Archive for the ‘PLM’ Category
Friday, February 1st, 2019
This year, PROSTEP is sponsoring the COMPIT Conference in Tullamore, Ireland, where it will give a presentation on the integration of shipbuilding design tools in the early development phase. Specifically, the new NAPA-AVEVA interface will be presented and the associated improved possibilities it offers for a continuous integration of data and processes in shipbuilding.
Companies in the marine and offshore industries are spoilt for choice when it comes to digitizing their business processes: either they opt for a Best of Suite approach, i.e. an integrated solution for ship design from a single manufacturer that may not cover all the functional requirements of the various disciplines and areas. Or they use the best solutions for the various tasks and are therefore faced with the question of how to integrate the digital tool chain in such a way that the data flows as consistently as possible.
Both approaches have their advantages and disadvantages, but in most cases the shipbuilders opt for the Best of Breed approach because of their grown IT landscapes. However, it will only be successful if the cost of integrating the tool landscape is lower than the additional effort resulting from the functional limitations of a Best of Suite solution. As a specialist for CAD and PLM integration, PROSTEP will explain to COMPIT participants which requirements they should consider when integrating the tool chain from a business perspective and with a view to the IT organization.
The implementation of an interface is not enough. First of all, it must be clarified whether the data should flow in one or both directions, whether all the information required by the target system is available in the source system, whether its data models are compatible, and whether native data or only geometric representations are required. Also important are aspects such as the use of catalog part libraries, which may have to be standardized. In addition, the question arises as to how often data synchronization must take place, which data volumes must be synchronized, and whether the exchange process should be permanently monitored. Only then can you start looking for standard interfaces for importing and exporting data.
Using the new NAPA Steel / AVEVA Marine interface as an example, PROSTEP will then explain the challenges of integrating two shipbuilding-specific CAD applications in more detail. PROSTEP presented the interface concept for the first time last autumn at the NAPA User Conference in Helsinki, where it met with great interest.
NAPA Steel is mainly used in the early design phase, e.g. for the calculation of buoyancy, drag and maneuverability. However, most shipyards use AVEVA Marine software to design their vessels’ steel structures and outfitting. Although both are intent-driven systems that do not primarily generate explicit geometry but describe the way in which they are generated parametrically and via topological relationships to other elements, the data from NAPA Steel cannot be used one-to-one in AVEVA Marine. The different semantics of the two systems must be mapped to each other in such a way that topology definition, parametric breakthroughs and other features can be transferred in best quality or rebuilt in the target system.
The special feature of the import strategy developed by PROSTEP is its high error tolerance: the interface is able to transfer even non-accurately defined topology information in a lower quality, e.g. as pure geometry. The user does not have to read through long error reports to understand which data has which quality, but recognizes this by means of the different color shades. The interface is developed on behalf of NAPA and already supports the transmission of 80 percent of the components in the current development stage.
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Wednesday, January 30th, 2019
In January, PROSTEP AG celebrated its 25th anniversary together with approximately 300 employees, former employees and friends of the company at Centralstation, a cultural center in Darmstadt. Top-class speakers from industry and the research community, including representatives from BMW, Bosch, Daimler, Schaeffler and the University of Stuttgart, took a look at what PLM might look like in the future. In their presentations, they outlined the challenges arising in the age of digital transformation, challenges that the PLM consulting and software house is well equipped to handle.
Dr. Bernd Pätzold, CEO of PROSPTEP AG, welcomed around 300 employees, former employees and friends of the company to the anniversary celebrations, which were held in what was once one of the city’s power stations and now serves as a cultural center. But, as Pätzold said, the company wasn’t interested in talking about the past but about the future. He nevertheless used the celebrations as an opportunity to thank the company’s founders and long-serving employees for the commitment they have shown. The guests partied until late into the night, enjoying lively musical entertainment that enticed a number of people onto the dance floor.
