product lifecycle management advantages and approach

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Product Lifecycle Management Advantages

& Approach

Priyanka Gandhi

AbstractThis paper aims to throw light on the significance and different approaches of Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) intypical engineering environments. Product Lifecycle Management has proven to be a value based added service in engineering departmentsof different industries like Aerospace, Automotive, Lifesciences, and Retail etc. Different OEMs have different approaches towards utilizingPLM based services in order to increase their productivity; this paper aims at expanding those different industry specific approaches and theirbenefits in terms of increase in productivity.

Index TermsPLM, OEMs, PLM Approaches, Fundamentals of PLM, PLM Execution, Advantages of PLM, Optimization, ConfigurationManagement (CM)..

1 INTRODUCTION

roduct Lifecycle Management is managing the differ-ent phases of the Product as it passes through itslifecycle stages of conception, initiation, evolution,

execution, maturity and end. Product Lifecycle Manage-ment is an engineering management principle whichwhen applied to any product from start to finish produc-es tangibly better results in production efficiency andquality. PLM Tools & Processes when applied to differentproducts from a range of industries like aerospace andautomotive results in a better managed and quality prod-uct with lesser errors.

Different industries use different approaches of PLM.Different approaches of PLM involve different PLM phi-losophies and usage of different PM tools like ENO-VIAV5, ENOVIA LCA (Lifecycle Application), ENOVIAVPM Navigator popularly known as VPM Navi etc.These are tools designed for the purpose of deliveringPLM approaches designed by Dassault Systems. Somecompanies also use Teamcenter, Unigraphics etc. de-signed by Siemens Software Company.

2 PLMAND OEMS

In this age of technology OEMs or Original EquipmentManufacturers have become more of Assemblers fromdifferent Tier 1 and Tier 2 Suppliers. For Instance in theAerospace Industry a pioneer OEM like Boeing, Assem-bles a lot of components and products that are engineeredand designed in different locations of the world like, In-dia, ChinaEurope etc. Typically Boeing Assembles at theFAL Final Assembly Line, the different components andsections of the plane. OEMs are increasingly being seen asAssemblers in todays age and technology.Fig.1 also illus-trates the same ideology that the OEMs are increasinglybecoming Prime Integrators in the past 20 years of evolu-tion of technology and processes.

OEMs in the automotive space also are increasingly fit-ting in the same scenario of being more of assemblers andintegrators. Thus the approach of PLM to their design andform, fit or function has become very important.

Fig.1 Evolution of OEMs from Original Equipment Manufactur-

ers to Prime Integrators.

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3 BENEFITS OF PLM

3.1 PLM and Quality

Application of PLM Tools and Processes to differentproducts in development helps improve the end productquality and overall quality of the development processesas well. Once the quality is improved and there is reduc-

tion in the errors in Engineering and Design, PLM prom-ises a huge potential in large-scale utility and longevity.

3.2 PLM and Cost Saving(s)

An experimental Approach to analyzing the benefits ofPLM was investigated and it was found that the level ofexisting processes within Engineering, Quality, Training,Research and Development was leveraged to a muchhigher level on a Before-After scenario of application ofPLM Tools and Processes. This significant improvementdirectly translates as cost saving. PLM helps in bridgingthe gap between OEMs and Tier 1s and Tier2s.Usually

OEMs hand over the contract of a component/ service toa TIER1 without providing additional support on how tofulfill their requirements on resources. Product LifecycleManagement aids the Product development of this Com-ponent or Service at the Tier1/2 level. A Gap Analysis ofthe as-is situation and the optimum performance targetsconducted also proves that PLM Processes reduce thisGap largely.PLM mainly brings about cost savings byrequirements management, efficient data management,reduce the engineering design errors, reduce the turnaround time of fixing manual errors in design, reducesthe number of revisions in engineering design and part

manufacturing costs due to design errors as well.3.3 PLM and Training in R&D

Application of PLM techniques can enhance performancetargets of an organization by strengthening the efficiencyof in-house tools and processes. PLM professionals canserve the Training Sector demands of the changing busi-ness requirements of giant OEMs. Constantly Updatingthe to the trends of evolving PLM for example migrationto ENOVIA V6 from ENOVIA V5, is a huge upgrade andextension of the existing functionality of the availablePLM technology. A sound training and Research and De-velopment department of an organization can be proac-tive in adopting these new trends in PLM Technology andtaking advantage of these advancements for their benefit.Burden of Applying new and latest PLM tools and tech-nologies rests on the Training department on recommen-dation of the R&D department(s).

3.4 PLM and Configuration Management

Configuration Management or CM is nothing but an ex-tension of PLM Tools and Processes to achieve configura-tion control of the product during its development phas-es.CM of the product be it aerospace, automotive retail ,life sciences helps in catching the errors in design or engi-

neering phases of the product before its inception itself.This added icing on the cake aids OEMs to reduce thedesign errors at a much earlier stage even before theproduct goes into manufacturing. Several OEMs like Boe-

ing have a very sophisticated CM methodology and sev-eral others are still in the process of developing one.CMMI and many such institutions aid in professing theCM Approach of PLM in their product development pro-cess.

