
Creo Generative Design Extension is a game-changer in the world of computer-aided design. With this tool, designers can create complex parts with ease, reducing design times and improving overall design quality. The tool uses advanced algorithms to generate design options based on a set of constraints and objectives specified by the user. It then presents these options in a visual format, allowing the user to select the best design for their needs.
How it works
Creo Generative Design Extension (GDX) is a cloud-based solution that generates close to manufacturing-ready designs based on a set of engineering parameters. By utilizing GDX, designers can simultaneously generate a set of multiple design results with different materials and manufacturing constraints. The extension can consider a wide range of factors, including materials, manufacturing processes, and performance requirements to generate designs that are optimized based on constraints and requirements.
Additionally, the Generative Design Extension takes all the benefits of the Creo Generative Topology Optimization (GTO) and extends them with cloud-powered computing. GTO automatically generates optimized designs based on established constraints, including material or manufacturing process, and removes excess material without sacrificing strength. With GDX, users can add multiple design criteria and multiple materials for each design, which enables them to explore more design alternatives, leading to better design outcomes
Benefits of Creo Generative Design Extension
Reduced Design Times: One of the main ways that Creo GDX can reduce design times is by automating the design process. By specifying the known goals and constraints, the software autonomously generates designs that are close to manufacturing-ready. This reduces the need for manual design work, which can be time-consuming and expensive. Additionally, the cloud-based nature of the software means that it can access powerful computing resources, which can significantly reduce the time needed to generate designs
Improved Design Quality: the Creo Generative Design Extension can help to improve design quality by providing a larger set of design alternatives, enabling users to explore more design criteria with multiple materials options. This allows for more optimized designs and more efficient use of materials, leading to higher quality, lower cost solutions
Increased Innovation: By automating the design process, designers can focus their efforts on more innovative, creative, and strategic aspects of product development. This leads to more efficient and effective design processes, which can ultimately lead to more innovative and successful products
One of the key benefits of Creo Generative Design Extension is its ability to spark innovation. By generating design options that may not have been considered otherwise, designers can explore new possibilities and push the boundaries of what is possible. This can lead to breakthroughs in product design and ultimately, greater success in the marketplace.
Another strength of the tool is its ability to seamlessly integrate with other CAD and CAE tools and PLM systems. This allows designers to easily analyze their designs and share them with colleagues and other stakeholders. This integration also enables designers to more effectively collaborate with other teams, such as manufacturing and simulation teams, to ensure that their designs can be efficiently produced and meet all necessary requirements.
Design Workflows Enabled by Creo Generative Design Extension
Creo Generative Design Extension enables users to design complex parts in a single step. It can be used for topology optimization and parametric modeling, including:
- Modeling of high-performance structures using topology optimization techniques
- Creation of parametric models based on the geometry of existing parts or assemblies, without requiring any additional CAD data
Integration of Creo Generative Design Extension with Other Tools
Creo Generative Design Extension is a seamless extension to the Creo Parametric environment. It allows product designers to use the tools and workflows they are familiar with, while providing access to advanced generative design capabilities.
Integration with CAD and CAE tools: The integration between Creo Generative Design Extension and other tools provides an opportunity for users to analyze their designs in more detail before manufacturing begins. This can be done by importing data from other systems into Creo Generative Design Extension where it is analyzed using simulation tools such as FEA or CFD (computational fluid dynamics). These simulations help identify any potential issues with your product before committing resources towards making prototypes or manufacturing parts for testing purposes.
Seamless integration with PLM systems: Users can also integrate their designs into PLM systems so that they can share them across teams within an organization easily without having multiple versions floating around which may lead to confusion among employees who need access at different times during development stages such as manufacturing engineers needing access earlier than marketing staff members who might want access later on when finalizing colors/materials choices etcetera…
Real-World Applications of Creo Generative Design Extension
Creo Generative Design Extension can be used for a variety of applications, including:
- Automotive
- Aerospace
- Medical
- Consumer electronics
Future of Creo Generative Design Extension
The future of Creo Generative Design Extension is bright. We will continue to work with our partners to integrate the extension with simulation and analysis tools, making it easier for you to model your designs before manufacturing them.
Conclusion
The Creo Generative Design Extension is a powerful tool that allows you to create designs with more flexibility and efficiency than ever before. With this extension, you can easily create parts that meet your specific needs without having to worry about the time involved in creating them manually or using other tools.
As Creo Generative Design Extension continues to evolve, it is poised to revolutionize the way we approach product design and innovation.


Digital transformation has become a buzzword in recent years, and for good reason. Companies that embrace digital technologies are more likely to stay ahead of the curve, differentiate themselves in the marketplace, and meet the evolving needs of their customers.