“The next 25 years will be even better,” said Pätzold, even though he has no magic formula for the future. Dr. Martin Holland, responsible for Business Development at PROSTEP, described to those present where the journey could take them. Sometimes it is better to first make a decision and then plan how to implement it, he said, alluding to Caesar’s decision to cross the Rubicon. The Internet of Things, the cloud, blockchain and artificial intelligence are all topics of the future that PROSTEP is examining closely.
In his talk, Holland presented a 1:1 model of a Mars Rover that the company had built together with student employees with the aim of creating a “testing ground” for topics such as IoT integration and the linking of digital twins and VR technology using the Mission Control Center. The winners of the Fraunhofer blockchain hackathon sponsored by PROSTEP, illustrated at one of the exhibition stands how blockchain could be used to make paying for coffee more fair. And they also offered the best coffee in the room.
The future of PLM has already begun
Professor Oliver Riedel, head of the Institute for Control Engineering of Machine Tools and Manufacturing Units (ISW) at the University of Stuttgart and a member of the board of directors of the Fraunhofer IAO, took a wide-sweeping look at PLM of the future. In addition to digital transformation, globalization and glocalization, mankind and society, and in particular the demographic change, which will exacerbate the shortage of skilled workers, are the key megatrends impacting on “PLM 2040 and Beyond”
“The level of complexity will continue to increase, not decrease,” predicted Riedel. And if this complexity is to be made manageable, everything needs be interlinked more efficiently. This applies, for example, to automation technology, which blurs the functional boundaries between ERP and MES, but also to the linking of digital shadows as representations of the past and digital twins as representations of the product as a living entity in the future, PLM will also require greater flexibility through the merging of development and operations. There are examples that demonstrate that DevOps is making more agile development possible not only in the software sector but for all products.
Agility was the watchword for Ralf Waltram, head of IT Delivery at the BMW Group, who presented the carmaker’s showcase projects involving the implementation of agile approaches in corporate IT to the guests. Becoming 100% agile is BMW’s answer to the disruptive changes brought about by digitalization and it has four main thrusts: processes, technology, organization and culture. IT is no longer organized according to projects but instead is organized in agile, product-oriented teams that are responsible for the solutions’ development and operations (DevOps). Back2Code is the maxim, i.e. BMW is once again developing more software itself. Waltram said that the company’s experiences with agile methods in SAP environments have also been good. User satisfaction has improved dramatically thanks to the faster provision of new functions, and the number of open tickets has been reduced by 72 percent.
Waltram went on to say that a more open, intuitive IT landscape is an important prerequisite for implementing agile methods. This was also made clear in the presentation given by Dirk Spindler, head of R&D Processes Methods and Tools at Schaeffler. As Spindler said, the company is very diversified, has a huge portfolio comprising approximately 20,000 products and uses different business models. The desire to standardize the IT landscape is an illusion that has devoured an enormous amount of money. Schaeffler intends to achieve its objective of fully-integrated PLM by setting up a model-based product engineering process and linking the data on an overarching platform. The aim is to ensure that the workplace of the future provide users with only the functions and information that they needs for their work in a cockpit.
On the road to digital transformation
While many companies are still busy digitalizing their business processes, Daimler is already giving thought to the digital transformation of its business models. Connected, Autonomous, Shared Services and Electric (CASE) are closely interwoven new topics that are bringing about a radical change in the way in which work is performed, methods and business models,” said Dr. Siegmar Haasis, CIO of R&D Cars. But they also have to be financed by the company’s core business. As far as IT is concerned, this means not only agile approaches but also an even higher level of digital frontloading in order to get the vehicles on the road faster and make them right the first time round: “When it comes to autonomous driving, the race will not be won on the road but in the computer center,” said Haasis. The supreme discipline here is the digital twin in the context of a holistic approach that supports different variants.
