Many businesses sell products made in other companies have already received good results, now instead decided to sell their manufactured products. According to a study by AC Nielsen in 2005, the exclusive U.S. retail brand products accounted for 16%, 7% higher than the same period last year. Research shows that in 2005 global sales of proprietary brand products increased 5%, the growth rate of manufacturer brands more than double the 2%.
There is no doubt, know the area of trademark products business opportunities. But when business began to manufacture products, all kinds of new problems follow. They must develop, design products and their packaging, look for raw materials and manufactured or assembled products; addition, we must see whether the products were delivered to distribution centers and customer service. This need to create and manage a huge number of information, especially when the product or supply chain involves many complex or the number of products.
Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) software dedicated to provide help in this area. According to AMR Research in Boston, Mike Burkett, vice president say, most PLM applications provide the following five functions: data management, assist in product design, supply chain management, tracking market trends and the overall product portfolio management.
Parametric Technology Corp. (PTC) is located in Needham, Massachusetts's PLM solution provider, the company's solutions, said Tom Shoemaker, vice president of marketing, even though these are not new applications, but PLM them into a common framework in. Moreover, PLM solutions for more than a database management application easy to use; some very complex database management application, the user must reach the level of the database expert to retrieve information. Dassault Systemes is located in Westford, Massachusetts, developer of PLM solutions, the company's technical marketing manager, said Lance Murphy, PLM software "simplify data management."
Thus, PLM can significantly reduce the time came. PLM application developer Agile Software Co. Found that, in general, consumer goods companies through the implementation of PLM solutions can be reduced by about 30% of the product launch cycle. Murphy added that some need a lot of duplication of design technology products, can reduce up to 60% of the product development cycle.
Obviously, shortening time to market for new products to reduce product development costs, but also increase revenue. Because the company can be more efficient to follow the market-oriented and timely introduction of new products, which is not outdated.
PLM applications
Karsten Manufacturing Co. Located in Phoenix, with its Ping brand golf equipment is known. The company successfully launched in 2000, a 3 iron and TiSL wood. Even so, management is still worried about the launch of new products fast enough, director / project manager Dan Shoenhair said, "If you can not achieve a breakthrough on a regular basis, we are faced with bankruptcy."
But Karsten improve the company the number of new products each year before the management needs to reduce the time from conception to launch. At that time, the company's ability to engineer the traditional computer-aided design (CAD) system constraints, leading to changes in product design aspects in the design process is often delayed, thus reducing development time.
To reverse this situation, Karsten's management has taken several steps, including the implementation of PLM software and turn lean manufacturing processes. PTC's PLM application for managing the design and manufacturing information. If the designer modify the engineering drawings, through the PLM system to access the document to all staff can see the latest version. And because the provision of information electronically, so updates and access functions are to be improved.
Karsten's PLM system tested in 2001, when the situation had to let a less experienced engineers to monitor the i3 + Wedge development. With PLM applications, this novice and his colleagues in five days time will simulate four new wedge. It takes about two months ago.
Karsten company accelerating the pace of product introduction. In 2001, the company has two new product lines available. By 2006 that figure jumped to 15, accounting for 85% of annual income. Introduction of new products from concept to commercial application time from 24 months in 2001 shortened to 9 months in 2006. In addition, from 2001 to 2006, the number of engineers from 65 to 67, only slightly.
Karsten same time as the introduction of several operational reforms, it is difficult to pinpoint what results can be attributed to PLM. However, by helping to manage product information and promote cooperation among employees, PLM great tribute to the improvement of Karsten's operation, Shoenhair said.
Benefit
AMR Research's Burkett said that so far, most companies use PLM has more than 1,000 users of Transnational large enterprises. Indeed, PLM is the first in the automotive manufacturing and heavy industry into use. Companies in these industries must manage large amounts of data related to all products, while to see if all departments are using the latest version of the product information.
Applications are now being food, beverage, consumer packaged goods and apparel industries extension. PTC's Shoemaker suggested that while the processes and products of these industries as commercial aircraft design less complex, but still very cumbersome. "Despite the various different industries, but the problems are the same: heavy pressure and dazzling configurations. But you need to head from the fish to find the source of raw material mix."
Therefore, the size of the company is no longer a decision by the company can benefit from PLM solutions, the main factor. Several other factors also come into play, located in San Jose, California, Agile vice president of corporate strategic industry Sarvesh Jagannivas said. These factors include the production of their products and manufacturing process complexity, product variety and product life-cycle duration. The more complex the process, product line diversity and sketch maps will be more and more present, the product from design to updating the shorter the time, and PLM applications provide the more revenue. In this environment, manual management information and processes does not work, Jagannivas said.
PLM solutions in product design and manufacturing involves a number of locations particularly useful. For example, the design and manufacture a variety of slot machines and video player of Bally Technologies Inc., its design departments throughout the United States, India, France, Britain and other countries and regions. "We need to maintain the leading edge." Guna Rajendran said that he is the information technology sector, a PLM project manager, the company is located in Las Vegas. "This requires close cooperation project participants, regardless of whether there is time difference between them."
