Soul of Design’s priority is to understand and streamline your product development process to create successful product launches in reduced time.
We have the expertise and resources to understand your entire product development lifecycle.
Optimizing the Product Development Process
At Soul of Design we appreciate the nuances of a company’s design process and we use our experience and understanding of CAD systems and data management systems (PDM /PLM) to implement industry best design standards into your design process.
Soul of Design can overhaul entire product development processes or focus on specific areas for improvement, including the following:
- Product Data Management / Product Lifecycle Management
- CAD Standardization
- New Part Introduction
- Part Classification
- Search optimization
- BOM Management
- Engineering Change Management
- Hardware Libraries
Our expertise comes from having worked with various PDM/PLM Systems and CAD, including extensive experience with Dassault’s (Enterprise PDM, 3DExperience, Solidworks) and PTC’s (Windchill, Creo) tools..
Product Data Management / Product Lifecycle Management Systems
Design data management systems, like Product Data Management (PDM) and Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) are central to the product development process. A properly implemented PDM system iterates designs through the multiple development stages, efficiently connecting cross-functional teams, and automating design administration and detailing.
PDM systems promise to improve a company’s product development process, but unfortunately, the steep learning curve and complexities of PDM systems have prevented many companies from realizing their PDM system’s full ROI.
Soul of Design consultants appreciates the nuances of design and tailors PDM / PLM systems to the unique requirements of a company’s product development process.
Soul of Design consultants have expertise in and have worked extensively with Dassault’s Enterprise PDM & Enovia/3DExperience, PTC’s Windchill.
Documenting and Training
Since the product development and implementation process is treated as the main focus, training is often a forgotten afterthought and, in most cases, only focuses on “how” to use a PLM or PDM System. We find this approach to be insufficient, leading the end-users’ experience to be un-intuitive, frustrating and resulting in a company abandoning its use of the costly system just implemented.
An effective product development process must include proper documentation and be well understood by all the individuals involved.
Every companies’ product development process is distinctive, with many moving parts and individuals bringing a unique approach to its completion. To be effective, cross-functional team members need to be working in alignment to avoid continuous damage control or “firefighting.”
To ensure designers are working in alignment, Soul of Design consultants document the process, providing an approved reference for users and eliminating reliance on inconsistent tribal knowledge. Documentation allows for a controlled, systematic and evolutionary approach and eliminates a reactionary ad hoc-developed product development process.
Along with the documentation, Soul of Design consultants create and deliver training content so users can easily understand the process and work in alignment to complete design tasks.
Soul of Design’s Documentation and Training Content allows companies to develop their product design process efficiently and to work effectively as a team.
Hardware Libraries
Managing hardware is the bane of many product development companies. Databases become littered with duplicate and hard-to-find hardware, ultimately reducing quality and increasing costs.
Soul of Design consultants have the expertise in materials and coatings to specify appropriate hardware for any application. Soul of Design consultants integrate hardware libraries into CAD and PDM systems reducing search times and simplifying the selection process.
CAD Strategies
Today’s CAD solutions are powerful and provide impressive functionality, but this abundance of capabilities can be overwhelming and lead to overly complex and unstable designs, which are difficult to update and result in frustrating delays at the most stressful times.
Soul of Design consultants appreciate CADs’ capabilities and take the time to understand a company’s processes to create a customized, intuitive, robust CAD design strategy. Soul of Design consultants integrates CAD capabilities with the data management system to automate the design process.