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2PLM John Stark Associates |
Number 8 |
- Welcome Page 2 - Update Page 3 - News Page 4 - Brief lines | Welcome to this issue of 2PLM, an e-zine distributed every two weeks on a free subscription basis. This week's article, "Offshore Operations Management", is from Scott Cleveland. But first, a quick update about the PLM Interest Group (PLMIG), and a request for short descriptions from EDM/PDM/PLM Vendors. * PLM Interest Group * The next meeting of the proposed PLM Interest Group will be held on 25 November, 2003 in Frankfurt, Germany. The intention is to formally start the Group at the beginning of 2004. PLM is a strategic business activity that offers companies an opportunity to achieve competitive advantage. It is a newly-emerged approach to product development and support, bringing together PDM, CAD, Collaborative Product Development and many other systems, processes and techniques. It is complementary to SCM, CRM and ERP. The PLM Interest Group is an independent member-driven group, which aims to help its members succeed with PLM. Membership is open to all those interested in PLM - users, vendors, consultants, researchers, academics, etc. The objectives of the meeting in Frankfurt are to finalize the PLMIG Charter, review PLM status in different areas, and prepare initial joint activities for 2004. To attend the meeting on 25 November 2003, and take the opportunity to be at the forefront of Product Lifecycle Management, contact Roger Tempest. * Short descriptions from EDM/PDM/PLM Vendors * We would be grateful if PLM system vendors would send up-to-date descriptions for inclusion at the 'World of EDM/PDM/PLM' page on our Web site. If you are a vendor of an EDM/PDM/PLM system, please review http://www.johnstark.com/epwl4.html The descriptions will also be included in a forthcoming publication addressing EDM/PDM/PLM. * Offshore Operations Management * In an attempt to reduce costs, companies are looking offshore to reduce their labor costs. Today, a high percentage of companies are either opening offshore operations or investigating their offshore options. Management looks at the low cost of hiring workers in countries like India, where the burdened rate for skilled workers is 1/4 of their US counterparts. Since labor accounts for about 2/3 of the cost of a software team, the rewards seem obvious. These low labor costs lead many companies to expect to see cost savings near 50%. What they are actually seeing (according to one big 5 consulting firm) is a savings of 10 to 15% - and it generally takes two years to get that. The best result they discovered was a 25% savings - achieved by a Fortune 50 company with five (5) years of experience. Offshore Realities A Fortune 500 company opened an offshore facility in India a couple of years ago. A big issue that the manager of offshore faces is that if he is to be held accountable for the success of the team, he must be able to exert some level of control over the team. Further, he would really like to manage the team as if all members were here in the same building working together. This manager will see a team comprised of:
How does this manager get his people to work as a team? First, all team members must have access to all pertinent project information including - descriptions, specifications, documents and knowledge (e-mails, etc). Most managers have weekly staff meetings to go over the status of their projects and tasks. Many of those managers will randomly talk with team members to get some updates. These random conversations make it fairly easy to uncover potential problems before they are problems. How do managers receive the random feedback when some of their team is half way around the world? How do they see what is happening (somewhat) real-time on their projects? The Rewards Let's look at a 50-person team with 30 people in India and 20 here in the US. The combined salaries would be about $7million. If you had average success building your offshore team (the 15% figure), you could see a savings near $1.4million. If you can succeed in managing the teams well - you could achieve a savings closer to $3.5million. That is an extra $2million in savings. The Solution Vision The key to these rewards depends on how well you can manage your offshore operations. If a person is to be responsible for managing people, that person must be able to exert some control over the team. If the world were perfect, this manager could install software that would:
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News |
CADKEY Corporation announced that Kubotek Corporation has received court approval to acquire the company's assets which include the CADKEY MCAD software product line. Details EDS announced its PLM Solutions business has changed its name to UGS PLM Solutions. Details * Financial * Agile Software Corporation announced results for the second quarter of fiscal 2004, which ended October 31, 2003. Total revenues for the quarter were $24.7 million, compared to $17.5 million for the second quarter of fiscal 2003. Details Avatech Solutions, Inc. reported total revenue of $5.87 million for the first quarter ended September 30, 2003, resulting in an operating income loss of $(244,861) versus a loss of $(565,892) for the same period of last year. Details Framework Technologies announced that its fiscal 2003, ending on October 31, 2003, recorded an annual revenue increase of 26% as compared to last year. Details INCAT International Ltd. announced preliminary results for its financial year ending August 31, 2003. Profit after tax improved to GB£1.26M ($2.01M USD) compared with a loss of GB£2.49M ($3.66M USD) in the previous year. Details think3 announced a 110 percent increase in revenues in Q3 2003 over the same period last year. Details 3D Systems Corp. announced its results for the third quarter and first nine months of 2003. Revenues for the quarter ended September 26, 2003 were $24.9 million compared with revenues of $27.9 million in the third quarter of 2002, a decrease of 11%. Details * People * Affinnova, Inc. announced it appointed Michael (Mike) A. Ahearn to its Executive Advisory Board. Details  3D Systems Corp. announced that it has realigned its global management team and operations. Kevin McAlea, currently Senior Vice President, Worldwide Revenue Generation will become Senior Vice President, Global Marketing and will be responsible for global product management, marketing, communications and new market development. Details * Implementation * Access Commerce announced that Heatcraft Worldwide Refrigeration has deployed the Cameleon Advanced Configurator and Cameleon Visual Selling to configure refrigeration solutions. Details Agile Software Corporation announced its expanded presence in the consumer packaged goods industry with implementations at companies including Leapfrog, Philips Oral Healthcare and Playtex. Details Ariba, Inc. announced that Airbus, one of the world's largest commercial aircraft manufacturers, has extended its Ariba Enterprise Sourcing license to support and enhance the company's sourcing and purchasing processes. Details Documentum announced that the European Commission has selected Documentum 5, the latest version of the Documentum ECM platform. Details Endeca announced that Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) has selected Endeca to provide advanced search and Guided Navigation for the university's main information site. Details Formtek, Inc. announced that Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company has signed an agreement to expand the deployment of the Formtek Orion product suite. Details MatrixOne, Inc. announced that Toshiba Corporation has deployed MatrixOne's PLM solutions as part of a major initiative to transform its product development practices and support new outsourced manufacturing programs. Details MatrixOne, Inc. announced that ev3 Inc., a manufacturer of innovative endovascular technology, has selected MatrixOne solutions to manage its new product development process. Details Realization Technologies announced that Pfizer would implement Realization's next generation of multi-project management software to manage projects in the Global Research and Development facility at Groton, CT. Details SolidWorks Corp. announced that Morgan Construction Company is standardizing on SolidWorks 3D mechanical design software. Details SolidWorks Corporation announced that ZIPP Speed Weaponry, maker of bicycle wheels for professional racers, competitive amateurs, and high-end consumers has standardized on SolidWorks 3D mechanical design software. Details Tecnomatix Technologies Ltd. announced that Audi AG has implemented an innovative logistics planning solution - Virtual Logistics (ViLog) - based on Tecnomatix eMPower solutions for MPM, including eM-Planner and eM-Reports. Details Tecnomatix Technologies Ltd. announced that Comau S.p.A. continued the expansion of its worldwide implementation of eMPower - based solutions for MPM with purchases of software and services in 2003 totaling over $1.3M. Details think 3, Inc. announced an agreement with ISAP OMV of Parona Di Valpolicella, Italy, to renew 96 subscription licenses for thinkdesign and thinkteam products. Details UGS PLM Solutions announced the selection of its Solid Edge CAD software by Victor Taichung Machinery Works Co. Ltd. Details Verity Inc. announced Compuware Corp. has selected the Ultraseek technology to provide the search and indexing capabilities within its OptimalView application. The Ultraseek technology was formerly known as Inktomi Enterprise Search prior to its acquisition by Verity in December 2002. Details * Developments * Agile Software Corporation announced Agile 9, Agile's unified release for managing the enterprise product record across the product lifecycle. Details Agile Software Corporation introduced Agile Environmental Compliance, which enables companies to manage environmental compliance throughout the product lifecycle while minimizing related risks, compliance costs, and business interruptions. Details ALGOR, Inc. announced the release of ALGOR V14.1, the latest version of its FEA software. Details Arena Solutions, Inc. announced expanded functionality for Arena PLM with the introduction of a new Request Management module. Details Cadence Design Systems, Inc. announced SPECCTRAQuest for Electrical Engineers. Details EDS PLM Solutions and D-Cubed Ltd. announced that D-Cubed's Assembly Engineering Manager (AEM) component has been used to enhance the motion simulation capability of Solid Edge Version 15 from EDS PLM Solutions. Details EDS PLM Solutions announced Solid Edge Version 15 of its value-based 3D CAD system for the mainstream product lifecycle management (PLM) market will be delivered with expanded capabilities for Systems Design. Details Formtek Inc., a provider of Enterprise Content Management (ECM) software and implementation services, announced the release of Formtek Orion 5 Desktop Documents. Details Informative Graphics Corporation announced the release of its Net-It Now 3.0 publishing software. Details Informative Graphics Corporation announced the release of its Windows-based, Brava! Reader software. Details MatrixOne, Inc. announced the availability of the MatrixOne Accelerator for FDA Compliance. Details Missler Software announced a new PDM solution - the TopSolid/PDM system for the management of product and engineering data. Details Product Sight Corporation announced the release of Version 4.0 of its FindView technology. Details SensAble Technologies, Inc. announced that version 7.0 of the FreeForm Modeling Plus software is available for purchase. Details SensAble Technologies, Inc. announced the immediate availability of the newest member of the FreeForm family of modeling products, the FreeForm Concept system version 1.0 with SensAble's newest haptic device, the PHANTOM Omni. Details Spatial Corp. announced that Spatial has successfully completed the initial port of its 3D ACIS Modeler and 3D Deformable Modeling components for the AMD64 Opteron platform. Details Stage-Gate, Inc., a member company of