# Creo and Windchill Data: Export, History and AI Value

> What Creo models and a Windchill database hold for AI buyers, how to count and export them with history, what Windchill+ terms say, and the buyer range.

Canonical: https://origindatapartners.com/guides/creo-windchill-data-ai-licensing
By: Origin Data Partners
Status: Published
Published: 2026-11-13
Updated: 2026-11-14
Sources checked: 2026-11-12

## Quick answer

Creo and Windchill data is worth most to AI developers as native Creo parts and assemblies with their model trees and family tables, tied to Windchill's revision and iteration history and its problem reports, change requests and change notices. Mercor lists PTC Creo among the tools it works with and publishes $45K to $1.3M per company, a published range rather than a closed deal.

## Key points

- Every Windchill object carries a version such as A.1: revision A, iteration 1. Iterations are the fine-grained history buyers value.
- Windchill export writes JAR files but leaves out the information required for change control.
- Purging iterations destroys history; pause purge jobs while a license is under discussion.
- Windchill+ customers: PTC's SaaS agreement bars API extraction for AI training without PTC's prior written consent.

## What are Creo and Windchill data worth to AI developers?

Mercor names PTC Creo on its hardware engineering listing and publishes what a company earns: "$45k–$1.3M", which "Depends on assembly count and completeness" ([Mercor](https://data.mercor.com/refer/view/?slug=hardware)). That is a buyer program's published range for companies with 20 to 2,000 employees, not the price of a completed sale.

A Creo shop that ran Windchill for years usually holds more than the models. The database records who changed what, at which revision, under which change notice, and which configuration was released. That record of engineering decisions is scarce: it is not on the public web, and only companies that build products accumulate it.

This page is general information, not legal advice; read the PTC agreement your company signed, and have counsel check customer contracts before any data is shared.

Put your counts into the [CAD archive value calculator](https://origindatapartners.com/tools/cad-archive-value) for a rough band, or [request a valuation from Origin](https://origindatapartners.com/check-fit) once you know what the database holds.


## What a Windchill database holds, and what it does not

Windchill keeps history as versions. "A version identifier such as A.1 is composed of a revision A and an iteration 1. A new revision is created whenever an object is revised. A new iteration is created when an object is checked out and checked back in." ([PTC](https://support.ptc.com/help/windchill/r13.1.2.0/en/Windchill_Help_Center/search/LclSrchCriteriaVersion.html)).

Change records sit beside the designs. PTC's change process runs from problem reports through change requests to change notices, and the second change administrator "is responsible for creating the implementation plan captured in the change notice" ([PTC](https://support.ptc.com/help/windchill/r13.1.2.0/en/Windchill_Help_Center/changemanagement/ChgMgmtAbout.html)). A change notice tied to the parts it revised is close to a labeled example: the problem, the decision and the new geometry.

| Windchill or Creo record | Why a buyer wants it | Watch for |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Creo parts and assemblies (.prt, .asm) with model trees | The feature sequence behind each shape | Parts from supplier or catalog libraries |
| All iterations of each revision | Small steps of real design work | Purge jobs may have removed older iterations |
| Problem reports, change requests, change notices | Why a design changed and what changed | Free-text fields with customer names |
| WTPart structures linked to CAD documents | The product structure and its BOM | Part numbers that reveal customers |
| Drawings (.drw) with annotations | Dimensions and tolerances tied to models | Export markings on defense work |
| Promotion and release states, baselines | Which configuration reached production | Configurations shared with partners |

Usually missing: measured test data, supplier quality records and field returns. If they live in a quality system, a lab folder or ERP, list them separately; linked outcomes add to what a buyer will pay.


## Creo model tree, Model Player and family tables: the design history inside the files

Each Creo file carries its own build history. "The Model Tree is a list of items in the model, in a hierarchical structure, that reflects, relations between the items or their order of regeneration", and in it "Each feature is represented by a node" ([PTC](https://support.ptc.com/help/creo/creo_pma/r12/usascii/fundamentals/fundamentals/About_the_Model_Tree_1.html)). With the Model Player, "you can go backward or forward through the feature creation history in the model in order to observe how the model was created" ([PTC](https://support.ptc.com/help/creo/creo_pma/r13/usascii/part_modeling/part_modeling/To_Step_Through_Feature_Creation.html)).

Family tables multiply that value. PTC describes them as "collections of parts (or assemblies or features) that are essentially similar, but deviate slightly in one or two aspects, such as size or detail features", built from a generic and its instances ([PTC](https://support.ptc.com/help/creo/creo_pma/r13/usascii/fundamentals/fundamentals/About_Family_Tables_1.html)). A table of fifty fastener sizes is a small dataset of controlled variation; a table of product variants is a larger one. Count instances separately from generics so a buyer sees both.


