1. An article of manufacture storing processor-executable instructions thereon for facilitating collaborative use of a computer design model when opening a locally-stored description thereof, the article of manufacture comprising: (a) instructions to receive a request to open a locally-stored model description document for a computer design model, the locally-stored model description document comprising a history of model versions from which the computer design model described in the locally-stored model description document was modified; and (b) instructions to, upon receiving the request to open the locally-stored model description document, i) determine whether the computer design model described in the locally-stored model description document is the version of the computer design model most recently stored in a repository separate from the local storage by comparing a list of versions from the repository with the history available within the locally-stored model description document; and ii) merge, if the version of the computer design model described in the locally-stored model description document is not the most recently stored version of the computer design model in the repository, the version of the computer design model described in the locally-stored model description document with the most recently stored version of the computer design model in the repository.
6. The article of manufacture of claim 1 further comprising instructions to annotate the locally-stored model description document for the computer design model with version information by: assigning a global unique identifier to the design model; and annotating the design model with a history descriptor, including a timestamp of the creation, a base version number, and an identification of a user who created the design model.