The benefits of digital transformation can be far-reaching, from improved customer experience to cost savings and increased efficiency.
In this blog, we will explore the various benefits of digital transformation, and why it is essential for companies to embrace this trend in order to remain competitive in the digital age.
What is Digital Transformation?
Digital transformation is a term used to describe the process of transforming an organization’s business model and operations through the use of digital technologies. It’s important because it can help you stay ahead of your competition, improve customer experience and attract new customers.
The benefits of digital transformation include:
- Improved customer experience: Digital transformation can help you better understand and meet the needs of your customers. With the use of data analytics and other digital tools, you can gather insights into customer behavior and preferences, and tailor your products and services accordingly.
- Increased efficiency and productivity: Digital transformation can automate many processes, reducing manual labor and freeing up staff to focus on higher-value tasks. This can lead to increased efficiency and productivity across your organization.
- Competitive advantage: By embracing digital technologies, you can stay ahead of your competitors and differentiate yourself in the marketplace. This can help you attract new customers and retain existing ones.
- Cost savings: Digital transformation can help you reduce costs by streamlining processes and eliminating unnecessary steps. This can lead to significant savings over time.
- Innovation: Digital transformation can open up new opportunities for innovation and growth. By embracing new technologies and ways of working, you can develop new products and services that better meet the needs of your customers.
See how JR Automation saved seven figures with embarking on their digital transformation journey:

Creating a Digital Transformation Roadmap
The first step to creating a digital transformation roadmap is to identify the scope of your transformation. What are you trying to achieve? What are the goals and objectives of your business? How will you measure success?
Once this has been determined, it’s time to set up a timeline for achieving those goals.
Once these steps have been completed, it’s time for action! You should now have a clear idea of what needs changing within your organization and how long it will take before those changes become visible.
Building a Digital Transformation Team
When you’re building your digital transformation team, it’s important to define roles and responsibilities. You’ll want to make sure that everyone understands their role in the process and what they are expected to do. For example, if someone is responsible for monitoring the performance of shop floor machines, they should know what the ideal OEE is of each machine, how they are going to collect that data, and how they are going to distribute it to enterprise decision makers.
It’s also important that you select team members who have complementary skillsets and experience levels. If one person has extensive knowledge of augmented reality while another knows nothing about it at all, this could lead to problems down the line when it comes time for them both to collaborate on projects together – and no one wants that!
Finally, creating a culture where collaboration happens naturally between team members will help ensure successful outcomes throughout your digital transformation project(s).
Adopting the Right Technology
The first step in digital transformation is choosing the right technology. You’ll want to consider:
Software: What are your current needs and how will they change over time? Will you need additional features or functionality?
Hardware: Do you have enough computing power and storage space for all of your data, or does it need to be scaled up or down depending on usage patterns at different times of day/year/etc.? Do you have sensors to track data that you need for production insight?
Tools: What tools do developers use to build applications on top of this platform (e.g., Creo vs. Solidworks)? How easy is it for them to integrate their code with existing systems like databases and messaging queues? Are there any security issues with using these tools – and if so, how can they be mitigated by using another tool instead (e.g., switching from MySQL database server software to Microsoft Azure).
Developing a Digital Transformation Strategy
The first step to developing a digital transformation strategy is to define the scope of the project. What are you trying to accomplish? What are your objectives, and how will you measure success?
These questions can help guide your organization through its transformation journey by setting realistic goals for both short-term wins and long-term gains.
Once you’ve defined what needs changing, it’s time for step two: defining how those changes will happen. This involves creating an action plan that includes timelines for each phase of implementation as well as resources required for each stage (e.g., time from IT staff).
Some companies may choose to tackle multiple projects simultaneously; others might choose only one area at a time depending on their resources available in terms of money/manpower/etcetera).
EAC Assessments help companies answer all those questions and how to get where they want to be.
Implementing the Digital Transformation Plan
Develop a timeline. The first step in implementing your digital transformation plan is to develop a timeline with milestones that will help you track progress.
Set goals and objectives for each milestone. Once you’ve established your milestones, it’s time to set goals and objectives for each one of them so that everyone involved knows exactly what needs to be done at any given time during the project.
Track progress regularly by reviewing dashboards or reports generated from data collected during testing phases of development projects (if applicable). It’s important not only for managers but also employees on lower levels within organizations who may not have access
Monitoring and Evaluating Performance
Monitoring and measuring performance is an important part of the digital transformation process. It allows you to identify areas where you are successful, and areas that need improvement.
Monitoring can be done using a variety of tools, including:
Data Analytics Dashboards (e.g., Thingworx Analytics)
Real-time Data Share (e.g., Windchill, EAC Productivity Apps)
Digital Twin Performance (e.g., Augmented Reality)
Adapting and Adjusting the Plan
As you progress through your digital transformation, there will be changes in the market that you need to respond to.
