Archive for August, 2012
Thursday, August 23rd, 2012
PTC announced it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Servigistics, Inc., developer of an innovative suite of service lifecycle management (SLM) software solutions, for approximately $220 million in cash. Pending regulatory approval and satisfaction of other customary conditions, the transaction is expected to be completed in September 2012.
The acquisition will greatly enhance PTC’s existing portfolio of SLM solutions which, today, includes robust capabilities in the areas of warranty and contract management, service parts definition, and technical information – including mobile delivery. Servigistics is recognized as a technology leader in complementary areas such as service parts planning, management and pricing, field service management, returns and repair management, and service knowledge management. In combination, the solutions will dramatically accelerate PTC’s ability to help discrete manufacturers transform their service strategies and operations into a true source of sustainable competitive edge – what PTC describes as “service advantage.”
“Over the past few years, Servigistics has earned a reputation for innovation in helping companies maximize their global service businesses through increased profitability, cash flow, and customer loyalty,” said PTC president and CEO Jim Heppelmann. “Their customers are at the leading edge of a global trend to take service from a cost center to a profit center, and SLM technology has been a critical driver. This acquisition should make clear just how serious PTC is about helping its customers achieve lasting service advantage.”
For leading manufacturers, getting their service strategy right presents a multi-billion dollar, high-margin revenue opportunity to differentiate themselves in the market from their traditional product-oriented competitors. As an enabling technology, SLM helps manufacturers and their service network partners optimize the customer experience by ensuring service is systemically planned, delivered, and analyzed to continually improve performance and maximize customer value. Yet, few manufacturers have either a coordinated strategy or the integrated technology suite needed to capture this new market opportunity – with many manufacturers realizing as little as 25% of the total service value in their products’ service lifecycle.
PTC has long been known for its world-class technology solutions that optimize the way companies create products. With this acquisition PTC will significantly expand how it helps companies service those same products. In fact, starting with the acquisition of Arbortext in 2005, PTC has been developing solutions that enable manufacturers to plan and analyze service based on how their products are designed and built. This service-focused strategy has driven PTC to deliver specialized solutions that are the result of innovative technology development combined with capabilities gained through the acquisition of companies such as ITEDO, LBS and 4CS. By adding Servigistics to this portfolio, PTC will be able to deliver a complete system for service – providing market-leading capabilities across all key components of the service lifecycle.
With Servigistics, PTC’s SLM solutions will provide global manufacturers with a real-time, single view into the extended service environment to identify and respond to areas for improvement, opportunities for new business, and risks to avoid. Only with a connected service network – supporting the owner/operator, distributor, dealer, service partner, field service force, repair depots, and warranty desk – can the OEM plan, deliver and analyze all necessary resources to ensure that service performance and overall value is meeting or exceeding their customers’ expectations. In addition, this acquisition further enhances PTC’s ability to help customers gain competitive advantage throughout the entire product lifecycle – from conception and design to sourcing and service.
“At Servigistics, we share PTC’s vision for helping to transform the way companies execute their service strategies,” said Eric Hinkle, Servigistics president and CEO. “We anticipate that our clients will reap great benefits from the synergies of this shared vision and are pleased to help PTC secure a strong technology and thought leadership position in SLM.”
Over the past 12 months, privately-held Servigistics generated approximately $80 million in revenue. In connection with this acquisition, PTC is increasing its previous preliminary FY’13 non-GAAP EPS target of $1.70 to $1.80 by a range of $0.02 to $0.05. PTC expects to draw on its credit facility to finance this transaction.
RBC Capital Markets Corporation is acting as financial advisor to PTC. Blackstone Advisory Partners L.P. is acting as financial advisor to Servigistics and its owner Marlin Equity Partners.
Commentary By Jeffrey Rowe, Editor
Not all that long ago, who could have predicted that like PLM, service lifecycle management (SLM) could contribute to a company’s top and bottom lines? To its credit, PTC saw this opportunity and jumped on it. This acquisition of Servigistics reinforces PTC’s commitment to SLM as an important aspect of its overall business, as well as a differentiator in a crowded marketplace
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Wednesday, August 22nd, 2012
For almost 100 years, Aston Martin has been an icon of automotive speed and sophistication, winning the most distinctive races in the world throughout the 1920s (French Grand Prix), 1930s (Biennial Cup at Le Mans), and 1940s, as well as the 1950s (Le Mans 24 Hours).
But, for more than 45 years, Aston Martin stayed away from the racetrack.
In 2005, however, the company resurrected its racing heritage when it returned to the world circuit as Aston Martin Racing (AMR). That first year out, AMR’s DBR9 gained a CT1 class victory. Two years later, Aston Martin triumphed at Le Mans. Based on the Aston Martin DB9 road car, the DBR9 retains the chassis, engine block, and cylinder heads of the road car’s V12 engine. The rest of the car was re-engineered for high performance competition use. The DBR9’s bodywork is a blend of optimum aerodynamic performance and the styling of the DB9 road car.