Digital transformation cannot be achieved on its own but only together with partners. Jochen Breh, who works in Governance IT Architecture at Bosch, underscored this point in his talk on the IoT platforms and ecosystems of the future. “Even the best solution will fail without an ecosystem,” Breh explained. On the other hand, an ecosystem can only function properly if all the parties involved, from the owner of the ecosystem to the developers to the customers, benefit from it. IoT platforms provide the technological basis for these ecosystems because, as Breh went on to explain, solutions are created on them. Because distributed ecosystems are going to grow closer together, open source and microservices are the key to building platforms quickly and for connecting them with each other.
At the same time, platforms and ecosystems are a prerequisite for successful transformation of business models. PROSTEP sees itself as a guide accompanying customers on this journey. In a round table at the end of the program of presentations, the executive board and managers from of the various business units explained to the audience just how broadly the company is positioned, thus ensuring that it is well-equipped to tackle the challenges of the future. PLM strategy consulting, Industry 4.0 readiness, MBSE and validation, collaboration, blockchain and agility are the aces they hold when it comes to shaping the digital future. Not to mention major projects like updating Daimler’s Smaragd installation. “I take off my hat to you and want to thank you all for everything you are doing”, Dr. Siegmar Haasis said in his presentation. That was certainly the best anniversary gift that PROSTEP employees’ could have received.
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Friday, January 11th, 2019
Dirk Spindler, Head of R&D Processes, Methods and Tools at Schaeffler, is a relative newcomer to the field of PLM. Up until mid-2016, he was head of development for the company’s Industrial division, which manufactures system components for engines, transmissions and chassis as well as rolling and plain bearings for industrial applications. In this interview, he explains how he intends to digitalize Schaeffler’s development process and tool chain.
Question: The title of your presentation at PROSTEP‘s anniversary event was “The Future of Industry”. Does the automotive industry actually have a future?
Spindler: Yes, provided that it succeeds in making the transition to digitalization and e-mobility, which is something it has clearly identified. New mobility concepts must be developed under the leadership of the carmakers; otherwise there is a danger that the car will become a standard product.
Question: PLM was also written off as a commodity for a long time, but now it seems to be “in” again. What is your take on this?
Spindler: Yes, that is absolutely the case. To put it rather provocatively, PLM in the form we want to do it today has never existed before. It has always been very much focused on mechanical aspects and what I would call PDM. Digitalization and topics such as systems engineering have given PLM a considerable boost in the past two or three years. Nowadays, products have to be described very differently and aspects such as service and after sales have to be taken into account. We also need PLM more than ever for the digital twin and model-based systems engineering. But the IT solution providers need to rethink how the term PLM fits in.
Question: How are you getting on with building the model-based product creation process (PCP), for which Schaeffler laid the foundations in the MecPro2 project?
Spindler: We turned MecPro2 into a separate project called MecPro4You with the aim of making further progress in applying the findings. But we are still very much in the initial stages, among other things because the necessary standardized data exchange between different systems is not currently possible. We are currently using models within the system context to map architectures.
Question: But you are already thinking about the autonomous product engineering process (PEP). What does this involve?
Spindler: The next step after model-based systems engineering will be a more automated PCP. Automated in the sense that we take the evaluation of, for example, customer inquiries and the resulting solutions that we develop and use artificial intelligence to provide new solutions for our customers largely automatically, and ultimately autonomously. You could also call this a smart configurator. However, the models I’ve already mentioned are a prerequisite.
Question: In such a diversified organization as Schaeffler, is it even possible to have a uniform PCP given that you have such different customers?
Spindler: Yes, if you describe the PCP as a collection of different process modules that are combined within certain constraints to form a custom process for a project. It is thus not a uniform process in the sense of one that is always identical but rather uniform with regard to the process modules, currently around 200, which include appropriate methods and suitable IT solutions. We have also preconfigured various product creation processes depending on the business model.
Question: How agile are you within the processes today? Do you, like the BMW Group, want to become one hundred percent agile?