If a competitor introduces a new product or service, or if something happens in the industry at large, it may change how you approach your own strategy.
You might also find that your goals and objectives have changed since they were first set out; perhaps there’s been an increase in customer demand for something specific that wasn’t previously considered important enough for inclusion on the list.
The best way to handle these situations is by reviewing them regularly with other members of your team – and making sure everyone has input into decisions about how best to adjust course as needed.
Communicating the Benefits of Digital Transformation
In order to communicate the benefits of digital transformation, it’s important to understand who your stakeholders are and what they want.
If you’re working in an organization with a large number of stakeholders (such as a government agency), then there may be multiple groups that need convincing. For example:
The board wants to see results from their investment in IT infrastructure. They’ll likely be interested in metrics such as ROI and cost savings.
Executives want quick wins that will help them achieve their goals, but they also need proof that this new approach will work before they can commit time and resources to implementing it throughout the organization.
Employees want something tangible they can hold onto when explaining why this change is important for them personally (and why it matters).
Conclusion
Digital transformation is a powerful tool that can help you achieve your business goals. It’s important to remember that digital transformation is not just about implementing new technologies, but also about changing how you work and think as an organization.
Digital transformation requires commitment from everyone involved in the process – from the C-suite down through every level of your organization.
To be successful, it must be an ongoing effort rather than a one-time project or initiative. You will need to continuously innovate and improve what you’re doing if you want to stay ahead of competitors who are also pursuing digital transformation strategies.
In conclusion, digital transformation is becoming increasingly essential for companies to stay competitive and meet the needs of their customers in the digital age. However, the process of digital transformation can be complex and challenging, which is why EAC assessments can be extremely helpful.
By conducting an assessment of your organization’s current digital capabilities and identifying areas for improvement, you can develop a roadmap for digital transformation that is tailored to your specific needs and goals.
EAC assessments can help you identify gaps in your digital capabilities, streamline your processes, and develop new products and services that better meet the needs of your customers. By embracing digital transformation and leveraging the expertise of EAC assessors, you can position your company for success in the digital age.


The Factory of the Future is a connected world of everything.
We will explore the benefits of IoT in manufacturing, including asset monitoring and utilization, quality control, predictive analytics, automation, safety and compliance, OEE visibility and productivity, and more.
With IoT solutions, companies can achieve their Industry 4.0 goals and increase their bottom line.
What is the Internet of Things (IoT)?
The Internet of Things (IoT) is the network of physical objects, people and other assets that are connected to the internet. IoT allows you to collect data from devices and analyze it in real time.
The goal is to make processes more efficient by optimizing performance and reducing costs.
IoT can be used to monitor machines in factories, track inventory at warehouses or even monitor traffic conditions on roads. It’s also used for home automation tasks like turning off lights when you leave a room or adjusting your thermostat based on your location inside (or outside) the house.
IoT Ecosystems
An IoT ecosystem refers to the network of devices, sensors, software, and services that are interconnected and work together to collect, analyze, and act on data.
They are often utilized to gather data on connected assets, and tools in order to gain real-time insights into their condition for predictive maintenance purposes.
The goal of predictive maintenance is to detect and address problems before they cause equipment failure, downtime, or safety issues.
By predicting maintenance needs in advance, organizations can schedule maintenance during planned downtime, minimize the impact of maintenance on operations, and extend the lifespan of equipment.
Connected Products
A smart, connected product (also known as a smart object or SCoT) is a product, asset, or other object embedded with processors, sensors, software, and connectivity that allows data to be exchanged between the product and its environment, manufacturer, operator/user, and other products and systems[1].
Smart, connected products enable the comprehensive monitoring of a product’s condition, operation, and external environment through sensors and external data sources[2].
This technology stack provides a gateway for data exchange between the product and the user and integrates with other systems to enable a new level of customer experience[3].
Connected Factory
Similar to connected products, a smart, connected factory is a digitized manufacturing facility that uses connected devices, machinery, and production systems to continuously collect and share data.
This data is then used to inform and improve processes and proactively address any issues that may arise.
It is an interconnected network of machines, communication mechanisms, and computing power, which uses advanced technologies to analyze data, drive automated processes and learn as it goes. It uses the sensors and software of the connected products to bring together the factory floor.
A connected factory is implemented to track the overall equipment efficiency or effectiveness (OEE) of the factory.
A smart connected factory is the telltale sign of a manufacturing floor that is functioning at its most optimal ability.
Having access to data insights regarding production health helps companies optimize earnings and minimize production downtime.
