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UGS and IBM are entering into a new partnership centered around UGS Teamcenter Express software, designed to meet the collaborative product data management needs of small and midsize businesses.
The companies have agreed to jointly market Teamcenter Express software and services to SMB customers in China, France, Canada, Germany, Japan and the United States, UGS officials said. In addition, the software can be coupled with a wide range of CAD applications, including UGS Solid Edge and NX products.
“This agreement is another important step in our strategy of delivering innovative, industry-focused business and technology solutions designed specifically for the SMB market,” Steve Solazzo, general manager of Global Mid-Market Business for IBM, based in Armonk, N.Y., said in a statement. “The combination of IBM Business Partners and UGS leadership products creates a very compelling value proposition for SMB customers looking for open, highly scalable data management solutions.”
UGS is a leading global provider of PLM (product lifecycle management) software and services. Teamcenter Express is the midmarket version of Teamcenter, UGS flagship product data management software portfolio.
“We already create or manage more than 40 percent of the worlds 3-D data with our open cPDM technology,” said John Graham, executive vice president of Global Sales and Services for UGS, based in Plano, Texas. “Working closely with IBMs Small & Medium Business, IBM Software Group and IBMs business partners will extend that leadership.”
Ed Miller, president of research and consulting firm CIMdata, called the partnership a strategic move for UGS that will benefit IBM customers.
“Teamcenter Express underscores UGS drive to expand their development of their Velocity suite of SMB-focused products and to leverage the open, multi-CAD focus of its Teamcenter platform,” he said in the statement. “For IBM and its business partners, this offering expands its portfolio of solutions for small to medium-size businesses.”
In 2006, Microsoft and UGS also announced a partnership in which UGS PLM infrastructure would be built on Microsofts Web services-based .Net platform. Gartner analyst Marc Halpern said Jan. 5 that such partnerships involving PLM solution providers and industry heavyweights like Microsoft and IBM will continue to occur.
“The bottom line is theres lots of money in it,” he said, adding that PLM solutions help businesses cut costs and reduce the time to market.
“Were excited about this new agreement with IBM that expands our working relationship,” Graham said. “Along with an expanded Teamcenter Express, this partnership further demonstrates our commitment to expand our SMB multi-CAD coverage.”
An expanded Teamcenter Express for IBM customers will be available in the first quarter of 2007. For more information, visit the UGS Web site.