(Newswire.net — December 20, 2018) — One aspect that becomes quickly apparent as a manufacturing business grows is the amount of data that has to be sifted, sorted, and analysed. This is not just product specification related. A good Product Data Management (PDM) system to be effective has to take into account all aspects including supply chain management.
Choosing the right PDM is mission critical to your business. With this in mind let’s take a deep dive into PDM software to determine what are the aspects needed to help you select the right system for you:
Collaboration
Good product data management systems allow your teams to collaborate. Whenever product data is accessed or altered, these changes can be logged and seen by other teams. This results in better productivity as one team isn’t left scratching their heads or chasing their tails trying to workout version changes.
A collaboration of this kind ensures that all the teams are working from the right version all of the time.
Management System Control
The better PDM solutions implement robust management control systems. This way teams can only access the product data they need and make changes on aspects that apply to them. This removes the possibility that changes are made accidentally that can derail projects and drive up costs.
Computer Assisted Design (CAD) Integration
Even if you are not using a CAD system at the moment the chances are you will in the future. This makes CAD integration at the very least a consideration. Good systems such as Sales Layer put a lot of emphasis on CAD integration.
Given that most product design is carried out using CAD it makes sense that you can implement one into your PDM. This allows different teams to work on product design and you can keep aspects such as drawings in one place for easy access.
It also provides an accurate product development log which proves invaluable over time.
As a minimum you should ensure your PDM’s CAD capabilities include:
- Flexible Configuration – Ensure the CAD system can be configured to suit the structure of your business. At the very least make sure changes in working practices to accommodate the PDM are worth it and give distinct advantages
- Relate Data Storage – If you need manufacturing data to be stored with a specific project you need to ensure this is possible. The same is true for simulation data and you need to ensure the system can handle who has access to the information.
Bill of Material (BOM) Capability
Bill of materials allows you to store and order parts that comprise a specific product. Good systems can reorder component parts when needed allowing full traceability over the supply chain. This can be automated increasing productivity and workflow. This becomes especially important if products are mission critical.
What Is a PDM and How Will You Benefit?
A product data management solution will help you manage your product designs far more effectively than storing data on different systems across the business. It brings all the data together for easy access, improving agility, productivity, and workflow across your teams.
If you can make the right choice of PDM you will greatly improve the efficiency of your business, making it dynamic and more cohesive.