If, instead of the gangly arms and bolted pivot points holding everything in synch, everyone had control of his or her own carriage, it would be a pretty scary version of the bumper cars. On the manufacturing side, companies have been striving for reduced downtime, increased productivity, and other efficiencies to take every last drop of fat out of the production process.
Productivity is key.
Now, for many companies involved in product design, engineering, and manufacturing, innovation is the key word. Collaboration at the supply-chain level takes advantage of the expertise of each supplier in its specific product area to avoid conflict and supply problems and to generally build a better mousetrap. Scott Emigh, segment manager, mechanical design automation and product data management for Microsoft, Redmond, Wash., explains that while PDM has traditionally been comprised of tools for engineering and design change-management, these products now have to go much further. Agile Software, San Jose, Calif., in particular is intent upon separating themselves from the traditional PDM label in response to this new paradigm. The next level of collaboration is the sharing of drawings and data with any remotely appropriate area within the enterprise.