Augmented Reality
Integrating augmented reality (AR) with IoT involves using sensors and other IoT devices to collect data from the physical world, which is then used to augment the user’s experience in the digital world.
For example, AR can be used to display real-time data from IoT sensors, such as temperature or humidity, on a user’s mobile device. When a cell phone or tablet uses Augmented Reality (AR) to display data, it overlays virtual information on top of the real-world view seen through the device’s camera.
This can be particularly useful in industrial settings, where workers can use AR to monitor the performance of machines, detect any issues immediately, and take corrective action. This kind of data can be turned into a Digital Twin.
Digital Twin
With a Digital Twin, you create an exact replica of a working product, process, or service as a simulated model in a virtual space that performs under real-world conditions.
A Digital Twin in manufacturing helps companies find performance issues, schedule predictive maintenance, reduce downtime, and minimize warranty expenses.
This allows anyone to take a digital version of your factory with you anywhere in the world and know the exact, real-time data of how it is functioning. This is extremely helpful for decision-makers who often travel and need to know how their factories are doing.
Additionally, a digital twin of your factory helps maintenance teams find precisely where an issue may have occurred by giving them visual prompts of where the problem is originating from.
The Benefits of IoT in Manufacturing
IoT has a plethora of benefits for manufacturers that overall saves companies time and money, and solves frustrations with outdated processes and siloed data.
Bellow are different ways the IoT solutions could benefit your production process:
Asset Monitoring & Utilization (AMU) & Real-Time Production Performance Monitoring
Gain real-time insights from connected assets and legacy systems such as your PLM and ERP systems to align your IT and OT systems
Make more informed decisions faster
Increasing flexibility and agility
Monitoring the status of inventory in real-time
Quality Control
Monitoring Distributed and Outsourced Processes
Spare parts management
IoT sensors allow organizations to gauge the specific use and deploy practices for more effective usage of resources.
Machine Learning & Predictive Analytics
By integrating machine-learning capabilities there is a whole new level of predictive intelligence brought to the factory floor – identified problems and resolved issues with minimal impact on operational performance. Other benefits include:
Detect problems before they occur
This helps to maximize factory production utilize data analytics to perform predictive maintenance
Optimizing Maintenance Schedules
Automation & Connected Work Cells (CWC)
In manufacturing, many processes are streamlined with IoT technology. For example, one IoT strategy is to use Automation. With IoT, using sensors allows you to automate certain tasks such as temperature monitoring or product tracking.
This means less time spent on manual labor and paper-based processes while increasing productivity simultaneously!
Safety & Compliance
Making sure that machines are running at a safe capacity and within the compliance standards creates a well maintained work area that brings employee satisfaction and confidence in a safe workspace.
All these things can be tracked through IoT technology, along with others:
Increasing energy efficiency of machines
Reduce human errors
Ensuring Products Comply with Set Standards
Increased employee and customer satisfaction
OEE Visibility & Productivity
A factory enhanced by IoT solutions offer complete visibility into all of your factory operations. You can see all of your work orders, lines, and all critical KPIs through dashboards that pull together
IoT sensors allow organizations to gauge the specific use and deploy practices for more effective usage of resources.
Cost reduction
Increase bottom line
Decreased Machine Downtime
Optimizing Factory Production
Reduced lead time
Improved efficiency
Improvement of Operational Performance
These are just some of the many ways companies can reach their goals with Industry 4.0. With out-of-the-box solutions or even custom IoT apps, the possibilities are endless.
Implementing IoT
The first step in implementing IoT in manufacturing is to identify your goals. Are you looking to improve efficiency, reduce waste or increase profitability?
Do you want to improve customer satisfaction by delivering products on time, or do you want to create new revenue streams with data collected from connected devices?
Once you’ve determined what kind of impact IoT can have on your business, it’s time to evaluate the current technology that’s not only available but that easily integrates with your current systems and shop floor.
Finally, develop an action plan for implementing these strategies broken down into digestible phases. It’s critical to understand what solutions fit best and most align with your unique business and prioritized initiatives.
Common Challenges
We hear from companies all the time regarding what challenges they feel stops them from implementing IoT in manufacturing.
The first is cost. However, with any good investment, the benefits of using IoT solutions offset the cost. While IoT ROI doesn’t happen overnight, the full impact IoT has on manufacturing organizations is tenfold.
NORMA Group met with EAC experts to understand what sort of impact an IoT initiative would have on their business growth and determined the challenges were well worth the wait – something we find other companies can relate to. Another early adopter, JR Automation was able to save $1.4 million by investing in IoT.
Security
The second common challenge that comes with implementing IoT is security. This includes both physical and data security issues that need to be evaluated and addressed before implementing any type of data management change.
