What Is PLM Implementation?

Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) is the system of tools, processes, and people that collaborate to oversee a product from initial conception and design to service and final retirement. PLM implementation strategically integrates PLM software with existing systems and workflows to enhance product development and lifecycle management. 

A PLM system centralizes product data, unifies various parts of the production process, and connects workflows across the product lifecycle. Effective PLM implementation requires a methodical approach, including needs assessment, getting stakeholder buy-in, system selection, data validation, and change management.

When implemented properly, PLM software enables businesses to operate more efficiently, slowing time to market, improving collaboration, and reducing production errors. 

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Steps for a Seamless PLM Rollout

PLM implementation isn’t a one-time event. It is a complex initiative that includes: 

• Assessment and planning
• Vendor selection
• Data migration
• System configuration
• Team training
• Deployment
• Continuous optimization.

Step 1 – Assessment and Planning

First, start your PLM implementation with a needs assessment: What are you trying to achieve? What processes are improved by a PLM system? What data will you need to make this successful? 

It’s important to collaborate with other teams to determine the scope of the implementation and cross-functional use cases. This way, you get project buy-in, and stakeholders are aligned on timing, budget, and functionality.

Step 2 – Vendor Selection

Once you know how you’ll be using PLM software, work with your cross-functional team to determine a criteria for evaluating PLM software vendors. For example, what features are most important to you? Can the tool scale with your business? Does the vendor offer implementation or ongoing support?

As part of your evaluation, ask for recommendations, request personalized demos, and do a pilot run of the system so that you have a clearer picture of how well a tool will suit your needs.

Step 3 – Data Migration and Integration

Effective PLM software runs on clean data. Since PLM software integrates with other sources of data across the business, it’s crucial that you evaluate the quality, cleanliness, and integrity of your data. 

This is especially important as your PLM system integrates with enterprise systems that house operational business data — like Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tools — that are used to make business-critical decisions.

Step 4 – Customization and Configuration 

While there are many similar use cases for PLM software, each business has its own way of carrying out its processes. To get the most out of PLM, configure your software to suit your unique way of doing things.

Work with your PLM vendor to balance out-of-the-box functionality with custom development to suit your workflow and data structure requirements.

Step 5 – Training and Change Management

Team training and effective change management allow for smoother transitions and boost PLM software adoption rates. Enable your team on the newly implemented PLM system through in-person trainings, online tutorials, and dedicated learning hubs.

There’s often an initial resistance to change. You can counter this by communicating expectations, addressing concerns, and highlighting the benefits of the new system.

Step 6 – Pilot and Full Deployment

Trying to roll out an entire new system at the same time increases the risk of failure. Instead of launching to the wider company at once, start small. Run a small-scale pilot to test out the new processes and work out the kinks ahead of time.

Then, use this pilot project to collect feedback and refine the process so that it’s ready for organizational-wide rollout. 

Step 7 – Continuous Optimization

Once you’ve implemented and deployed the new PLM software, it’s time to measure its effectiveness. Track post-deployment KPIs like time to market and error rates to understand how the system is performing.

When combined with user feedback, this data can help you identify areas for improvement so you can make ongoing updates and deploy patches.

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Why PLM Implementation Matters

In the 1980s, companies used computer-aided design (CAD) software to design products. Then, Product Data Management (PDM) systems were deployed to manage the high volume and many versions of CAD files. Eventually, as organizations shifted away from paper-based processes, the two tools combined to form a computer-based PLM solution.

Thanks to this evolution, digital PLM is now a critical part of companies’ ability to move fast. It has shifted the production lifecycle from manual management to a seamlessly interconnected system that centralizes product data, streamlines workflows, and automated processes to improve efficiency. 

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Challenges and How to Overcome Them

Implementing PLM can come with its own set of hurdles, especially when businesses don’t take a structured approach, namely:

• Resistance to change
• Data issues
• Lack of buy-in

Meet these challenges head-on with Pattern’s PLM solution. Centralize your product data, streamline cross-functional workflows, and give your customers a friction-free experience — all in a single platform. Check us out!

Addressing Resistance to Change

Change is hard, and most people are resistant to it. Pave the way for change by making it easier and more rewarding to change. Engage users early and often through product training, communicate expectations so they know what to expect, and demonstrate leadership support as you move through this transformation. 

Ensuring Data Accuracy

Poor data hygiene makes your data unreliable, which slows down decision-making and opens you up to more risk. Before migrating data to your PLM system, ensure your data is uniformly formatted, validated against reference lists, and cleaned of duplicate information. Develop an ongoing governance strategy to maintain data integrity. 

Maintaining Cross-Functional Collaboration

Simply implementing a PLM system isn’t always enough to improve collaboration. If stakeholders don’t remain aligned as they use the software, siloes may re-develop and efficiency gains may be lost. Hold regular check-ins with stakeholders to stay on the same page and use project management tools to keep moving forward. A collaborative culture engenders faster issue resolution.

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Proven Tips and Best Practices

Following best practices for PLM implementation empowers you to mitigate the challenges and risks of poor implementation. For example, you can address many common challenges by getting early stakeholder buy-in, phasing rollouts, and showing leadership support.

Here are some best practice tips for ensuring a successful PLM implementation.

• Define clear objectives and metrics: Determine what you want from your system and how you will measure success. Develop PLM goals that are aligned with measurable metrics and communicate these targets with stakeholders from the start. ‍
• Gain executive sponsorship early: Leadership buy-in is key to long-term success. Secure leadership buy-in to set the tone, allocate necessary resources, and drive cross-departmental participation. ‍
• Engage cross-functional teams: Regularly bring together team members across various lifecycle functions and gather feedback to ensure the PLM solution supports all teams’ needs. ‍
• Perform thorough data cleansing: Clean, standardize, and validate your data before migration to prevent bad data post-implementation. Integrate data governance and hygiene practices into your process to maintain clean, accurate data.‍
• Provide comprehensive user training: Meet employees where they are with training for their learning style. Share tutorials, host Lunch and Learns, and organize hands-on workshops to educate team members and lower resistance to change.
• ‍Adopt an agile implementation approach: Rather than launch a brand new system to the entire organization all at once, roll out your PLM solution in phases and test the system’s performance. Update the solution as you go instead of waiting for a big, one-time release.
• ‍Establish an ongoing feedback loop: Collect user feedback to address obstacles and improve your PLM solution. Use this data to address obstacles and optimize your system to maintain usability after the initial deployment. 
• ‍Monitor and celebrate wins: Track the KPIs you set at the beginning of the PLM implementation process (e.g. shorter design cycles or cost reductions) and recognize wins to maintain momentum and keep morale up.