Spindler: We are currently bi-modal and agile and tend towards a hybrid approach to product development. We are now largely agile in software development. But even with agile development, you ultimately need fixed gates defined in the project, at which a given deliverable must be available. That’s why we stick to our overall project plan with milestones or quality gates and fixed targets, but work on an agile basis in between. As far as I see it, this hybrid approach is (still) the reality in most companies today.
Question: Are you still digitalizing your business processes or are you already on the way to digital transformation?
Spindler: (laughing) I guess we’re still digitalizing. But I am always a little wary of such buzzwords because you should use formulations that the team understands and with which they can associate concrete content. Cultural change also means understanding each other’s language. Digital transformation is a catchphrase that quickly morphs into a buzzword. At some point, nobody can really explain what it actually is and where the transformation is going to lead.
Question: To the development of new, digital business models, for example. What progress is Schaeffler making there?
Spindler: We already have new business models in our Industrial division. For example, we are talking about monitoring gear trains in wind turbines, i.e. the whole issue of predictive maintenance or residual lifetime prediction and maintenance planning. In the automotive sector, we are probably still too far from the OEM or end customer. But the bio hybrid, which we presented as a Schaeffler product innovation at CES in Las Vegas and will industrialize in the next few years, gives some indication of where the journey might take us.
Question: In the Industrial division, you undoubtedly use an IoT platform for collecting and evaluating sensor data. Have you already established an ecosystem as well?
Spindler: Yes, in fact, we have. It’s a concept that we call the Smart Ecosystem. It primarily involves collecting and evaluating data from the use of our products in the field in order to generate added value for our customers. For example, we have a rolling bearing with integrated sensor technology that measures data relevant to calculating the service life. This data is then transferred to the platform of a gear train manufacturer, for example, where it is processed further.
Question: What does the platform concept for your product development look like? Haven’t you turned the concept on its head?
Spindler: That’s right. I’m often asked that question. At Schaeffler, the “platform” is at the top. The Engineering Cockpit serves as an overarching PLM backbone, which we use to allow access to the information in the various authoring systems and orchestrate interaction between the systems, e.g. in change and configuration management.
Question: Can developers directly access information that is stored in the authoring systems of other cockpits from their own Engineering Cockpit, for example?
Spindler: No, the current version of the Engineering Cockpit only accesses the information in its “own” authoring systems and makes it available in a neutral format. In a later version, it will be possible to implement access to other IT systems using appropriate interfaces or via other cockpits.
Question: Is the Engineering Cockpit already being used productively?
Spindler: It’s being developed on an agile basis, so some functions are already live. In the course of this year, we will gradually be adding additional functionality such as engineering change management.
Question: Will certain functions in the existing systems be switched off at the same time?
Spindler: No, we won’t be mapping any functions in the Engineering Cockpit that have already been implemented in other systems. Each user remains in the domain they are familiar with. Our mechanical developers, for example, are familiar with Windchill and Creo, and I don’t see much use in replacing these with a different tool. Above all, the Engineering Cockpit is a system-level tool on which the configurations are documented to a given maturity level and from which the so-called mechatronic BOM and implementation jobs for the various disciplines are generated.
Question: Is your PLM platform still installed on premises or is it already running in the cloud?
Spindler: At the moment everything is still installed on premises because we are still developing the solution and only have a few users on the system. But I assume that we will gradually move all our applications to the cloud, among other things because the IT vendors are moving in this direction. But it will probably not be a single cloud – we are pursuing a multi-cloud strategy that uses the most appropriate strategy. I’m not too concerned either way.
Question: You’re not worried about cloud-to-cloud connectivity?
Spindler: No, because we already have that in many areas of application today. I believe that we have solved many problems over recent years through the use of interfaces and standards. Of course, PROSTEP has played a major role in this. Undoubtedly, we will need even more standards and strategies such as the Code for PLM Openness, but the technical problems can be solved.
