Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) software is designed to organize the work of those who collaborate in the imagination, engineering, manufacturing, documentation and support of the various widgets available in the world as products. It tracks workflows and ensures that product teams can communicate to produce the best possible products and services.

At its core, PLM software manages a diverse collection of digital files that move through a virtual pipeline as various team members push, produce, and comment on them until they reach a deal. Some are computer-aided design (CAD) drawings. Some are spreadsheets. Some are production schedules. Some are instruction manuals for the end user. The PLM system manages it all, ensuring that the right people in the right roles are involved at the right time.

Good PLM software can also cross company boundaries. At the very least, it will help the design team communicate and coordinate with those on the production line. Sometimes the PLM software can even connect with suppliers from various companies to make sure the parts get to the right place at the right time so someone can put them together.

Here are 15 of the best PLM-related vendors in alphabetical order that offer platforms and suites that give every team more power to manage their product lifecycles, from design to sales to service and delivery. retirement.

Ansys

Simulation is a primary focus of Ansys, a company that produces some of the best tools for creating CAD models and pushing future devices through a range of simulated stresses until they reach failure modes. . Medini, for example, is designed for electronics safety analysis so companies can comply with various safety regulations, ISO or military. Lumerical FDTD will simulate photonic devices. LS Dyna simulates how materials deform in small and catastrophic collisions. There are dozens of tools targeted for particular product lines that can be integrated into a PLM workflow.

Arena

The Arena system emphasizes supply chain management (SCM) and quality control in product development with two systems that work together. The PLM tool manages the development pipeline while Arena’s Quality Management System (QMS) addresses testing and compliance issues. The two are tightly integrated to create a single source of truth that tracks the product from design to manufacturing to delivery. Design documents evolve alongside development and test certifications, allowing team members and managers to identify errors and drive improvements.

Autodesk

Autodesk’s Upchain and Vault systems provide a framework for teams to collaborate with Autodesk’s various CAD tools. The two work together to track projects so that designers, managers, quality control inspectors and suppliers can ensure that the right parts fit together to form a working product. Upchain is a cloud-based tool available at three access levels (participant, team and professional). The Vault platform is available in three tiers for three different effort sizes: Basic, Workgroup, and Professional. The basic version stores and indexes CAD models for faster searching. The Workgroup version adds more functionality for collaboration throughout the design and review lifecycle. The Professional version can provide a centralized repository for a multi-site team with extended scope and additional functionality for tasks such as organizing documentation, tracking BOMs, or automating change orders.

AVEVA Group

The Wonderware product is now called AVENA Systems Platform, but it’s still focused on helping heavy industries, especially those in power generation or marine environments. The tool is part of a constellation of products that integrate 3D design with process control and management. The Enterprise Resource Manager tool, for example, makes it possible to plan and manage the creation of large industrial projects in a sustainable and efficient way. Forward-looking analysis is now easier with a predictive analytics module that offers forecasts based on data from the rest of the cloud-based collection.

Bentley Systems

Bentley offers a wide range of tools to manage factories and production lines in what they call a connected data environment. ProjectWise, for example, is a project delivery tool that organizes the different stages of individual projects. Many of their CDE tools are now integrated with Siemens Teamcenter so that information can flow between production line managers and design and marketing teams.

Dassault Systems

The pipeline at the heart of Dassault Systems’ PLM product line connects 3D modeling, design, simulation and production with a cohesive and well-integrated suite of tools. Designers can rely on Catia to produce production models with a collaborative team. Testing with Simula can detect problems even before the first prototype is made. Version 5 offers a wide range of feature-oriented options, such as finding ways to eliminate unnecessary materials to provide a lighter device with all the same functionality. The company is also expanding its range. 3DVia, for example, helps marketing teams put virtual models directly into the hands of customers so they can see what they might buy on their screen. Some of their work goes even further. Geovia deploys design and simulation code to model the planet and its environment.

hexagon

Hexagon’s Joint Configuration Management Information System (JCMIS) connects various stakeholders to build consensus during product development, typically for the US Department of Defense. The tool offers a closed-loop system where inspectors and users can communicate directly with developers to ensure deliverables meet standards and provide solutions. Dashboards make it possible to follow the different parts of the projects via a secure Web application. Hexagon designed the system for defense contractors, and it complies with important security standards and mandates.

OpenBOM

The cloud-based, multi-tenant OpenBOM started out as a way to bring BOMs together across a supply chain, but has evolved into a comprehensive collaboration platform to synchronize all stages of design, change and from production. Data analysis and an organized knowledge graph can guide decisions. There are versions available for individual professionals, small teams and large enterprises. A free version allows a single user to experiment.

OpenPDM

ProStep’s OpenPDM is designed to integrate information from as many systems as possible, enterprise resource planning (ERP), master data management (MDM), and application lifecycle management ( ALM), to other PLM systems, including those from other vendors. The goal is a master system for modern and complex supply chain management. OpenPDM also offers versions targeted for particular industries such as OpenPDM-Ship, who manages the process of creating a new ship.

Oracle

Fusion Cloud Product Lifecycle Management offers a tool to track products from innovation to production and even sales. The goal is to create a virtuous closed loop for collaboration with team members based on data gathered from testing, production lines and sales reports. The MDM section will collect data from omnichannel marketing, sales channels, ERP channels and external supply chain vendors. The goal is a well-orchestrated decision-making process with well-defined roles, responsibilities and governance.

Propel

Propel’s Product 360 tool organizes product development by integrating data from ERP, customer relationship management (CRM) and CAD tools. A fully integrated quality management system tracks issues and data from incoming parts suppliers, testing, calibration and audits. The tool is integrated with Salesforce, improving tight integration so sales teams can work more closely with creators and builders.

CTP

PTC’s approach is based on two main platforms: Arena and Windchill. Engineering and manufacturing teams can rely on Arena to deliver a product from early design stages, through design iterations, to manufacturing using a diverse set of vendors. Along the way, it integrates with Arena’s QMS to address compliance, testing, and secure delivery issues. Windchill is an engineering design platform that brings together teams working in a wide variety of roles to collaborate on critical design elements and features. Arena is available as a service while Windchill can be purchased as a service or installed on premise.

SAP

The SAP solution for PLM is well integrated with SAP’s management system, which organizes warehouses and distribution centers. Portfolio and product management tools focus on creating seamless collaborative environments for designing new products, accurately estimating production costs, and anticipating compliance issues. Financial integration helps ensure that the finished product is not just a visual delight, but an economic success that arrives on time. Capital expenditures, capability modeling, and R&D costs all feed into the project tracking equation.

Siemens

Siemens Teamcenter brings product management to a variety of areas served by Siemens and its partners. Cadence Allegro, for example, designs and simulates circuit boards for electronic products and integrates with Teamcenter for manufacturing and delivery tasks. The tool is widely supported by Siemens and its collection of software products to support various product lines such as power generation or semiconductor manufacturing. Teamcenter X is a version available as a service in a cloud environment hosted by Siemens.

Synopsis

Companies that design, build, or use silicon chips may want to use Syopsy, which has named SiliconMax, their version of PLM, as a “silicon lifecycle management” or SLM tool. The basic objective is the same, but the tools focus on the manufacturing steps of the chip. The design phase, for example, gathers data from sensors to guide simulation and testing. The production stage called “YieldExplorer” relies on a comprehensive collection of silicon tests to ensure quality. Even after the product is shipped, SiliconMax researches the effects of aging.