Finding a solution with integrated automated tools and detailed monitoring is key to preventing attacks. Check out this article that talks further about data security and how PTC’s Kepware supports cybersecurity.
Data Management
Another challenge we see is considering how well your organization will be able to manage the new information coming from all over your facilities. It’s key you create a plan to integrate the new data flow into your existing systems.
With user-friendly IoT-connected solutions like PTC Thingworx, data is captured, consolidated into a dashboard, and presented in a consumable visual format for real-time insights.
Hardware
Another consideration is requirements: What sort of hardware do you have to support that software change? Replacing or updating existing systems and hardware to increase efficiency may be necessary to keep up with the fast pace environment of shop floors.
There is no doubt that these are important things to consider when making enterprise-wide changes. While implementing IoT can feel difficult and intimidating, it does not have to be.
EAC has a number of business assessments that can help you evaluate your current state and create a highly strategic roadmap to successfully scale your digital transformation initiatives.
Ultimately, Digital Transformation is a game changer for manufacturing companies who are unsatisfied with the “status quo” – and IoT will open up major opportunities for long-term success and sustainable growth that would not have been possible without making changes.
Connected Future
Empower your organization with enhanced connectivity to your products, systems, and customers.
IoT can provide significant advantages for manufacturers across the enterprise, but it is important to properly evaluate, plan and implement the right technology and the right solution at the right time in order to maximize the potential benefits.
Our IoT consulting and connect services provide comprehensive support from extracting valuable insights, and developing strategic plans to executing and implementing efficient IoT solutions that accelerate your digital transformation.
Chat with one of our experts on how we can help you identify the best IoT solution for your needs and how we can help your company implement it the right way.
What is the Digital Thread?
The Digital Thread is a system of interconnected data, processes and applications that create a closed loop between the digital and physical worlds. It enables a flow of data between these two worlds, creating a critical capability in model-based systems engineering (MBSE).
The Digital Thread is part of an overall MBSE approach that helps organizations:
- Design better products faster by using models as the basis for decisions rather than documents
- Reduce costs by eliminating rework caused by changes made after initial design stages
- Avoid errors by ensuring all stakeholders always have access to up-to-date information about product status
Why Use the Digital Thread
The Digital Thread utilizes a communication framework that links previously disconnected elements within the manufacturing process, providing a unified view of an asset throughout its entire lifecycle. It is a fundamental aspect of model-based systems engineering and forms the foundation for a Digital Twin. Business processes, including daily tasks, activities, and decisions, are digitized and integrated into the Digital Twin through the Digital Thread. The Digital Thread also supports standardization, traceability, and automation initiatives.
This enterprise connective solution optimizes products by bringing people, processes and places together to provide traceability of the Digital Twin back to requirements and parts. The Digital Thread also provides an end-to-end view of control systems that make up physical assets across their lifecycle. This benefits a company by transforming how products are engineered, manufactured and serviced.
Enterprise Application
The Digital Thread is a powerful tool that is used to improve business processes and enhance customer satisfaction. The applications of this technology are numerous, including:
- Product lifecycle management (PLM)
- Supply chain management (SCM)
- Quality management
- Risk management
- Service and maintenance
The Digital Thread in Action
The Digital Thread is a concept that’s been around for a while, but it has only recently started to gain traction. It isn’t something that you can just jump into and expect to understand immediately. Instead, it’s best to look at the ways in which companies have utilized this idea in order to get a picture of what they’ve done with it and how they’ve used it successfully. Here are some examples of companies who have made use of their own Digital Threads:
A retail company uses its Digital Thread to improve customer service by connecting customers directly with product experts via chatbot technology. This allows them access information on products before making purchases so they can make informed decisions about what they buy and why they buy it. It also gives them an opportunity to ask questions if anything comes up later on down the line (i.e., when they’re actually using products).
Another retailer uses its own version of this concept as part of its online store where shoppers can find information about any given item without having access beforehand. Instead, everything from sizing charts down through reviews from other buyers will pop up automatically once someone clicks “add” on any given product listing page (and even before then!).
Creating a Digital Thread
The Digital Thread is a new way of thinking about your business. It’s more than just data connection or enterprise collaboration, it’s an integrated approach to connecting with the product lifecycle, employees and customers in real time.
The first step in creating a Digital Thread is understanding the production journey – how your employees or customers interact with your product at each stage of the production process. You need to know what information they should be consuming and how you can provide it through all stages of the product lifecycle. Once you have this information, it’s time to put together a plan for how the data will be distributed across all departments. This could be through IoT initiatives and product lifecycle management software.
The Future of the Digital Thread
The Digital Thread is the idea that every product interaction you have, whether it’s before, during or after the creation of the product should be connected through shared data. This means when a product is designed, built and put on the field with the customer, all the information is connected together. This sort of enterprise connection minimizes process disruptions and creates a cohesive product lifecycle.
