How do you use PLM to make your products stand out?

1 Define your product vision and strategy

Before you start developing your products, you need to have a clear vision and strategy for what you want to achieve, who you want to serve, and how you want to position your products in the market. PLM can help you define and document your product vision and strategy, as well as align them with your business goals and customer needs. You can use PLM to create and manage product roadmaps, portfolios, requirements, and specifications. You can also use PLM to conduct market research, competitive analysis, and customer feedback. By using PLM to define your product vision and strategy, you can ensure that your products are relevant, valuable, and unique.

2 Collaborate across teams and functions

One of the key benefits of PLM is that it enables collaboration across teams and functions involved in the product life cycle. PLM can help you break down silos and streamline communication and workflows among engineers, designers, marketers, suppliers, customers, and other stakeholders. You can use PLM to share and access product data, documents, models, and designs in a centralized and secure platform. You can also use PLM to coordinate tasks, track progress, manage changes, and resolve issues. By using PLM to collaborate across teams and functions, you can improve your product quality, efficiency, and innovation.

3 Integrate your product data and systems

Another advantage of PLM is that it allows you to integrate your product data and systems across the product life cycle. PLM can help you connect and synchronize your product data and systems with other enterprise systems, such as ERP, CRM, SCM, CAD, and CAM. You can use PLM to automate data exchange, eliminate data duplication, and ensure data accuracy and consistency. You can also use PLM to leverage data analytics, artificial intelligence, and machine learning to generate insights, optimize decisions, and enhance performance. By using PLM to integrate your product data and systems, you can increase your product visibility, agility, and intelligence.

4 Manage your product compliance and sustainability

One of the challenges of product engineering is to comply with various regulations, standards, and customer expectations regarding product safety, quality, reliability, and environmental impact. PLM can help you manage your product compliance and sustainability throughout the product life cycle. You can use PLM to identify and monitor compliance requirements, risks, and opportunities. You can also use PLM to implement and verify compliance actions, such as testing, certification, labeling, and reporting. Additionally, you can use PLM to support your product sustainability initiatives, such as reducing waste, energy, and emissions, improving recyclability and circularity, and enhancing social responsibility. By using PLM to manage your product compliance and sustainability, you can reduce your product risks, costs, and liabilities, and increase your product reputation, value, and loyalty.

5 Adapt to changing customer and market demands

One of the realities of product engineering is that customer and market demands are constantly changing and evolving. PLM can help you adapt to changing customer and market demands throughout the product life cycle. You can use PLM to monitor and anticipate customer and market trends, preferences, and feedback. You can also use PLM to respond and adjust to customer and market changes, such as launching new features, versions, or variants, or retiring obsolete or underperforming products. Furthermore, you can use PLM to innovate and create new products, services, or business models that meet or exceed customer and market expectations. By using PLM to adapt to changing customer and market demands, you can keep your products competitive, relevant, and profitable.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?