How PDM helps deliver faster more efficient product development by Wolfgang Lynen, EMEA Marketing Campaign Manager Manufacturing Solutions, Autodesk...

After nearly three decades of CAD design, paper-based archives have disappeared from engineering departments. Today, all relevant design data is stored on digital storage media.

A designer may occasionally use a working copy on paper just to get a quick overall picture of the design, and production departments still generally receive production drawings on paper. Yet, every search through the archive, every change, every distribution is undertaken by accessing digital data.

Nevertheless, in an age where data growth is becoming an ever more important issue, the advantages of digital product data cannot be exploited fully without a sophisticated product data management (PDM) system that not only organises the files but also manages the release processes and the permissions assigned to the various internal and external users.

Over time, these solutions have become ever more cost effective and simple to use. They are closely integrated into CAD systems and use the graphic facilities these offer for viewing data so that rather than working with abstract numbers and text attributes, the designer always has a clear idea of the parts and assemblies he is dealing with.

Several different PDM systems are available on the market today, developed from three distinct starting points. Some originate from document management and are aimed at covering requirements in technical fields through the application of design-related enhancements. Others have approached product development from the point of view of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), with the aim of co-managing product development data in a commercial software package by means of the corresponding add-on modules.

The most comprehensive PDM systems, however, have their roots in CAD development. They are fully acquainted with the requirements of product development, the specific aspects of product data and the workflows in development departments.

Design managers will feel most at ease with these kinds of systems as they provide the best response to the needs of CAD design and make the most of the specific properties of CAD systems, their graphic capabilities and data. PDM systems such as Autodesk Vault, for example, offer solid integration, maximum ease of use and the greatest benefits for users in the field of product development. 

Universal benefits 

PDM is used for a broad range of different tasks throughout an organisation. One significant benefit for CAD designers is that it speeds up searching while, for companies, the fact that is that it is an aid to standardisation is of key benefit.

Designers spend 30 to 40 percent of their time on research before even embarking on a design or on locating available components and assemblies. PDM systems can simplify searching and recognise all files belonging to a design or to a project.

PDM can make it easier to reuse existing components and, in the best cases, save the entire expenditure involved in redesigning as well as a large part of the production costs. In this way, PDM helps with standardisation and reduces the number of existing parts.

In addition to finding parts, PDM also helps with variant designs. If, for example, a user wants to take an existing design (say ‘Machine A’) and use it as a starting point for a very similar new machine, the ‘Copy Design’ functionality would copy the existing design, give it a new name (for e.g. ‘Machine B’), and copy and link all existing components from the old to the new machine. This could then serve as a starting point for the design of the new machine, without affecting the existing design of Machine A.

Maintaining each version 

Some key questions and issues associated with CAD design include the matter of the correct version. Which is the current version? Which version did we send to the customer three weeks ago? Which version are we currently working on? What parts and assemblies belong to this design?

A PDM system can answer all of these questions by providing a clear and unambiguous picture of the progress of the design and all of its versions, making it absolutely clear which is the current version.

In practical terms this means that the risk of people working on an old version can be eliminated. Previous versions are also retained and can be accessed at any time. This is particularly useful when a design concept has led to a dead end and the designer is forced to go back to an earlier version.

Documenting changes

Drawings often contain many external references or blocks and 3D assemblies generally consist of numerous sub-assemblies and individual parts. Windows Explorer is not much use for someone looking to maintain an overview within these complex structures, especially when changes are required or assemblies exist in a variety of version statuses. This is when a PDM system alone can provide the required overview. It recognises all of the relevant assemblies and parts and automatically keeps track of which versions of the individual parts belong to which version of an assembly. 

‘Where used’ information

There is a part to be changed in an assembly. What will the consequences be? Has that part been used in other assemblies or products? The PDM system can answer these questions at the press of a button. The ‘where used’ information shows the relationships between parts and assemblies and provides the basis for the decision as to whether the change is useful or might possibly give rise to problems elsewhere. This knowledge can avoid serious errors and therefore save a lot of money.

Who is responsible? 

Design teams usually comprise a number of workers collaborating on a project, sometimes even working across great distances in different time zones, and with different roles and responsibilities. A PDM system ensures that only authorised people have access to the data, and that only people who are allowed to make modifications can actually do so.  It also keeps track of all changes, so we can always know who changed what.  And it keeps tracks of the approval flow, so it is always clear who approved a certain design and when it was approved. 

Speeding up development cycles

Arguably, the most important benefit of PDM, however, is in speeding up development cycles. In the competition for customers and orders, speed is always the trump card.

A PDM system not only helps to more easily find an existing design, but also supports the automated monitoring of processes and changes. Production and purchasing are provided with up-to-date data, and sources of error are eliminated. At the same time there is a more accurate basis provided for calculating offers, and calculations take less time and cost less, resulting in a better chance of winning the order. So it is clear that PDM not only provides support for the design department, but has a positive effect throughout the entire company.

Benefits galore

It is estimated that with the use of PDM it is possible to increase the rate of reuse of existing parts by some 50 per cent. The use of parts requiring only slight modification is also increased under PDM, contributing towards lower costs. 

Improved collaboration

The electronic communication of product data within modern computer networks is considerably faster than the old system of forwarding paper drawings. Data replication means that even sites separated by great distances always have the most up-to-date version of a design. Time delays caused by sending items through the post are a thing of the past. Of course, a PDM system must safely control and manage access to the data it contains. The time saving here in comparison with paper communication is up to 100 per cent; it is impossible to over-estimate the resulting benefit in terms of a reduced time to market.

The slow lose out

In recent years, many companies have been forced to cut their project times significantly simply to remain competitive. Apart from 3D design, they have found PDM to be the key to reducing their time to market. PDM eliminates a great deal of manual work, making the processing of customer-specific variants simpler and faster. 

Higher quality

The automation of processes in design and the associated divisions helps to avoid mistakes, saves the cost of expensive follow-up work and reduces time-consuming discussion meetings. Even the ‘where used’ information for parts serves to avoid expensive mistakes. The designer can check where a part is installed and what effect modifying it will have on other assemblies. Overall, experienced PDM users report a significant improvement in quality in terms of design and general organisation.

Compelling reasons

PDM solutions are practical and cost-effective. They quickly pay for themselves, the barriers to adopting them are lower and there is a wealth of positive experience to draw on. When CAD archives are growing rapidly, without a management system, they will soon become unmanageable. The investment is worthwhile even for small-scale engineering offices.

With its version management features, locking of files currently being worked on, referencing of the assembly hierarchy, ‘where used’ information for parts, efficient searching and intelligent file management (which, for example, helps with the copying of designs with all associated files), Autodesk Vault provides users with the basic functions necessary for data management.

Secure data management, structuring and tracking over a central storage location optimises the creation, filing and common use of data in digital product development. This basic software is included in AutoCAD, AutoCAD Mechanical and AutoCAD Inventor Suite at no extra cost.