In Odoo, MTO (Make to Order) typically creates a confirmed Manufacturing Order (MO) automatically. To keep it in draft state, you’ll need to customize the workflow. One way is to override the default behavior by modifying the procurement rule or adjusting the manufacturing lead time to delay confirmation. If customization isn’t an option, you might need a simple server action to revert MOs to draft upon creation.

Create an empty Bill of Materials, drag it above the regular BoM in the list.

When Odoo encounters an empty BoM it will leave the MO in draft so you can choose another or add components manually before confirming.