What is PLM (Product Lifecycle Management)?
Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) is the process of managing the entire lifecycle of a product from its inception all the way through to its disposal. It includes the inception, product development, manufacturing, use, service, maintenance, product innovation and enhancements, and discontinuation of the product including recycling when needed.
For a more detailed breakdown of PLM, see our in-depth guide on what is Product Lifecycle Management.
What is PDM (Product Data Management)?
Product Data Management (PDM) is defined at Symetri as a system for managing, maintaining and controlling all types of product information which is used to define, produce and maintain a product during its entire lifecycle.
By using PLM with Product Data Management (PDM) throughout product development, the data, the process, and the people involved are all better connected, enabling collaboration and giving you greater control. PDM captures and organises all your design and product data at a lower cost. It improves your engineering process so that you can deliver products faster. PDM ensures you have a single source of truth that looks after all your designs and engineering bills of materials (BOMs) in one system.
What is the difference between PLM and PDM?
The short answer is that a PDM system is often used to simplify product information management during the product design phase, while a PLM system can handle product data in all the different stages of a product's life cycle, i.e., from the concept phase to production including phasing out and recycling. In addition, a PLM system can create efficient business processes in the collaboration between product design, sales, marketing, production and aftermarket.
Do we need a PDM or a PLM system?
A PDM system can handle all changes related to what is created by the design department. However, it can’t handle purchased products which have an item number in the ERP system. A PLM system, on the other hand, connects the PDM and the ERP systems and thus becomes the hub of the entire product life cycle.
A PLM system can, unlike a PDM system, also keep track of delivered products and know what a particular delivery looked like and what has been replaced after delivery. It can also handle aftermarket processes and keep track of product history, i.e., when a product should be serviced and when the service was performed. When delivering spare parts, you know which different versions of a product are available and which spare parts fit each version of the product.
In addition, a PLM system has full traceability, good search functions and complete control over all changes that have been made to a product or delivery, and the system can be made available to the entire company. For example, when the purchasing department picks up an order that is retrieved from the PLM system, they can be confident in knowing that all information is up to date.
(Why PLM, and) what are the main benefits for companies implementing a PLM solution?
PLM connects business processes and systems to optimise operational performance around lead times, cost and quality.
It’s no secret that the essential role of product lifecycle management (PLM) is to inform or put the right information into the right hands at the right time. Any professional involved in a product’s development or manufacture, any organisation that sells a product or has customers who use it, or procurement who specify and purchases it all need the information to assist and drive their involvement with the product and ultimately the success of a product.
PLM benefits include:
• Reduced risk of errors with updated and automated data sharing – by connecting development with the rest of the company's value chain, you can ensure that everyone in the company has access to the correct and updated design data. This also makes it easier to find and reuse design and technical data and for suppliers to have access to product information and design changes during the tender round.
• Significant savings in design time – Features that allow you to enrich model data with smart properties, such as dictionaries and calculated field values, and that automatically create information needed outside the engineering department, such as bill of materials (BOM) and divisible files, allow designers to spend more time on the actual design work and focus on innovation rather than administration.
• Streamlined sales process - Through simple and rule-based configurations, which do not require an understanding of the technical context, the sales process can be streamlined through a greater degree of customer customisation, shorter delivery time and fewer errors due to automatically generated material and bill of materials.
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• Better support and service offerings - By having sufficient knowledge of delivered equipment, one can link a service program to this and create an understanding that necessary service and spare parts provide further business opportunities.