## How to count Creo assemblies, parts and iterations in Windchill

Start with a search, but widen it. By default, "Windchill only searches against the latest iteration of every revision based on the criteria. Non-latest iterations are ignored." ([PTC](https://support.ptc.com/help/windchill/r13.1.2.0/en/Windchill_Help_Center/search/LclSrchCriteriaVersion.html)). A first count from the search box therefore understates your history; use the advanced search options that include all versions.

For repeatable numbers, ask your administrator for report templates. In Windchill, "A report is the output of a predefined search and is used for generating statistics and metrics against business information" ([PTC](https://support.ptc.com/help/windchill/cloud/r12.0.2.0/en/Windchill_Help_Center/QBReportTemplatesTable.html)).

| Count | Where to get it | Why a buyer asks |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Top-level assemblies by product line and year | Report on EPM documents of type assembly | Shows product generations |
| Parts and drawings | Same report, by document type | Shows breadth |
| Revisions and iterations per assembly | Advanced search with all versions included | Shows depth of history |
| Change notices with linked affected objects | Report on change notices | Shows reasons for change |
| Family table generics and instances | Creo, per generic | Shows controlled variation |


## How to export, archive or back up Windchill data with its history

Windchill has three built-in routes out, and none is a full history export on its own.

- Export and import. "Windchill export enables you to place all the data stored in high-level objects in the local database into JAR files", but "The data that is exported (stored) and then imported (extracted) does not include information required for change control." ([PTC](https://support.ptc.com/help/windchill/r13.1.2.0/en/Windchill_Help_Center/exportimport_chp/exportimportChp_about.html)). For a CAD document seed, "No parts or links between parts and CAD documents are exported" unless you pick the combined product structure option.
- Packages. Windchill packages exist so you can share data "with people that work outside of your Windchill installation", for example on physical media ([PTC](https://support.ptc.com/help/windchill/r2027.0.0.0/en/Windchill_Help_Center/packages/PackageImportExportOview.html)). They suit a defined sample for a buyer's evaluation, not the whole history.
- Archive jobs. Through Purge Management, "if the archive functionality is installed at your site" you can "create an archive of the data to restore at a later time" ([PTC](https://support.ptc.com/help/windchill/cloud/r12.0.2.0/en/Windchill_Help_Center/SiteAdminChp_PurgeArchiveRestore.html)). Without that option, a purge is permanent.

Purging is the step that loses value. "Only earlier iterations can be purged", and Windchill blocks purges of "Objects that are included in a family table" and "Iterations that are referenced from a change object" ([PTC](https://support.ptc.com/help/windchill/r13.1.2.0/en/Windchill_Help_Center/purge/PurgeIterations.html)). If your site runs scheduled purges, the older iterations may already be gone; check before quoting depth.

For a complete copy, back up both halves. PTC says "the Windchill database should be backed up on a regular basis" and "Content files stored in an external file vault must be backed up using standard operating system tools and procedures." ([PTC](https://support.ptc.com/help/windchill/cloud/r12.0.2.0/en/Windchill_Help_Center/WCSysAdminBackupRecovery_EnsureProperBackupRecovery.html)). A buyer-ready set is then exported from a restored copy after the exclusions below.


## What a STEP export loses from Creo files

STEP carries solids, surfaces and some annotations, not the model tree. When Creo reads a STEP file, an exported solid comes back as a solid and surface-only data comes back as quilts ([PTC](https://support.ptc.com/help/creo/creo_pma/r13/usascii/data_exchange/interface/About_Importing_Part_and_Assembly_STEP_Files.html)). Rebuilding features takes a separate tool: "Feature Recognition is a process that semiautomatically identifies features imported from any Boundary Representation model (IGES, STEP, etc)." ([PTC](https://support.ptc.com/help/creo/creo_pma/r13/usascii/part_modeling/feature_recognition_tool/About_Feature_Recognition.html)).

So a folder of STEP files shows what your products look like, while the Creo files show how your engineers built them. The Mercor listing names its target as "Full multi-part assemblies in native CAD with feature trees" ([Mercor](https://data.mercor.com/refer/view/?slug=hardware)). Offer STEP only as a viewing copy next to the native set.


## Who owns Creo and Windchill data, and what PTC's terms say

On-premises Windchill runs on your servers and your database, so the designs and records in it are your company's, subject to customer and supplier contracts. The SaaS offering is different, because PTC's agreement governs how data leaves its service.