More recently, AMR has geared up with some extra digital technology in its pocket. For a car company like Aston Martin, where prestige and precision have been part of its heritage since 1913, going digital for design and engineering was a big step forward.
After an extensive benchmarking process, AMR chose PTC Creo and PTC Windchill in 2011 for 3D CAD design of its racing vehicles and for PLM in its racecar division.
With the Creo suite, Aston Martin can start with simple sketched designs, refine them in Creo Parametric, and make them work on the track. AMR performs CFD analysis in Creo early on, and designers can make designs more aerodynamic. Instead of waiting for expensive prototypes, problematic areas are now digitally tested and corrected early in the design process using Creo.
In a three-minute video, PTC interviews Rick Simpson, Design Engineer at Aston Martin Racing. He explains the specifics of how PTC’s Creo design toolset helps them reduce lead times from design and fix design issues before going into manufacturing.
Interesting stuff from a company with a large legacy, long period away, and resurrection on the racetrack.
Tags: AMR, Aston Martin, CFD, Creo, DBR9, Parametric, PTC
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Monday, August 6th, 2012
Dassault Systèmes introduced new SolidWorks Electrical applications that include an innovative, system level 2D schematic design tool and a powerful 3D electrical modeling add-in to SolidWorks design application that are linked in real time.
“Today, companies in industrial equipment, engineering services, high-tech, medical devices, and consumer goods are developing products that include more electrical content. More than half of our SolidWorks customers require a solution that streamlines collaboration between mechanical and electrical systems engineers,” said Bertrand Sicot, CEO, SolidWorks, Dassault Systèmes. “The addition of SolidWorks Electrical to our product portfolio moves us into this underserved market with a robust solution that upholds the SolidWorks focus on ease-of-use and makes close collaboration between mechanical and electrical design groups a reality.”
When it comes to electrical system design, organizations frequently look for ways to improve the overall delivery performance of their departments. SolidWorks Electrical applications make it easy for engineers and designers to plan electrical systems and integrate those electrical aspects into the overall 3D mechanical models. These new applications pave the way for mechanical and electrical engineering teams to collaborate during product development, streamline the design phase, and reduce product delays, resulting in more consistent and standardized designs, lower costs, and faster time-to-market.
“The full integration with SolidWorks will make SolidWorks Electrical easy to learn and will allow both our mechanical and electrical departments to collaborate on electrical system and wiring design,” said Kyle Strong, project manager at Getman Corporation. “Our mining vehicles include complex electrical wiring and need to have consistent design — the decision to consider SolidWorks Electrical was easy. By integrating our electrical and mechanical design processes, we can better document electrical requirements and cable/wire paths, resulting in less rework, higher product quality, and faster time-to-market.”
SolidWorks Electrical provides new capabilities with the following three applications:
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Wednesday, August 1st, 2012
Not all marriages are made in heaven, and the news that Stratasys and HP have agreed to discontinue their manufacturing and distribution agreement for 3D printers, effective at the end of 2012 proves it. The relationship lasted only a couple of years.
Stratasys said it does not expect the termination of its agreement with HP to have a material impact on its financial results for the current year and intends to work closely with HP to ensure a smooth transition for customers. I doubt, though, if the same holds true for HP.
Under the terms of the definitive agreement signed in January 2010, Stratasys developed and manufactured for HP an exclusive line of 3D printers based on Stratasys’ Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) technology. Later that year, HP began a phased rollout of the 3D printers in the MCAD market in select European countries, but never made it over here to North America, which was both a mystery and a shame.
When Stratasys made the original distribution announcement with HP, it was regarded as a pretty big deal. The announcment also boosted Stratasys’ stock price. It truly was a big announcement for additive fabrication, but I don’t think many in the industry regarded it as the turning point for the technology. In the end, the annoucement and partnership never did fulfill the initial hype or substantive change in the additive fabrication market.
To be fair to HP, though, it only got Stratasys’ entry level UPrint and Dimension product lines. I think this was done to expand Stratasys market presence and installed base without canibalizing its more lucrative high-end 3D printer market that it wanted to keep. Fair enough.
It always puzzled me, though, why HP didn’t develop and market its own 3D printer for a worldwide market — especially at the low-end, prosumer level. After all, HP has provided 3D print heads for ZPrinters (now owned by 3D Systems) and is a market leader in 2D printers. Why not go the next step to develop and mass market your own 3D printing machine?
Admittedly, these are tough times, and no technology company knows that better than HP.
Tags: 3D printer, HP, Stratasys
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