Clarity on PLM

I had the chance to talk with … Razorleaf during a research project earlier this year. Razorleaf helps manufacturers leverage PLM, Design Automation, and other enterprise technologies to improve product development and engineering processes. During the conversation, it was clear that they really understand how enterprise technology can be applied in an engineering environment. They are ready to step in and deliver the enterprise services required to implement PLM. But how much of the “PLM” ecosystem is really ready and capable to implement PLM? In my experience, too few.

What Razorleaf Does

Talking to the people at Razorleaf, I recognized the approach and skillset they use to implement engineering solutions. Yes, they know the products. But they also know how to help companies transform their processes, change their business, align their organization, and all of the other lessons learned from implementing systems like ERP and supply chain management. I recognize these in part from my research, and in part from spending a number of years with Andersen Consulting (now Accenture) implementing enterprise applications. These solutions require more thoughtful implementations than engineering tools, because improving the productivity of an individual is not enough. They have to improve the way the overall business works together. Not an easy task, but that is where the value comes in. This is what Razorleaf does.

How Razorleaf Fits in the PLM Ecosystem

Why did it strike me that they had this knowledge? Because too few resellers in the engineering software market have these skills. What comforted me, though, was that it is exactly those resellers that call on Razorleaf to help their clients. The good news is that the resellers know – or maybe it is their manufacturing customers – that there is more to a PLM implementation. This is likely the reason that other companies such as Kalypso (an innovation consultant with strong enterprise and PLM skills) is on the scene at so many PLM implementations. I find frequently that companies like these are pulled into implementations early on to help augment the skills of the software resellers (and even the vendors themselves).  It also helps explain the importance of a resseler like NovaQuest (a Dassault Systemes reseller with significant PLM experience)

Impliciations for Manufacturers

Why is this important to the manufacturing community?  If you are implementing PLM, make sure that those doing the implementation understand the different between implementing software tools (CAD, CAM, CAE, etc.) and enterprise applications like PLM. It can be the difference between a technically successful implementation that provides little or no business value (what I like to call a failure) and improving your business performance through the use of PLM technology.

So that’s what I hear from Razorleaf (with some additional perspective thrown in, I think it might be as much “What I Learned” as “One-to-One this time). I hope you found it useful. What do you think? What else should I have asked them?

I had the chance to talk with …Joel Lemke and his team at NovaQuest recently about their business plans and their strategy to help companies gain value from PLM. NovaQuest is a relatively new company, formed by IBM and Dassault Systemes veteran Joel Lemke (along with a host of other talent). Their quest is to help Dassault better implement Enovia PLM solutions, particularly in under-served markets such as small to midsize businesses (SMB) and “non-traditional” industries. This company has a lot going for it, and fills an important role in the Dassault Ecosystem.

What do they Offer?
To be brief, they offer product lifecycle management (PLM). In specific, the sell and implement the Enovia product line from Dassault Systemes (DS). On one hand, this puts them into a large pool of DS resellers. How NovaQuest sets themselves apart, however, is through a dedicated focus on:

• PLM as opposed to CAD
• SMB
• Non-traditional markets

The first point has a lot to do with history. Many of the DS resellers – really most CAD resellers – come from a very strong CAD background. When it comes to selling, implementing, and supporting CAD these companies have all of the talent and experience they need. CAD, however, is a tool. PLM, on the other hand, is an enterprise application. Without getting too far up on my soapbox on the differences, suffice it to say that the skills and resources you need to bring to a tools implementation are different than those you need to bring to implement and extract value from PLM. In my mind, it’s kind of like bringing a knife to a gun fight.

Who do they Work With?
The second differentiator that NovaQuest touts – aside from their PLM expertise – is their unique focus. Most of the early adoption of PLM comes from what I call “metal benders.” These are typically companies that center their product development process around complex, mechanical designs (and hence, a lot of mechanical CAD). Other industries, what the PLM market likes to call “non-traditional” PLM industries, focus their product development process on differently. Frequently, designing the supply chain is as important as designing the product. Product compliance typically takes a more central part. And the design may be centered around a formula or recipe instead of CAD model and bill of material (BOM). This puts even more emphasis on PLM as an enterprise application as opposed to a product data management (PDM) vault with some extra bells and whistles.

The third point of differentiation is based on company size. NovaQuest plans to help smaller manufacturers, the SMBs, achieve their PLM goals. I the same may that a lot of early PLM work was done in the “metal benders,” much of the early PLM success was in larger companies. NovaQuest plans to capitalize on the growth of PLM in smaller-sized manufacturers.

How does this Fit into the Ecosystem?
One of my firm beliefs is that targeting the right market is a critical component of success. That is probably true in any business, but I have lived through this personally in the software industry. The challenge is to balance addressing a differentiated, targeted segment of the market while still assuring a large enough population of potential customers. NovaQuest is clearly differentiating themselves based on their three-way focus on PLM, non-traditional markets, and SMB. I expect that they will do business outside of this niche as well, given that they have the experience and knowledge required for the more traditional PLM targets. With a combination of focus on flexibility, coupled with a strong team, NovaQuest is well positioned for success in the PLM market. It will be interesting to see how well they can capitalize on the opportunity.

So that’s what I hear from NovaQuest, I hope you found it useful. What do you think? What else should I have asked them?