1. A computer implemented method for extracting part price information for a selected product configuration from a configuration tree encoded with a smart part number, the smart part number including a plurality of configuration codes representing the part price information embedded therein, the method comprising: by a computer, for each configuration code, determining that it is a valid configuration code; and defining a branch of the configuration tree corresponding with the valid configuration code; for each branch of the configuration tree, configuring at least one configuration point with a corresponding valid configuration code, the valid configuration code for the configuration point representing all valid configuration choices and prices associated with the corresponding configuration point, wherein the configuring at least one configuration point includes encoding a character string representing the branch with a first code delimiter and encoding each corresponding valid configuration code into the character string at a location associated with the configuration point and separating the corresponding valid configuration codes with a second delimiter; and for the selected product configuration, summing the prices of the corresponding configuration points on the corresponding branch to determine a final price for the selected product configuration.