PTC's Master Software as a Service Agreement (May 2026) says that "without the prior written consent of PTC", "the Customer is expressly prohibited from accessing or using (directly or indirectly, including via an application created by Customer or a third party) the application program interface of the Services to extract data from the Service for the purpose of training, fine-tuning, or creating an artificial intelligence (AI) model" ([PTC, read 12 November 2026](https://ptc-p-001.sitecorecontenthub.cloud/api/public/content/85c1e418c91b4f308cb499ad17b02383?v=9fbcfd4a)). Read that before anyone scripts an extraction from Windchill+.

The same agreement offers a standard exit: "the Customer can request up to two data exports", and "export and snapshot of Data (e.g., for Customer's long-term retention needs) are not offered as part of the standard PTC offering" ([PTC](https://ptc-p-001.sitecorecontenthub.cloud/api/public/content/85c1e418c91b4f308cb499ad17b02383?v=9fbcfd4a)). Ask PTC in writing how to obtain a complete export for a data license. Contract ownership of client designs is covered in [who owns CAD files made for a client](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/product-design-consultancy-client-cad-files).


## What to take out of a Windchill export first

Filter by product, context and library before exporting, not after.

- Customer-owned products: contexts or libraries that hold work done to a customer's design or under a contract that assigned the design.
- Supplier and catalog models: purchased-part libraries, supplier-provided Creo or STEP models and standard-part catalogs.
- Export-controlled data: defense articles, dual-use items and anything carrying an export classification. Work through the [ITAR and EAR checklist](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/itar-ear-checklist-cad-data-ai) first.
- Personal and customer names in change objects, comments and drawing title blocks; see [de-identifying company data](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/de-identify-company-data-before-licensing).


## What AI companies pay for Creo and Windchill data

There is no published sale of a Windchill database to an AI company, and no published price for one. The evidence is one buyer program's published range.

| Evidence | What it says | What kind of source |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Mercor hardware engineering listing | "$45k–$1.3M" for companies with 20 to 2,000 employees; names PTC Creo among its tools ([Mercor](https://data.mercor.com/refer/view/?slug=hardware)) | A buyer program's published range |
| Same listing, fit criteria | "Several products or product generations"; not single parts or parts catalogs | The buyer program's own requirements |

A Windchill site with released product structures, intact iterations and linked change notices is the strong case. Creo files kept on a shared drive without Windchill still qualify, with less history. Compare with [SolidWorks PDM vaults](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/solidworks-pdm-vault-ai-data-value) and [Siemens NX and Teamcenter](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/siemens-nx-teamcenter-data-ai-licensing), or read the general [CAD and engineering data guide](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/license-cad-engineering-data-ai).

Does your company hold records like these? [See what your data is worth](https://origindatapartners.com/check-fit).

Origin Data Partners works with companies that own data and helps get it bought. We are independent of the services on this page, and a buyer may pay us when a deal closes ([how Origin is paid](https://origindatapartners.com/referral-disclosure)). [See what your data is worth](https://origindatapartners.com/check-fit).


## Questions and answers

### What are Creo and Windchill data worth to AI companies?

The one published benchmark is Mercor's hardware engineering listing, which names PTC Creo and puts what a company earns at $45K to $1.3M, depending on assembly count and completeness, for companies of 20 to 2,000 employees. It is a buyer program's published range, not a completed deal. Native assemblies with model trees and Windchill change history rank highest.

### Does Windchill export keep the full history of our designs?

Not completely. PTC says Windchill export places object data into JAR files, but the exported data does not include information required for change control. A CAD document seed exports the CAD structure without parts or part links unless you choose the combined option. For a full history, back up the database and file vaults and export from a restored copy.

### What is a Windchill archive and how is it different from a purge?

Windchill purge jobs permanently remove data. If the archive functionality is installed at your site, the same Purge Management utility can create an archive of the data that can be restored later. Check which one your site uses: a purge of earlier iterations removes design history a buyer would value.

### What are Creo family tables and why do they matter for AI training data?

A family table is a set of similar parts or assemblies driven from one generic model, with each instance varying in size or detail. For an AI developer it is a set of controlled variations of the same design. Count generics and instances separately when you describe your Creo data to a buyer.

### Can we extract Windchill+ data through the API to license it for AI training?

Not without PTC's prior written consent. PTC's May 2026 SaaS agreement prohibits accessing or using the service's API, directly or indirectly, to extract data for training, fine-tuning or creating an AI model. Ask PTC for consent or a data export in writing before any extraction, and keep that answer with the license file.

### Is a STEP export of our Creo models good enough for an AI buyer?

Usually not on its own. STEP carries solids, surfaces and some annotations, and Creo needs its Feature Recognition tool to rebuild features from imported geometry. Buyers ask for native assemblies with feature trees, so offer the Creo files with their Windchill history and keep STEP as a viewing copy.