The concept has been around for years but it’s only recently started to gain traction among businesses as more of them embrace breaking down data silos and integrating technology into every aspect of the product lifecycle.
It’s easy enough to see how this could benefit both consumers and businesses: Consumers get better service because service technicians are alerted early and accurately about the performance of their products and when they need to be serviced. Customer service improves greatly when a company can minimize downtime for customers with real-time monitoring and preventative maintenance.
The Impact
The impact of the Digital Thread is not only changing the way we design and manufacture products, but also how we service them. This shift has significant implications for businesses.
The ability to track a product through its life cycle has huge potential for companies looking to improve operations and customer experience. It’s no longer enough to simply make sure that your product works when it leaves the factory; now you need to ensure that it will continue working throughout its entire life cycle and be able to respond quickly if something goes wrong along the way.
The Challenges
There are challenges to the Digital Thread, however. Data security, privacy and integrity are all important considerations when it comes to data sharing. These issues are addressed by industry best practices such as encryption and authentication protocols that protect information from unauthorized access or tampering.
The Benefits of the Digital Thread
The benefits of the Digital Thread include:
Cost savings. The Digital Thread allows you to reduce costs by eliminating excess inventory and reducing waste. For example, if a product is out of stock at one store, it’s not available for purchase in any other stores or online either. This means that customers won’t be able to buy it unless they go directly to the manufacturer’s website–and many will simply give up and look elsewhere instead.
Improved efficiency. With the Digital Thread in place, manufacturers quickly identify where there are problems with production or distribution so they can fix them immediately rather than waiting until after an entire batch is produced before finding out about any issues (and having already paid for those products). By being able to identify problems before they occur, companies save money on wasted materials while also ensuring better customer satisfaction because their products will always be available when needed most!
The Digital Thread is beneficial to manufacturers because it enables automation, traceability, and standardization efforts. It allows manufacturers to access data quickly and easily, and to make decisions based on real-time data. Additionally, it helps to reduce costs associated with product development and production, and to ensure that products are manufactured to the highest quality standards.
The Digital Thread also helps to improve the customer experience by providing them with access to real-time data, allowing them to make informed decisions about their purchases. It also improves the efficiency of the supply chain, as manufacturers track their products from start to finish, ensuring that they are delivered on time and to the correct specifications.
Overall, the Digital Thread for Manufacturing is a powerful tool that can help manufacturers to improve their operations, reduce costs, and provide a better customer experience.
Conclusion
The Digital Thread is the concept that all of your customer interactions are connected, and that your business uses this to its advantage. The Digital Thread has many applications, including:
Providing a better user experience for customers by connecting all of their interactions with you in one place
Enabling companies to provide better support through real-time communication with customers
Helping businesses understand their customers better by analyzing data from various channels
If you want to learn more about how the Digital Thread could impact your organization, chat with one of our experts!
We have seen many of our customers use EAC assessments as the first step to open up a world of opportunities for their company to grow and evolve its processes.
JR Automation has been an EAC customer for over a decade, and when we first started working with them, the first action was an EAC assessment. We were able to provide them a customized roadmap for success and prove how JR was going to achieve it. EAC has helped JR Automation find ways to save time, save money and increase efficiency – with savings over $1.4 million every year. JR took the first step with EAC helping them to find that starting point. Today JR continues to find new ways to innovate and evolve with growing customer demands in a highly competitive marketplace.
What to Expect from an EAC Assessment
Assessments can seem daunting at first. You may be asking yourself questions like, “Are they going to come in and tell us all the things we are doing wrong?”
In reality, our goal with assessments is to identify your current state and production/manufacturing processes, assess the maturity of your operational technologies, and work with your team to pinpoint an ideal future state. Making transformational changes to a company can be a sizable cultural shift and we help companies prepare to make that change. There are risks you take when you don’t assess your current situation, and we want to help you minimize those risks.
Functional Group Assessment (FGA)
The EAC Functional Group Assessment provides an objective format for your functional groups to truly understand their creation, consumption, and delivery of product data. These groups could consist of any cross-sectional team members from engineering, design, manufacturing, sales, marketing, or management.
During an FGA, our team of subject-matter experts will work to understand how your key team members work daily to complete the product development process. After the evaluation is complete and our experts have uncovered your current processes and technology usage, we will help you establish a roadmap that will lead your company to higher productivity and savings across the board.
After our findings have been documented and studied, we will lay out new possible methods and functions to improve overall productivity. These recommendations could include ways to improve capability gaps, business policy improvements, procedures that ensure efficiency and alignment, or strategies for training to maintain efficiency.