4 DIFFERENTAPPROACHES OF PLM

There are different Approaches of PLM based on differenttypes of organizations. Aerospace OEMs and Tier 1 andTier 2 Suppliers usually use PLM with the Engineeringand Design phase of the Product to enhance the ProductDevelopment process and minimize the errors. DassaultSystems Suite of Tools makes a complete 360 Degree ofAvailable PLM Tools and Processes for the EngineeringProduct Development, Design and Manufacturing Phasesof the Product Lifecycle. Aerospace Industry uses severalDesign Tools like CATIA Unigraphics, Solidworks, which

are Interoperable with the PLM Tools.

Manufacturing PLM Tools like DELMIA are used for theManagement of the Manufacturing Processes applicableon the Designed Product on the Shopfloor.PLM systemsare also interoperable with the Manufacturing side of theLifecycle Development.

This type of Approach of PLM that spans through thedifferent departments and phases of the Product duringits Lifecycle is called the Cross Functional Approach ofthe PLM Systems. This is illustrated in Fig.2 and is alsocommon for most Aerospace and Automotive OEMs.

4.1 Engineering PLM Approach

When PLM Approach is applied only during the Engi-neering or Design Phase of the Product Development, It isdefined as the Engineering PLM Approach. In many in-dustries the Infrastructure and Resources to get 360 De-gree PLM solutions is lacking and therefore it is most fea-sible to apply the PLM solutions in the Engineering or theDesign phase where there is a chance of creeping in ofmaximum errors that affect the overall quality of theproduct and take a huge toll on production costs in thelong run. Therefore it is imperative to apply PLM atleast

during the Engineering Life Cycle.This Approach usuallyinvolves engineering checks that verify the credibility ofengineering design. Engineering verification checks fol-low a particular standard in conformance with the CMMIInstitue and Standards to adhere to the minimum expec-tations of Configuration Management in Engineering de-sign.

4.2 Manufacturing PLM Approach

Some organizations are heavily dependent upon theirmanufacturing processes. Manufacturing Departmentsform the life-line of the Business and existence. Such sys-

tems cannot and should not function without EffectivePLM solutions during their manufacturing cycle. Due tothe nature of the business such Organizations like thosewhich manufacture say wiring of the aircrafts, vehicles





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Fig 2. Cross Functional PLM Approach

etc. which involve a lot of tooling and machining process-es need efficient PLM manufacturing systems. This is theManufacturing PLM Approach. Manufacturing depart-ments benefit maximum with an efficient PLM process inplace and sophisticated PLM process management tools.

4.3 PLM with PMs

PLM 2.0 or second generation PLM solutions also includea very special tool and technology place for Project Man-agers. PMs often use the inbuilt functionality of the Pro-ject Management side of the PLM tools like ENOVIA Ma-trixone and ENOVIA V6 by Dassault Systems for report-

ing Project Status to management meetings.

Project Stakeholders identify with the reporting capabili-ties of such tools to report Project status, gauge the projectprogress and also estimate costs and any business over-heads. This is PLM Approach with PMs to leverage theProject Management Side of the PLM.

4.4 PLM with Retail, Life Sciences and Bio-Technology

PLM Approaches is not restricted to Engineering andManufacturing Organizations but is also finding its place

with more Industry bases that were initially not even con-sidered as projected market for the PLM. Retail Industryand Apparel Industry utilizes PLM to manage the entirecatalog of Apparels across different departments andclothing line.

Life sciences and Biotechnology oriented firms also usedifferent PLM tools in todays world to manage thelifecycle of different Bio Products. Ultimately ProductQuality and Interaction with Different Phases of theProduct are the commonalties these earlier-thought-obsolete Industries are using PLM for these days.

5 CONCLUSION

This Paper draws a conclusion on the different benefitsof utilizing PLM at different phases of the Lifecycle ofthe Product. This paper also highlights the differentapproaches of the PLM based on different goals andobjectives of organizations. PLM continues to be themost effective way of product data management andevolution through the different lifecycle phases of theproduct. This paper also highlights the different ap-proaches of the PLM based on different goals and ob-jectives of different organizations.

PLM continues to be the most effective way of productdata management and evolution through the differentlifecycle phases of the product. PLM has a vast scopeand spans through different industries in wake of im-provising Engineering and Industrial Design stand-ards and processes to ultimately improve quality ofdesign at reduced costs.

6ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

My Sincere thanks to all my seniors and mentors in thefield of PLM working with whom over the years I couldgain a deeper understanding of the subject to be able towrite this journal.

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Priyanka Gandhi Biography:

Education:

BS in Telecommunication Engineering 2004MS in Electrical Engineering 2006MBA In Progress

Employment:

Labinal Inc. (Boeing 787 Program) 2006-2009P3 North America Inc. (Bombardier Aerospace) 2010Monogram Systems (Zodiac Aerospace) 2010-2011Goken America Honda Vehicle Development Program 2012-Present

Associations:

Society of Women EngineersAIAA Senior MemberIEEE (Aerospace, EE)International Journal of Applied Information SciencesInternational Journal of Engineering Research and TechnologyInternational Journal of Advances in Egineering and Technology

Current Research Interests: PLM, Innovations in PLM, PLM BestPractices, ENOVIA, Best PLM Practices




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