Is PLM actually PDM in disguise?

Writing about web page http://www.caddigest.com/subjects/PLM/select/010704_day_pdm.htm

I’ve come across this article, albeit bit old, which argues that PLM is nothing but a glorified version of good old PDM. Please discuss.

: 18 Feb 2008 00:53 |  Tags: Pdm Plm |  Comments (2) |  Close comments |  Report a problem

Where should simulation be deployed (ES3A4 Lab)

“The most appropriate location for manufacturing simulation is within manufacturing engineering departments, used by engineers to support their own decision making, not the domain of specialists in consultancy companies.”
DISCUSS

Neil Davis : 05 Dec 2007 08:59 |  Tags: Tutorial |  Comments (2) |  Close comments |  Report a problem

Manufacturing Processes

This is an accessible book with a fairly comprehensive coverage of manufacturing processes. The first few chapters also deal with materials and their properties which is important to understand if you are looking to select appropriate process and equipment.

There are plenty of easy to interpret figures but perhaps the most impressive feature is the enclosed SME DVD. This is a really useful reference for students who haven’t had the chance to spend time in a factory.

For tutors there is a really useful companion site at the publishers website (Wiley) with all the figures provided, both as individual graphics and also in ready-made powerpoint presentations.

Neil Davis : 18 Oct 2006 18:44 |  Tags: Book Review Textbook |  Comments (0) |  Close comments |  Report a problem

Is Digital Manufacturing just CIM rebranded?

People are always searching for the next 'big thing' and in the 1980s manufacturing professionals were talking of CIM - Computer Integrated Manufacturing.

Nowadays the term CIM is hardly used but people do talk about PLM (Product Life-cycle Managment) and now also DM (Digital Manufacturing) – aren't these just aspects of CIM rebranded?

If you look at Wiki it says that CIM is "manufacturing supported by computers. It is the total integration of Computer Aided Design and Manufacturing and also other business operations and databases.

This term has generally been replaced by Manufacturing Process Management in the wideer field of PLM - Product Lifecycle Management."

According to the Computer and Automated Systems Association of the Society of Manufacturing Engineers
"CIM is the integration of total manufacturing enterprise by using integrated systems and data communication coupled with new managerial philosophies that improve organizational and personnel efficiency."

So, from these viewpoints CIM is more than simply the automation of process equipment and material handling devices supported by computers as a means of improving efficiency in manufacture – simply an engineering solution at a factory level – but extends throughout the life of a product. If so, then has PLM simply become the natural evolution of CIM, or instead has CIM been redefined in the context of PLM to make it more relevant?

What about Digital Manufacturing? – is this CIM as it was first conceived: a technological solution to automate the factory? Or is it more than this?

Neil Davis : 31 Oct 2005 14:58 |  Tags: Cim Dm Plm |  Comments (6) |  Close comments |  Report a problem