系统集成商和IT服务提供商MphasiS和产品生命周期管理（PLM）软件制造商Siemens PLM Softwareare partnering to help mid-market manufacturers around the world gain the benefits of数字制造。MPHASIS是位于印度的Hewlett Packard的业务部门，在全球提供应用，基础架构和业务流程外包服务。根据协议的条款，该公司将为Siemens PLM Software的TeamCenter产品提供集成服务。
PLMis an increasingly important way for manufacturers to facilitate product innovation, improve quality and reduce product development costs, but the software has long been seen as appropriate only for “the big guys,” such as aerospace and automotive manufacturers. By partnering with MphasiS, Siemens can provide mid-market customers with integration expertise, onsite and offshore support, and manufacturing industry knowledge at a price and scale appropriate to their needs. And because MphasiS is a division of Hewlett Packard, the integrator can also provide the HP hardware on which to run the software, if necessary.
“Siemens PLM Software’s technology provides users with flexibility and scalability ranging from a single application to a customized suite, and our integration capabilities enable us to support these various platforms,” says Rajesh Makhija, senior vice president for the enterprise market unit at MphasiS. “Our homogeneous solutions integrate hardware, software, services and support.”
One manufacturer that has already benefited is Nuvera Fuel Cells, Inc. (www.nuvera.com)、Billerica质量。燃料电池系统的开发人员ms and fuel processors for industrial vehicles and equipment.
“As Nuvera continues to expand in the material handling market, we needed a more robust PLM solution that could run on our HP blade server infrastructure,” said Brian Landry, senior information technology manager. “We have a great deal of confidence in our implementation of Teamcenter due to the software’s capability, and due to the flexibility of MphasiS and their tight association with Siemens PLM Software.”
Midsize mindset
丹尼尔电影,西门子PLM软件全球联盟director, said, “Working with MphasiS enhances our ability to streamline implementation processes for mid-market companies.”
While companies of all sizes want Siemens to streamline the PLM software implementation process, Flick said mid-size manufacturers are particularly sensitive about costs and budgets as well as time and ease of execution. “They’re looking for solutions—frameworks, services, methodologies—that target their specific needs. What they get from the new partnership, is mitigation of cost and management of risk” he adds.
Makhija says MphasiS and Siemens spent considerable time evaluating the specific needs of mid-market companies with regard to PLM. One of the things they found was that Teamcenter was one large monolithic product and “given its size and complexity, a smaller company couldn’t tough it out, and couldn’t afford it. Today, a mid market client can go for fewer licenses—three, five, 1,500—and can choose the functionality of individual modules to pay a much smaller amount,” he says.
Makhija adds that “the thing we know is that the price is still steep. Companies typically spend 10-15% of product costs on R&D, so they don’t have an option to spend thousands of dollars on IT solutions as well. Now, with the well-designed implementation solutions that MphasiS delivers, they have a solution. We, along with Siemens, effectively lower the price points all around.”
典型的PLM实现是关于配置TeamCenter产品的方法 - 了解客户的需求并将其映射到特定的模块。MPHASIS提供了使用预先设计的业务流实施PLM的过程框架。这减少了实施步骤的数量并降低了成本。“对于这样的产品，实施成本可以是产品成本的3倍或6倍。我们可以以2倍或1.5倍的成本进行实施。” Makhija说。
实施过程也更快。Makhija说，它通常在三个月或更短的时间内完成，而Nuvera就是这种情况。他补充说，时间和成本节省也可能来自其他领域：
- 通过使用我们的离岸实施模型，在现场存在的情况下，我们向客户提供预定义的需求模板以快速捕获规格。使用此模型，预期的节省更多的40％。
- The PDM Connector solution is focused on new implementations as well as PLM migrations, which means moving from another product data management system to “Teamcenter Unified.” PDM Connector can facilitate a quick database migration.
MphasiS has extensive experience in IT systems integration. Software services company EDS bought 62% of MphasiS in 2006 and merged EDS India into it. HP acquired EDS in 2008 and in 2009 renamed it HP Enterprise Services. Mphasis is now an HP Enterprise business unit that employs more than 41,000 people serving clients in a variety of industries. Makhija said the company has a “strong team of experts in the PLM industry, with over 300 internal resources dedicated to providing innovative PLM solutions to the marketplace.”
Flick说，Siemens PLM软件已经与HP作为技术提供商和系统集成商建立了“良好的关系”，而他的公司“对通过MAPHIS合作来扩展与HP的关系感到乐观。MPHASIS既有与新朋友（新手PLM的公司）和扩大PLM使用的人们的经验。在他们的帮助下，我们将向更多的公司扩展已经很良好的关系，这可能是第一次进行这一[PLM]旅程。”
Renee Robbins Bassett (rbassett@automationworld.com）是《自动化世界》杂志的执行编辑。