the Product Development Institute, announced that it has released the latest version of its Portfolio Management software, SG Decision Tracker 5.0 powered by Sopheon Accolade. Details UGS PLM Solutions announced new view and mark-up capabilities for Insight Connect, Solid Edge's design management client for the users of design data. Details Verity Inc. announced the availability of its initial Verity Taxonomies, six customizable classification structures that will speed and simplify the organization and management of content in large-scale global enterprises. Details Verity Inc. announced the new release of its Verity KeyView Software Development Kits (SDKs) targeted for integration with global enterprise applications. Details VX Corporation announced that VX Version 8 CAD/CAM software incorporates a new product design management capability specifically designed to meet the needs of product development and manufacturing workgroups. Details * Relationships * Documentum announced certifications and integrations of Documentum 5, the latest version of the company's ECM platform, with BEA WebLogic Platform 8.1. Details MSC.Software Corp. announced a partnership with immixTechnology, Inc. Details MSC.Software Corp. announced the signing of a sales partnership with CENIT AG. Details MSC.Software Corp. announced the signing of an agent agreement with the German consulting and engineering company IndustrieHansa. Details PTC and Polysoft Consulting announced that Polysoft Consulting has joined the PTC Enterprise Software Partner Program. Details SolidWorks Corporation and Geometric Software Solutions announced a new program to improve engineers' design collaboration and reduce time to market. Details Tecnomatix Technologies Ltd. announced that it has partnered with Juki Automation Systems Europe to offer integrated solutions for electronics manufacturing. Details think3 announced a new partnership with TTF, a leading company in CAD data interoperability. Details UGS PLM Solutions and KAB-NX announced an agreement, through which KAB-NX (Knowledge Applied Building) becomes a certified reseller of Unigraphics NX, part of UGS PLM Solutions NX suite of CAD and CAM software. Details UGS PLM Solutions and Nexus Solutions Group announced an agreement to enable Nexus Solutions Group to become a certified reseller of UGS PLM Solutions' product lifecycle management (PLM) products including Solid Edge, NX and Teamcenter. Details * Other * Alias Systems announced its Alias SketchBook Pro product has hit the 100,000 distributed units milestone. Details Autodesk, Inc. announced that its new AutoCAD Electrical 2004 software won the Control Design 2003 Readers' Choice Award in the Electrical CAD Software category. Details Dassault Systemes announced that the University of Michigan is the latest university to participate in IBM's Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) Higher Education and Training (HEAT) program. Details Endeca, provider of advanced search and Guided Navigation solutions, announced the formation of a government advisory board. Details Mentor Graphics Corporation announced that the chief scientist and director of engineering for the company's Design-for-Test (DFT) product group, Janusz Rajski, Ph. D., has been awarded the prestigious title of "Professor of Science," the highest research degree in Poland. Details PROSTEP AG announced it will soon be celebrating its 10th anniversary. Details PTC and ITC Infotech announced the Bangalore launch of Navrachna - India School Program, an educational initiative that will help thousands of students across India master the use of technology and prepare for careers in design, technology and engineering. Details PTC announced that Ngee Ann Polytechnic has chosen PTC as its partner in an initiative to help young Singaporeans master the use of technology and prepare them for careers in design, technology and engineering. Details Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra announced that the Ministry of Education has chosen PTC as its partner in an educational initiative that will help young Thais master the use of technology and prepare for careers in design, technology and engineering. Details QUMAS announced it has been honored at the Irish Software Association's Software Industry Awards with the 2003 Technical Innovation Award. Details SGI announced at the SC03 conference its plans to deliver a revolutionary class of supercomputers that will catapult users into a new era of engineering achievement and scientific discovery for a large class of technical applications. Details SGI announced that its SGI Altix 3000 system is the first supercomputer in history to break the 1 terabyte/second barrier on the STREAM Triad benchmark, an industry standard measurement of memory bandwidth. Details SofTech, Inc. announced a new ProductCenter program to help companies involved in the selection of a product lifecycle management (PLM) solution to eliminate the uncertainty of selecting the right solution. The program, called the ProductCenter No Sweat PLM Pilot, is designed to provide a very low-risk alternative for companies to evaluate, implement, and jumpstart PLM productivity. Details Spatial Corp. announced it recognized the inaugural release of Concepts Unlimited by CADSoft Solutions, Inc. (CSi). Details STEP Tools, Inc. announced it is a winner in INDUSTRYWEEK's 11th Annual Technology and Innovation Awards Program. Details UGS PLM Solutions and other PLM industry leaders and global manufacturers launched JT Open, an innovative global initiative designed to promote open data sharing, enhance collaboration and expand visualization across the extended enterprise and throughout the PLM industry. JT is a common data format for enabling product visualization and information distribution and enhancing data sharing between PLM software applications. Details 3D Systems Corp. announced an affordable way of "Jetting into Physical Reality" with the InVision 3-D printer priced at $39,900 USD. Details |
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