While Rajendran joined Bally since 2005, the company is already in use PLM system, but employees did not make full use of. Product information dissemination in various local systems, it is difficult to determine where the latest data. Through the implementation of Agile's PLM applications, Bally staff to shorten the new product design and time to market. This is especially applicable to small projects, for example, to slot machines, so that it can accept different currencies. On such projects, the average available time from three to four months to six to eight weeks.
"PLM's biggest advantage is the dissemination of information throughout the company," Rajendran said, "Anyone who needs information to obtain the latest information anytime, anywhere."
PLM in the proper position to
However, before you enjoy the benefits of PLM system, you may need to convert the information in a variety of legacy systems to PLM applications. For large companies, this is the implementation of enterprise-class, Rajendran said. "If the plan is not comprehensive, it could lead to negligence."
Most companies began to enter or import all the company's operations are currently the most important information, Dassault Systemes's Murphy said. Since then, they may convert historical information. However, if this information is only used for archival purposes and not used for current operations, many companies might put it beyond PLM applications.
Can bulk import, depending on the existence of the data format. Typically, in conventional applications (such as Microsoft Word) in the use of information, we can achieve bulk import. Similarly, often can be PLM applications with enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems integration, and then directly into ERP data, Murphy said. On the other hand, if the data is not a standard format (for example, including product drawings, handwritten notes), you must manually enter.
Most of PLM solutions by application service provider (ASP) or purchase access. Some companies also offer a modular version of the PLM. This is Freeborders San Francisco's approach to technology solution providers, said Debbie Baldini, general manager of the retail business. Freeborders module package includes an online demo drawing board applications (different departments can use it to share design concepts) and material procurement of a management application. Although applications are modular, they are available through a library of public information work.
Most PLM implementation requires several months to several years, although have heard some small companies can be up and running within a few weeks, Murphy said. Unless the PLM system is extremely complex, it would often be no need to purchase additional hardware, he added.
PLM application and implementation of the necessary inputs are the time required may vary greatly. xLM Solutions (a software consulting firm located in Detroit) president Marc Young listed the following assumptions: for example, a medium-sized companies need to purchase 20 licenses;
15-day stay assigned to the regular system of specific engineer, and the rest in that users do not need special permission (such as procurement agent) to share between. About 3,000 dollars for each license required. Company expects to spend in the implementation process needs to 50,000-60,000 dollars for consulting services. This needs 110,000-120,000 U.S. dollars of total investment. Larger implementation may take several hundred thousand to several million dollars. Shoemaker said, PTC's PDMLink on Demand cost per user of about 125 U.S. dollars per month. Needs to offer 12,500 U.S. dollars in start-up costs.
Not a panacea
PLM is not a problem for all product life cycle universal solution. Although its name is Product Lifecycle Management, PLM application actually engaged in product design and development phase, rather than the entire life cycle, Patrick Ogawa said. He is Infosys Technologies Ltd. (A consulting firm in Fremont, California) retail and consumer packaged foods, Assistant Vice President. "PLM range from product design began to up the items into the store." Therefore, if a customer needs a different product with the expected, PLM system, an unavoidable done alone.
In addition, most PLM applications can not handle very well lean manufacturing operations, Karsten's Shoenhair said. "Their individual mandates are more interested in process than on." For example, PLM application does not point out that the location of the bottleneck tasks.
Nevertheless, many have implemented PLM solutions, the company is still strongly advocated it. Bally's Rajendran said: "PLM is an effective tool through which comprehensive understanding of the product, the product is vital to the company."
Six steps to achieve a successful PLM
To ensure that your product lifecycle management solutions for the smooth implementation, please bear in mind the following recommendations:
鈥?Identification of business issues and causes, AMR Research's product lifecycle management, said Mike Burkett, vice president.
鈥?determine how to solve these problems PLM, PLM solutions, Dassault Systemes technology developer marketing manager Lance Murphy said. This can be targeted to complete the project.
鈥?won the senior management of the PLM support. Game maker Bally Technologies of the PLM project manager Guna Rajendran said, "It can promote the project in the right direction." From the IT sector support is also very important because you will need them to assist in the implementation.
鈥?the establishment of a committee composed of all parties, the software consulting company xLM Solutions president Marc Young said. The team should include product development and information systems experts, and they have the ability to analyze the possibilities and make decisions.
鈥?to accept the changes brought about PLM, Young said. For example, many companies have designed ways to ID parts. As the PLM allows you to part with their property associated with this numbering system may no longer need.
鈥?gradual implementation of the deployment of up to success. Karsten Manufacturing Co. On its Ping brand golf equipment, the implementation of the PLM data warehouse application, the competent project / business manager Dan Shoenhair said. The company enabled workflow management applications to employees before they start to use it. Shoenhair and his colleagues spent a total of 18 months to implement PLM, allow people to become familiar with the system.
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