Mr. Spindler, thank you very much for talking to us. (This interview was conducted by Michael Wendenburg)
About Dirk Spindler
Dirk Spindler (born in 1964) has been working for the Schaeffler Group in various positions in product development at home and abroad since 1990. He has headed up the R&D Processes, Methods and Tools at Schaeffler AG since 2017. Spindler studied Production Engineering and Precision Engineering at the TU Kaiserslautern. He is married with two sons.
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Sunday, January 6th, 2019
PROSTEP and NAPA, the leading maritime software, services and data analysis provider, have successfully completed a joint ship design solution development project for shipbuilder MEYER TURKU. Building on this success, the two companies have signed a formal cooperation agreement to work more closely together in the development of PLM software and CAE interfaces, as well as in the field of PLM consulting.
Increasingly, shipyards function as integrators between multiple parties in the design process. They need efficient and effective software to successfully drive a project from inception to completion. To help MEYER TURKU make and implement its shipbuilding decisions more effectively, NAPA and PROSTEP have combined their respective expertise to develop an interface for the 3D modelling an design software NAPA Designer, that perfectly meshes with MEYER TURKU’s CAD.
MEYER TURKU is one of the world’s leading shipbuilders and specialises in building cruise ships, car-passenger ferries and special vessels. Their efficient design and construction requires the seamless interaction of many commercial partners and software providers. MEYER TURKU uses NAPA software as part of their design toolbox. “Together with PROSTEP, NAPA has delivered us a CAD solution which has realised substantially improved efficiency and time-savings for us during the design and production process”, comments Ari Niemelä, Hull Basic Design Manager at MEYER TURKU.
As a result of this success NAPA and PROSTEP have signed a formal cooperation agreement to work more closely together in the development of PLM software and CAE interfaces, as well as in the field of PLM consulting. By combining their capabilities in these areas, NAPA and PROSTEP will be able to increase operational efficiencies and improve customer satisfaction. Through our cooperation with NAPA, we are strengthening our market position in this important industry as an IT systems integrator and closing another important gap between NAPA and downstream detail design CAD systems in the digital thread along the ship development process.
Tapio Hulkkonen, Director, NAPA Design Solutions Development, commented, “Thanks to our cooperation agreement with PROSTEP, our customers around the world benefit from a comprehensive, market-leading PLM know-how that is bringing improvements in their ship design process. NAPA looks forward to working with PROSTEP to drive further gains and profitability.”
By Matthias Grau
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Saturday, January 5th, 2019
The provider of open PLM and IoT solutions CONTACT Software and the PLM consulting and software house PROSTEP have agreed to cooperate more closely. They want to work together on developing collaboration solutions that can be integrated seamlessly in customers’ CAD and PLM landscapes. The first step involved the development of PROSTEP’s OpenPDM CIM Database connector, which provides support for different collaboration scenarios.
It is companies working in larger development networks with heterogeneous CAx and PLM solutions in particular that are faced with the challenge of having to coordinate their processes across different systems. By combining their know-how in the areas IT, processes and methods, CONTACT Software and PROSTEP are able to offer custom collaboration solutions. These solutions provide support for more efficient collaboration in joint ventures or following mergers and acquisitions in particular.
Like PROSTEP, CONTACT Software is a major advocate for open system architectures, which makes it easier to combine the two companies’ technologies. Using its CONTACT Elements platform, the PLM and IoT software vendor develops solutions for the product engineering process and digital transformation that are used in a variety of industries. Examples include CIM Database PLM and Project Office, a project management solution.
As a vendor-neutral consulting and software house, PROSTEP contributes its decades of experience and its standards-based solutions for PLM integration and collaboration to the cooperation. The OpenPDM CIM Database connector is another element in the PROSTEP product suite that supports collaboration in heterogeneous PLM landscapes.
In most of today’s PLM systems, support for the product lifecycle ends at company boundaries despite the fact that the development, production and operation of the products are distributed across a global ecosystem, as CONTACT’s managing director, Karl-Heinz Zachries, comments: “Our cooperation with PROSTEP paves the way for end-to-end digitalization of cross-company collaboration processes.”
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