Wax On/Off, BPM ROI, White Goods Predictive Maintenance, BPM MIstakes
2PLM NewsletterJohn Stark Associates August 16, 2010 - Vol13 #10 |
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Welcome to the 2PLM e-zine This issue includes :
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| Wax On, Wax Off - PLM in the Newspapers by Roger Tempest |
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This quote from the Karate Kid became more widely known than the film itself. The karate teacher sets his pupil to work cleaning and waxing the second-hand cars in his lot. When the pupil eventually complains that this is pointless, the teacher shows him that the "Wax On, Wax Off" movements, used in karate, repel opponents who attack to the body.
It is possible to educate people about PLM in the same way. Rather than setting up a formal PLM programme (which would be the equivalent of 'putting on a karate suit and going to lessons') you can focus on areas such as data management, portfolio management, marketing input to design, supplier interfaces, workflow control, process improvements, field returns and end of life. Each of these is easy to convey and to deal with. Eventually, as understanding and acceptance increases, you can show that "we were doing PLM all along". It is then much easier to set up the PLM programme that you wanted in the first place. This is most likely to be useful in SMBs, or in larger companies where there happens to be a lot of resistance to PLM. Smaller companies are often risk-averse, and want to apply things that they know will work. Larger companies may think that PLM is somehow "officious" or controlling, or perhaps just another overhead that they don't need right now. |
These may sound like 'laggard' companies, but they make up a large part of the untapped potential in the PLM marketplace. You may be working in one right now, and know that it is innovative and forward-looking: it's just that people haven't been enthused by PLM ideas yet.
The key to this approach is to understand exactly what you are doing, and how it fits into the overall picture. You need to be sure of all the elements of PLM, and to have a clear plan for how the short-term progress wins will build into the future PLM environment. Tools for Self-Assessment and Roadmapping are useful, and there needs to be a general awareness of the basic PLM Concept Set. This method of building PLM awareness also applies to the drive to get PLM into the general newspapers (see 2PLM July 19). No business section is going to take the whole of PLM in one hit, but with a series of reports of successes in the various elements of PLM, (ranging from such things as financial impact through to their effect on the economy), PLM can be part of the general news arena in 12 months' time. The PLMIG drive to achieve this is covered in our PLM in the Popular Press feature.
Roger Tempest is co-founder of the PLMIG. You can send your feedback or request more information via plmnews@plmig.com |
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| CL2M Case Study 10 : MOL Predictive Maintenance for White Goods by David Potter |
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This case study, the tenth and last in the series, is based on one of the commercial applications developed during the EU PROMISE Project. It briefly describes how common PROMISE technologies were applied in order to enable predictive maintenance for white goods.
The main objective of the demonstrator was to show the possibility of using predictive maintenance for white goods applications, increasing customer satisfaction with timely and more effective technical assistance. Household appliance manufacturers are also able to increase business opportunities by enabling the sale of extended appliance warranties at a more competitive price.
Another key objective was to exploit the same technologies to improve the efficiency and accuracy of the in-line product test procedures at the end of the production cycle, thus achieving significant cost reductions.
The PROMISE PEID (Product Embedded Information Device) in this application scenario is the digital control system of a refrigerator, the electronic board located inside the product. It is able to generate and store field data (statistical and diagnostic data) and send them from the refrigerator control system itself to a proxy device, the so-called Smart Adapter. The latter is a monitoring device, able to support the in-line test system during the beginning-of-life (BOL) phase as a part of the testing apparatus of the refrigerator. It measures the value of the characteristic parameters of the refrigerator’s electric loads, and sends them to the PEID using ultra low cost power cable communication technology.
During the middle-of-life (MOL) phase, once the refrigerator is installed in a domestic environment, the Smart Adapter continues to measure electrical loads (electric power, power factor, energy consumption) of the refrigerator, receiving/sending data from/to the PEID over the power cable. It also has the capability to connect the refrigerator to a home network using either the power cable or standard wireless communication technologies (for example: WiFi, ZigBee, Bluetooth, etc.). In the context of the PROMISE Architecture, the Smart Adapter performs the role of a Device Controller.
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In order to enable predictive maintenance, the optimal scenario requires that the household appliance (refrigerator), should exchange data, day-by-day, with a remote monitoring centre. In order to do this, it is necessary for the Smart Adapter to be connected, through a suitable residential gateway able to communicate via the Internet, to a remote web site where the monitoring centre is located. Here the information trends can be analyzed by the back-end system, consisting of the PROMISE PDKM (Product Data Knowledge Management) system and its associated PROMISE Decision Support System (DSS).
However, not all consumers will accept continuous remote monitoring of their appliances. Therefore the Smart Adapter can be used in a second mode whereby it will connect locally to a PC or PDA used by a visiting service representative in order to access the historical performance information that has been accumulated. In this case the functionality of the PDKM/DSS can be made available on a portable system. Registered users who are logged in to cl2m.com will be able to access the full public text of this PROMISE demonstrator case study by following this link: Case Study 10: MOL Predictive Maintenance for White Goods. There is no charge for registration.
This has been the last in a series of case studies dealing with the application of PROMISE technologies which have featured in this and the preceding 9 issues of the 2PLM newsletter.
David Potter is Chief Technical Officer, Promise Innovation International Oy, and former Chairman of the Project Steering Board of the EU PROMISE Project. |
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| BPM Mistakes by Scott Cleveland |
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I attended a BPM webinar recently where the topic was BPM mistakes. A few of those mistakes are important enough to rehash ....
You can't solve business process problems with technology alone
Don't implement an expense report process [for example] Don't overcustomize the software |
Don't take too long implementing that first process
A typical BPM project requires some upfront selling. A 'champion' should be fanning the flames of interest, getting people excited about their new process [and software]. If that project takes too long, people will lose interest. Choose a project that can be completed in 6 months or less and there will still be enthusiasm for the next project.
Why manage your business processes? Managing processes more efficiently will increase revenues, lower costs and improve customer relationships. It can differentiate you from your competitors. It can be the key that allows your company to break out as the market leader. Your Thoughts.... What steps has your company taken to be a market leader?
Scott Cleveland can be contacted on +1 408-464-6387 |
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