

Alternatives

Other options to consider include Epicor Kinetic, Odoo Manufacturing, Apache OFBiz, ERP5, Exact Online, QAD Adaptive ERP, Rootstock ERP and Cetec ERP.

Verdict

Carbon brings product configuration, production execution, quality management and cost tracking into one manufacturing system, with both managed and self-hosted deployment options. The Community edition provides a substantial core under AGPL-3.0, while commercial licensing is needed for Enterprise features and self-hosted API keys or MCP access. Buyers should weigh the per-user monthly plans against their deployment and licensing needs, especially if air-gapped operation or Enterprise services are required.