PLM Offerings Automate Design

CoCreate Software Inc. and IBM are each readying new product lifecycle management software to ease creation of manufactured products by small and midsize workgroups and companies.

CoCreate, of Fort Collins, Colo., last week introduced OneSpace.net, software that enables communication and collaboration among engineers working on projects together. It is particularly applicable for situations where an engineering company outsources its manufacturing, officials said.

Like some other PLM offerings, OneSpace.net includes markup tools and a three-dimensional modeling tool for evaluating product design alternatives. Optional adapters are required to move 3-D CAD models from some other systems to OneSpace.net.

But the software extends its modeling capabilities into project management with a secure online project work space and an integrated Web-based meeting center where design team members can share ideas and data. The work space is populated with predefined roles for team members inside and outside a companys firewall.

The CoCreate softwares application sharing and instant messaging capabilities have been optimized for sharing engineering data, officials said. Meeting results are stored as PDF files in the project work space. The software integrates with Microsoft Corp.s Outlook, where an individuals tasks can be stored and tracked.

OneSpace.net will be sold as a hosted service beginning in September priced at $120 per user per month. A licensed version will be available after that, which will be priced at $995 per user.

Separately, IBM later this month is expected to announce PLM Express. The offering includes software, hardware and some implementation services and will be sold through IBMs reseller channel.

PLM Express has two main software components—the Catia 5 collaborative product design application and the SmarTeam product data management application. In addition, it includes the Armonk, N.Y., companys WebSphere Application Server-Express, so users can share design information over the Web. As with the CoCreate software, this capability would be useful for outsourcing situations.