### What is the difference between Creo and Windchill?

Creo is PTC's parametric 3D CAD platform, where the parts, assemblies and drawings are modeled. Windchill is PTC's enterprise PLM software, which "connects product data, processes, and people across the entire product lifecycle". For a data license the Creo files carry the model tree, while Windchill holds the iterations, part structures and change notices around them, so an export from both is worth more than CAD files alone.

## Sources

- [Mercor Data: Hardware Engineering Company listing](https://data.mercor.com/refer/view/?slug=hardware)
- [Windchill Help: Search Using Revision and Iteration Criteria (13.1.2)](https://support.ptc.com/help/windchill/r13.1.2.0/en/Windchill_Help_Center/search/LclSrchCriteriaVersion.html)
- [Windchill Help: About Change Management (13.1.2)](https://support.ptc.com/help/windchill/r13.1.2.0/en/Windchill_Help_Center/changemanagement/ChgMgmtAbout.html)
- [Creo Parametric Help: About the Model Tree](https://support.ptc.com/help/creo/creo_pma/r12/usascii/fundamentals/fundamentals/About_the_Model_Tree_1.html)
- [Creo Parametric Help: To Step Through Feature Creation](https://support.ptc.com/help/creo/creo_pma/r13/usascii/part_modeling/part_modeling/To_Step_Through_Feature_Creation.html)
- [Creo Parametric Help: About Family Tables](https://support.ptc.com/help/creo/creo_pma/r13/usascii/fundamentals/fundamentals/About_Family_Tables_1.html)
- [Windchill Help: Managing Report Templates](https://support.ptc.com/help/windchill/cloud/r12.0.2.0/en/Windchill_Help_Center/QBReportTemplatesTable.html)
- [Windchill Help: About Export and Import (13.1.2)](https://support.ptc.com/help/windchill/r13.1.2.0/en/Windchill_Help_Center/exportimport_chp/exportimportChp_about.html)
- [Windchill Help: Using Packages to Import and Export Data (2027)](https://support.ptc.com/help/windchill/r2027.0.0.0/en/Windchill_Help_Center/packages/PackageImportExportOview.html)
- [Windchill Help: Purge, Archive, and Restore Jobs](https://support.ptc.com/help/windchill/cloud/r12.0.2.0/en/Windchill_Help_Center/SiteAdminChp_PurgeArchiveRestore.html)
- [Windchill Help: Purging Iterations (13.1.2)](https://support.ptc.com/help/windchill/r13.1.2.0/en/Windchill_Help_Center/purge/PurgeIterations.html)
- [Windchill Help: Ensuring Proper Backup and Recovery](https://support.ptc.com/help/windchill/cloud/r12.0.2.0/en/Windchill_Help_Center/WCSysAdminBackupRecovery_EnsureProperBackupRecovery.html)
- [Creo Parametric Help: About Importing Part and Assembly STEP Files](https://support.ptc.com/help/creo/creo_pma/r13/usascii/data_exchange/interface/About_Importing_Part_and_Assembly_STEP_Files.html)
- [Creo Parametric Help: About Feature Recognition](https://support.ptc.com/help/creo/creo_pma/r13/usascii/part_modeling/feature_recognition_tool/About_Feature_Recognition.html)
- [PTC Master Software as a Service Agreement (May 2026)](https://ptc-p-001.sitecorecontenthub.cloud/api/public/content/85c1e418c91b4f308cb499ad17b02383?v=9fbcfd4a)
- [PTC: What is Creo?](https://www.ptc.com/en/products/creo)
- [PTC: What is Windchill?](https://www.ptc.com/en/products/windchill)

## Related reading

- [Licensing CAD files and engineering data to AI companies](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/license-cad-engineering-data-ai)
- [ITAR and EAR Checklist Before You Share CAD Files With AI](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/itar-ear-checklist-cad-data-ai)
- [/tools/cad-archive-value](https://origindatapartners.com/tools/cad-archive-value)
- [SolidWorks PDM Vault: What It Is Worth to AI Companies](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/solidworks-pdm-vault-ai-data-value)
- [Siemens NX and Teamcenter Data: JT, PLM XML and AI Value](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/siemens-nx-teamcenter-data-ai-licensing)
- [Who Owns CAD Files: the Design Consultancy or the Client?](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/product-design-consultancy-client-cad-files)
- [How to de-identify company data before licensing it](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/de-identify-company-data-before-licensing)
- [Data licensing agreement: what to include](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/data-licensing-agreement)
- [CAD Data and Quality Records for AI: Manufacturer Guide](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/engineered-product-manufacturer-data)