Current trends in product lifecycle management

Efficient and effective Product Lifecycle Management, as an evolution and enhancement of Product Data Management, is of strategic importance for virtually any company. Hence, it is crucial for companies to analyze and evaluate recent trends in information technology (IT) and their implications on Product Lifecycle Management. In this paper, the results of an interdisciplinary study conducted by Siemens AG, a major international technologies firm, and two universities are presented. The study identifies four current trends in IT and then evaluates their potential implications on Product Lifecycle Management. Finally, the IT trends are ranked according to their short and medium term effects on Product Lifecycle Management.<br /

Challenges in Product Lifecycle Management - Evidence from the Automotive Supply Industry

Against the backdrop of a steady shift in value added from the automotive original equipment manufacturers to the automotive suppliers, product lifecycle management in the automotive supply industry gains importance. Prior literature has acknowledged product lifecycle management as paradigm for manufacturing industries, yet little is known about the specific characteristics and boundary conditions in this emerging industry branch. Grounded on extensive empirical evidence from a typical and revelatory case study at a global leader for mechatronic assemblies, this exploratory paper identifies, visualizes, and discusses challenges in product lifecycle management in the automotive supply industry. With the limitation of an exploratory and interpretive single-case study approach, we (1) supply scholars and practitioners with grounded, stakeholder-related insights and (2) link the field of product lifecycle management with information systems

Experience feedback in product lifecycle management

Given the popularity of industrial enterprises for Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) information systems capable of supporting the entire product development process, we see the emergence of new needs and new research directions in the operation of these dynamic complex environments. Reference standards are applicable to the services and industries which bring innovation and technologies to a fastgrowing and demanding market. To obtain perfect control of business risks and performance and to ensure “zero defect”, standards specific to the fields of transport, emergency (IRIS IN 9100 ...) and generic standards (ISO 9001 ...) are more restrictive. They involve full transparency and rigor in flawless quality management processes and monitoring products. In this field, knowledge management is paramount; it helps improve overall performance of industrial systems by structuring the information assets acquired by the company stakeholders. In a way, it is the substantive development of our research. We detailed the approach adopted to implement the Experience Feedback (EF) system dedicated to the product in the PLM business. We presented a first action with the objective of formalizing the implicit experiences generated following the response to a triggering event. In this work, we mainly considered negative events for which the information to be collected are clearly identified. We propose an approach combining Problem Solving and EF adapting the level of commitment to the criticality or importance of the problem addressed. To instantiate this approach in PLM, we have chosen to rely on the Change Management Process (CMP) because, firstly, it involves changes in product data and, secondly, it usually concerns driving developments for correction or improvement of the technical specifications related to the production process

Implementing a Product Lifecycle Management Solution

Aviation Technology Group, Inc. (ATG) is currently preparing for a lengthy FAA certification process that will require detailed documentation and verification of the accuracy of all components that will belong to the aircraft being developed (the Javelin). This includes but is not limited to contracts, detailed design specifications, CAD files, test and verification results, revision tracking, and effectivity of all components used in each aircraft. The company has recently flown its first nonconforming prototype and will be building subsequent test articles, which will be used for the process of the Javelin. In order to organize all of this information and be able to maintain many different complex relationships between multiple part revisions and different configurations of the aircraft, the company decided to seek out a commercial off the shelf solution (COTS). The initial attempts at an in-house system proved to be too time and resource intensive to build and too costly to maintain and expand, given the limited capabilities of a Microsoft Access based solution. This project encompassed the evaluation, selection, and implementation of a Product Lifecycle Management (PLM

VISUALIZATION MODEL FOR PRODUCT LIFECYCLE MANAGEMENT

Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) demonstrated to be a good strategy for manufacturing enterprises. In spite of all the benefits it is not still clear how to implement it in industry. This article presents a visualization model of enterprise processes for a PLM system. It presents in a graphic way the main elements of a product lifecycle. The model identifies what is done (process, activities), when it is done (workflows), who does what (roles - skills) and how it can be done better (methods and tools). UML-RUP is used as representation technique. A case study, which analyzes the specification and inspection procedures of geometric tolerances according to the GPS approach, proves the convenience of this model for supporting PLM implementation

Development of an Extended Product Lifecycle Management through Service Oriented Architecture.

Organised by: Cranfield UniversityThe aim of this work is to define new business opportunities through the concept of Extended Product Lifecycle Management (ExtPLM), analysing its potential implementation within a Service Oriented Architecture. ExtPLM merges the concepts of Extended Product, Avatar and PLM. It aims at allowing a closer interaction between enterprises and their customers, who are integrated in all phases of the life cycle, creating new technical functionalities and services, improving both the practical (e.g. improving usage, improving safety, allowing predictive maintenance) and the emotional side (e.g. extreme customization) of the product.Mori Seiki – The Machine Tool Company; BAE Systems; S4T – Support Service Solutions: Strategy and Transitio

Practitioner requirements for integrated Knowledge-Based Engineering in Product Lifecycle Management.

The effective management of knowledge as capital is considered essential to the success of engineering product/service systems. As Knowledge Management (KM) and Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) practice gain industrial adoption, the question of functional overlaps between both the approaches becomes evident. This article explores the interoperability between PLM and Knowledge-Based Engineering (KBE) as a strategy for engineering KM. The opinion of key KBE/PLM practitioners are systematically captured and analysed. A set of ranked business functionalities to be fulfiled by the KBE/PLM systems integration is elicited. The article provides insights for the researchers and the practitioners playing both the user and development roles on the future needs for knowledge systems based on PLM