Research Rap: Smaller Companies Reaping PLM Benefits

A quick peek into some research from Aberdeen Group
on …
how small to midsize manufacturers are taking advantage of PLM
and gaining some nice business-level benefits. The
Aberdeen Research points out a combination of both operational and
financial performance improvements these smaller companies are
achieving with PLM, despite their perceived (and real) roadblocks.
The report goes further to discuss the approaches these companies
are using to implement and roll out PLM in their businesses, given
their smaller size and relatively limited resources.

The Value of PLM for Smaller Companies
Smaller manufactures often take a more simplified view of PLM,
but are gaining significantly from their investment. The benefits
that smaller companies enjoy from PLM fall into both operational
improvements (including fewer change orders and faster design
release) with result in business-level benefits that impact the
top- and bottom-line.

Specifically, the Aberdeen report indicates that SMBs with PLM:

• Have 22% fewer Engineering Change Orders after design
  release - this is a strong indicator of design quality and
  incorporation of customer and downstream needs early in the product
  lifecycle
• Approve or reject ECOs 54% sooner - this is an
  indicator of efficient and effective processes across
  departments
• Release designs to manufacturing 16% faster -
  a clear indication of more efficient design processes, which
  results in faster time to market for products, a big competitive
  advantage

The net result? The Aberdeen report indicates that SMBs
with PLM report strong an 18.5% improvement in product profit
margins! That is a significant improvement that directly
impacts the bottom-line. How many companies wouldn’t be interested
in benefits like this? How many smaller companies can afford to
compete against a competitor that achieves this level of
improvement? Not surprisingly, Aberdeen has reported that
the use of PLM among SMBs is expected to grow
200% by 2010.

The Value of PLM - Downsized for Easy
Consumption
Many of the leading PLM vendors, including Dassault Systemes, PTC, and Siemens PLM have joined
mid-size PLM specialists like Arena Solutions, Softech, and Synergis Software in
providing offerings tuned to smaller companies. The Aberdeen report
highlights a number of obstacles that smaller companies face - or
at least perceive - about implementing PLM. These vendors have
taken the time to understand and address the obstacles, and have
turned some perceived obstacles. The report has an interesting view
on the differences between the perceived and actual
obstacles that is worth taking a look at.

So that was a quick peek into some recent research on PLM for
smaller companies, I hope you found it interesting. Does the
research reflect reality? Do you see it differently? Let us know
what it looks like from your perspective. Thanks to my friends at
Aberdeen for allowing me to share this small peek into their
research with you.