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* Welcome * Welcome to this issue of 2PLM, an e-zine distributed every two weeks on a free subscription basis. This week's guest article "PLM, meet Lean" is from Menno Huijben of Sofigate Oy. First though, a few answers to mails from readers. * Discovery, NASA and PLM * There were two main topics in the mails we received after mentioning NASA and PLM in the July 18 and July 28 issues of 2PLM. The first was NASA. The second was PLM. On the subject of NASA, views ranged from those who wrote that we should not attack NASA when the nation is at a time of war, to those who wrote that the performance of NASA demonstrated that its work would be better done by the private sector. For the readers who asked for factual information on the products mentioned, this can be found at Challenger (PDF), Columbia, Hubble, Orbiter. The second subject was the scope and content of PLM, with some readers considering that the performance of the Space Shuttle is not relevant to PLM. For them, PLM is not about "the product", but about one of the many activities related to the product. For some, this activity is the management of product data, for others it is the creation of product definition data, or the definition of processes, or Product Innovation, or the integration of application systems used in product development. However, there's a lot more to PLM, and the lifecycle of a product, than product development. There are five phases in the product lifecycle (imagine/idea ; define ; realize ; use/operate/support ; retire/recycle). NASA's Discovery is currently in the fourth phase. The Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV), the Space Shuttle's replacement, looks as if it is in the first phase. One of the challenges of developing a PLM Strategy is to identify the most effective application of resources (such as applications, processes, data and people) to support current and future products across the different phases of the lifecycle. This requires a holistic approach. The atomistic, one-dimensional views of PLM focusing on particular departments or disciplines seem more suited to the days of F. W. Taylor (1865-1915) and Henry Ford (1863-1947) than to 2005. The 19th and 20th Centuries were the days of functional specialization, departmental empires, organizational structures characterized by vertical integration, huge corporations with tens of thousands of manual workers, many layers of management, and a focus on "metal-bashing". 
But now we're in the 21st Century. The world has changed since the days of Taylor and Ford and, as a result, business paradigms are changing. Today's environment is characterized by horizontal integration across the Extended Enterprise, many small and medium companies in the design and supply chains, few layers of management, globalization, mass customization, ubiquitous computing, fast evolution, a focus on electronics and information, and small numbers of knowledge workers from different functions working together in collaborative teams. To succeed in this environment, companies need to take a 21st century approach to the business activity of managing products across their lifecycle. That's where PLM comes in. It's holistic, addressing multiple components such as applications, processes, people and data. It addresses the product across the lifecycle, from "cradle to grave", across the Extended Enterprise. Details Ad astra per aspera PLM can help an organization maintain control over its products across the lifecycle - even if the products are Space Shuttles with a lifetime of more than thirty years. It will help reduce costs, improve safety, avoid bad publicity, and satisfy congressmen and other stakeholders. PLM is also of interest to organizations that don't fly to the stars. It can help manufacturing companies increase revenues and earnings. For example, companies that we are working with plan to deploy PLM to increase revenues by over 30% and reduce costs by approximately 5%. |
