“We do not need technology to have PLM, though it obviously helps,” says Kais Al-Timimi, managing director of Datamation Ltd., in Cambridge, United Kingdom. “The ‘L’ in PLM [product lifecycle management] makes all the difference in what sets it apart from earlier approaches to design. PLM is about driving business processes and innovation through the lifecycle, and not simply the automation of individual processes such as design and manufacturing.”
Al-Timimi has constructed a model of PLM and defines the foundation of the system as “an integrated data model for corporate intellectual capital.” He does not believe that a single software solution will suffice for an entire company’s needs. “Eighty percent to 90 percent of any company’s needs would probably be similar to those of its competitors. That part of its corporate data model can therefore be effectively catered for with standard data models. The remaining 10 percent to 20 percent will be different for each company and would represent its main differentiator.”
PLM, according to Al-Timimi, is a strategic business approach for the management and use of corporate intellectual capital: the sum of retained knowledge that a corporation accumulates during a period of time. “It is important to keep in mind that the lifecycle of a product may be five to seven times that of a typical software solution lifecycle, so a company must construct a system that provides continuity in the face of changing software architectures.”
There are two kinds of applications within PLM, according to the Datamation model. Authoring tools include computer-aided design (CAD) and computer-aided engineering (CAE). Examples of the second application, decision support, include enterprise resource planning (ERP) and supply chain execution software.
The Datamation PLM model includes the foundation of the integrated data model. Atop the foundation is the infrastructure, in other words, software that manages and contains the corporate data. Other companies supply applications that fit on the infrastructure.
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