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* Welcome * Welcome to 2PLM, an e-zine distributed about every two weeks. This issue includes :
by Roger Tempest It is clear from the feedback from the previous issue of 2PLM, which asked the question:- Should there be a PDM Managers' Meeting?", that the answer is "yes" - in principle. Responses from the USA and Europe confirm that the subject of PDM has been overlooked for a long time, and that a working platform to share PDM ideas and experience is long overdue. We now have to firm up the details so that the answer is "yes" - in practice. Two things are needed at this stage. The first is Focus, on PDM as the subject; and the second is a Framework, so that the meeting is productive for those who attend. The Focus on PDM is needed because it is very easy to be drawn into wider PLM issues, and that could diffuse the value of the meeting. The context and wider issues are always important, but to make a difference, this meeting needs to be able to work with PDM technical detail. If you are a PDM Manager, you will be able to think of several very complex technical areas that you have to resolve, but that your non-PDM colleagues don't understand at all. This meeting is intended to give you the chance of dealing with them in a group for the first time. The Framework is needed so that the meeting is productive. It will do no good just to get several people in a room and say: "Let's talk about PDM". That is a recipe for confusion. There needs to be a structured framework that may combine participant presentations, review of theory, and group working. The aim is for each meeting to produce new deliverable material that the participants can take back with them. If several meetings are held, then the framework should extend so that each meeting builds upon the knowledge gained from the previous ones. So we need to keep the Focus, and establish the Framework. Current feedback about the long-term Framework ranges from providing a structured source of working material to help relatively new PDM Managers to fulfill their role, to developing a complete best-practice implementation path for PDM based on PMI principles. The short-term Framework, in the form of an outline agenda for the meeting, will be developed over the next 2-3 weeks. The feedback stage will continue over this period, and your views on the PDM issues that should be covered will be most welcome. One point to consider is that these may not have to be user-only meetings. They can be open to everyone in the industry who works with the detailed management of PDM. PDM Managers from user companies might find it useful to have the input of technical specialists from other parts of the PDM spectrum, if they contribute in an open and unbiased way. Views on this are welcome as part of the feedback. If you let me know your views on the link below then I will report back in the next issue of 2PLM. Roger Tempest is co-founder of the PLMIG. You can send your comments or input via pdm_meeting@plmig.com 
* Managing Particles * by David Potter It's curious how a single word can come to have two almost opposite meanings. In physics, the word "quantum" can mean "the smallest amount of a physical quantity that can exist independently", whereas in more general use it can mean the opposite: "a large quantity; bulk". Both of these definitions are easily found in dictionaries. There's a lot of discussion about the "Internet of Things", which some prefer to think of as "Ambient Intelligence". There will be an inevitable explosion in the number of devices worldwide that will be able to communicate amongst themselves, as well as with a rapidly increasing number of managing systems. Take for example the ability to remotely control a domestic intruder alarm or domestic appliances from a mobile phone or PDA. Whether we like it or not, this explosion will impact on PLM. I personally like it a lot because I am interested in whole-of-life PLM and lifecycle management in general: "Closing the Information Loops across All Phases of All Kinds of Lifecycles". However, this explosion will not be sustainable without considerable efforts both in standards and product development in order to address some quite significant challenges. The wise know that the "Internet of Things" and "Ambient Intelligence" can only truly become reality if important societal, political and cultural concerns can be properly overcome. It's no surprise that both earlier definitions of "quantum" apply in the context of Quantum Lifecycle Management, the name chosen by The Open Group for the new standards consortium it is in the process of forming. Its name implies the quantum leap required to harness the technologies and direction of the "Internet of Things", embracing the trillions of additional entities that will be introduced to the challenge of lifecycle management. "Managing particles" will have a significant and unavoidable impact on PLM - are you preparing for it? If you have any comments or questions related to this article, please post them on my blog at cl2m.com. David Potter is Chief Technical Officer, Promise Innovation International Oy., and former Chairman of the Project Steering Board of the EU PROMISE Project. |