The benefits of an FGA could span from understanding your Functional Group alignment to business objectives and initiatives and their use of existing toolsets to examining processes and daily tasks that reflect your current state. We also uncover overall awareness of opportunities for improvement and bring alignment to Functional Vision for your desired future state.
Ultimately, we help you create a plan to achieve that desired state so you can spend less time wondering how to grow and more time-saving money through innovation. Companies like ITW Paslode and Nordco have taken advantage of the FGA and have seen the financial value in getting started on the transformational journey.
Product Development System Assessment (PDSA)
Similar to the FGA, a Product Development System Assessment is an EAC-provided service that explores an organization’s product development system functionality. Our experts look at an organization’s operations and provide broad insight into improvement initiatives and establish a strategy for achieving operational improvement of a Product Development System.
When working through this assessment, our team has candid one-on-one discussions with your team members where we uncover what is working well, any occurred costs, and evaluate optimization opportunities.
The results that stem from an EAC Assessment are unmatched. Companies are discovering data they never knew were siloed, teams that were frustrated with processes, and many other disruptions in production. After uprooting and addressing these issues, companies like JR Automation, HyrdaForce, DRS, Merrick, and Systems Control are able quote more business and respond to customers faster – increasing their profit as well as employee and customer satisfaction.
Streamlined Product Development System Assessment (SPDSA)
Similar to the functional PDSA, the Streamlined Product Development System Assessment focuses on the interviews and direct inputs from your team members. However, it does not include an online survey and corresponding metric output. This assessment is offered as one variation of the Product Development System Assessment to fit your specific needs.
This assessment is a great fit for companies that have the desire to optimize their product development system, have the approval to move forward with the optimization, but are unsure where to start or what to focus on first.
While there are a few exclusions from the full PDSA in this assessment, our team still coordinates select participants to plan and schedule the execution of individual interviews with participants involved in the assessment. This process will be a higher level approach than a full PDSA, and may not include as many details or metrics. This assessment is still an excellent tool to explore your current business functions and define a roadmap to success.
Digital Manufacturing Assessment (DMA)
The Digital Manufacturing Assessment evaluates the overall state of your current product development systems regarding IoT initiatives, provides broad organizational visibility to improvement initiatives and identifies an IoT solution roadmap to help you determine the very first steps you should take on your digital transformational journey.
After evaluating your current manufacturing practices and operations, our experts will identify the best opportunities for growth that align with your corporate goals. When Kimray did a DMA with our team, they were able to recognize technology and solutions that would integrate with their current processes and also propel them to the next level in production. Together we developed a strategic roadmap that enhanced their processes.
The opportunities and pathways are endless to how your company can achieve digital transformation in the same way – a DMA is a great place to start.
Value Stream Mapping Assessment (VSMA)
A Value Stream Mapping Assessment consists of documenting the key action steps during production, gathering information from inputs and outputs, examining the systems used to manage that information, and pinpointing key optimization opportunities at each step. After, our experts work with your team to define an ideal future state of your product development process. The future process documentation outlines key improvements needed in business principles, policies, processes, and procedures utilizing the latest systems available to you to facilitate those improvements. Our EAC experts then defines a high-level roadmap and guidance on how to achieve those improvements.
During a VSMA, your team can expect to receive an important strategy that documents your current state including process documentation, pains, and what those pains are costing your business. With this information, together we will curate the vision of your future state – what your development could be – and create a roadmap on how to get there.
The company MEANS had EAC come in for a VSMA and was able to get a roadmap on system integrations that opened up the opportunities for better processes to connect their company. With an EAC roadmap, MEANS was able to realize a future state of streamlined processes to get their product to market faster and with less downtime.
When to Start
Now that we’ve answered the “what” and “why” of EAC assessments, the next question is “when.” Knowing you want to take your business to the next level, but feeling like you don’t how or where to start is the perfect time to invest in an assessment. Our ultimate goal is to understand your unique enterprise, your corporate strategic goals, and its current state, define your ideal future state, and plan an achievable way to get there together. EAC’s Assessment services can be the stepping stones for long-term company success and digital transformation.
Want to hear more testimonials or see which assessment would fit your company best and see how we could transform the way you do business? Connect with one of our experts!
The capabilities and functionalities of computer-aided design software determine the achievements of design teams and, ultimately, the profitability of manufacturing companies. From concept design and large assemblies to emerging technologies – PTC Creo will always beat SolidWorks.
1. Concept Design
Within Concept Design, tools that help designers achieve quicker design iterations, reduce design rework, and testing on design concepts early on are vital. SolidWorks struggles with basic foundations to quickly create multiple and complex concept ID and proposal models. While easy revisions of concept models and conceptual design tools (aside from traditional and basic surfacing functions) seem like they should be a standard in CAD design programs, SolidWorks comes up short. The missing capabilities make design iterations like freeform surfacing an impossible task.
