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Analysts advise: Assess PLM needs first
John Day -- Design News, February 14, 2006
The question isn’t whether a manufacturer will adopt product lifecycle management (PLM), but how, according to Ed Miller, president of PLM consulting firm CIMdata (www.cimdata.com). “They’re going to have it one way or the other,” he says. “They can invest proactively, or they may be a member of a supply chain, or a vendor to a larger organization that mandates PLM.”
CIMdata defines PLM as a consistent set of business solutions that support the collaborative creation, management, dissemination and use of product definition information across the extended enterprise, from concept through end-of-life. PLM integrates people, processes and business systems.
Miller notes that PLM solution and service providers have begun to focus on the information and collaboration needs of small to mid-size manufacturers. “Within the last year or two, suppliers and smaller companies have developed solutions that are cost-effective for smaller organizations,” he says, cautioning that no one-size-fits-all PLM solution exists.
“Firms should look at their individual situations, assess their strengths and weaknesses, and ask themselves what their customers and suppliers need,” Miller advises. “What investment in PLM is likely to provide the greatest return?”
Although the same is increasingly true of global manufacturers, smaller organizations can not afford uncertainty regarding PLM. “They need to be clear on exactly what is included in the hardware, software and services package they select,” he says.
The penalty for rushing to PLM judgment is wasted time and effort, as well as wasted money, adds Jeffrey Rowe, president of Cairowest Group LLC (www.cairowest.com). “A lot of companies think they can plug (PLM) in, turn it on and get instant ROI (return on investment), and that’s definitely not true. The biggest areas of expense are integration and implementation, which includes training,” he says. “It takes a huge investment in time to get people up-to-speed on what a PLM system is capable of doing, and then optimizing business processes using PLM tools. That is a lot more difficult than companies are led to believe.”
PLM technology is continuing to evolve, according to Rowe, who likens it to computer-aided engineering in its earlier days. “Years ago, only a mathematician with a PhD could use CAE. In a lot of cases, PLM is the same way. Though there are exceptions, (PLM is) not really friendly to the casual user.”
Depending on a company’s specific needs, Rowe adds, on-demand PLM “can be a great introductory way to get involved with PLM – understand what it is and what it can do - without (the company) getting in over their heads. A lot of companies starting out don’t need PLM 24 hours a day, seven days a week. From what I’ve heard, the majority of companies that have gone to on-demand PLM are very happy. They seem to get a higher degree of support from the company offering on-depand service.”
Electronic systems supplier Rex Systems Inc. (www.rexsystems.com) elected to step into PLM with an on-demand system. Its selection criteria included the ability to support multiple CAD programs, the ability to access PLM from multiple platforms, including Linux, and support for ASME Y14.41 for 3D modeling. “We saw the benefit of collaboration with team members,” says Gil Blomdahl, a mechanical engineer and technology evaluator. “Our legal department is not on site, and it’s beneficial to them, as well as to other suppliers, and to manufacturers. He adds, “With an on-demand PLM system, we didn’t have to bring in an administrator to install and update software and constantly babysit it. We could get it up and running much sooner, and we’re aware that other features, like FEA, are being added. It could be the future of software.”
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