Contrary to SolidWorks, PTC’s Creo provides numerous, flexible tools so users can quickly turn ideas into concepts and models into detailed designs. With capabilities like freestyle, designers can quickly and easily create freestyle and parametric combination surfaces. Creo’s concept design tools empower engineers to quickly create 2D conceptual geometry, easily generate proposed concept variations and are seamlessly compatible with other sub-divisional initial surfacing. To minimize prototyping costs and decrease waste, Creo also provides early simulation for shaping initial surfacing.
2. Large Assemblies
Large assemblies are typically fighting three persistent problems: lengthy opening times and lack of memory, large drawings for slow loading, and lagging graphics with sudden crashes. SolidWorks does not provide solutions to those issues, but rather it has performance and stability constraints when loading large assemblies. SolidWorks is slow to respond to full assembly changes and lacks the capabilities for top-down design and concurrent engineering. All of these vulnerabilities lead to slow design processes and an increase in time-to-market – ultimately hindering the bottom line.
PTC Creo is the recognized leader in large assembly management and top-down design. PTC’s CAD solution is the strongest-performing software in loading and working with large assemblies. Multiple people can work on large assemblies and they don’t have to suffer usability and performance scales as the assembly size grows. As engineers make major changes to the assemblies there are predictable outcomes that are easy to fix with flexible tools such as simplified reps, data sharing, and more. The tools in Creo allow large assemblies to be created with ease and confidence in a smooth process as assemblies continue to grow.
3. Robust Modeling Functions
A robust model is defined as a model structure that can easily adapt with minimal negative feedback when changes are made to the design and model. SolidWorks is lacking in adaption for sheet metal, direct editing, multi-body designs, top-down designs, and complex surfacing. SolidWorks struggles with fluidity in progressing from conceptual models to creating robust, detailed models. Robust models need to be able to adjust with scaling. SolidWorks fails to attain that scalability as models change and evolve to create more innovative and complex products. In other words, with SolidWorks there is no assurance that your designs will reach the same efficiency as the model becomes more complex.
Contrary to SolidWorks, Creo is a single, scalable suite of integrated solutions with powerful direct and parametric modeling. As a single source of truth, Creo allows you to design without compromise, regardless of complexity, and achieve full associativity and automatic change propagation. These capabilities open up the opportunity to work on complex models without any interruptions.
4. Late-Stage Design Changes
There’s nothing more frustrating than getting to the end of your design iteration and realizing that you missed something along the way to finish the model. SolidWorks software makes it difficult to make late-stage design changes to complex geometry which often results in having to rework and fix the model geometry. Performance and productivity are impacted by late-design changes that require a recognition of the entire model geometry and all its features. When designers try to move parts and surfaces, these changes could require rebuilding or an import/export of CAD data. This makes it difficult to make changes to dimensions and pattern features, copy geometry, and move complex surfaces. When you can’t easily make late-stage design changes there is a disruption in the workflow – time and money are lost.
PTC Creo helps companies save money by delivering powerful capabilities for late-stage design changes. Functionalities like direct copy/paste geometry, flexible pattern tools, round editing, and the ability to follow geometry upon move are all ways that designers can keep production moving. When designers can move complex geometry and Flexible Modeling intelligently adapts geometry to the given use case, they can be confident in making late-stage design changes without disrupting their workflow. Creo saves teams from headaches, time lost, and missed opportunities.
5. Emerging Technologies
As far as new emerging technologies and the development of existing technologies go, SolidWorks lacks a strong initiative to keep up with the changes. While there have been proposed solutions for emerging technologies, SolidWorks focuses on extending the functionality of traditional capabilities rather than architecting a complete, and well-implemented new solution. Furthermore, their solutions are entry-level or non-existent without smooth workflows and are not fully integrated into the CAD environment. The world of technology is constantly changing and keeping up with the times is vital to bringing success to companies around the world.
PTC has unmatched capabilities in the emerging technologies that are shaping the next evolution of product development. New CAD technologies introduced by PTC are deeply integrated with Creo including generative design, simulation-driven design, augmented reality, smart connected products, and additive manufacturing. By creating compatible integrations for new, emerging technologies, PTC can stay ahead of the game with its CAD software.
From the design concept to late-stage changes, offering the best and newest capabilities is vital to the growth and success of every company. Between SolidWorks and Creo, the functionalities speak for themselves. Offering a wide expanse of tools, PTC Creo will help your designers save themselves from frustrations, shorten the design process, and increase profits year over year.
Want to learn more about how Creo could transform your business? Get in contact with our EAC experts or learn more about Creo’s capabilities here.