Choosing the Right PLM Solution
How then does an AFA company find the right PLM solution?
While many vendors offer "apparel-ized" versions of PLM that are
really the old engineering-based systems in disguise, certain PLM solutions have been designed specifically for the AFA industry. Following are some specific
things to look for in a PLM solution for the industry.
A PLM solution must provide a collaborative environment in
which both business and design sides can work together during the vital early
stages of collection planning. PLM for AFA should provide visibility into cost,
margins, sales targets and other critical factors to enable quick review and
comparison of plans, and expedite decision making.
PLM designed for AFA must enable the company to build product specifications on a secure central platform so everyone involved is working off the same
up-to-date documents. Instant availability of the most recent product information via PLM across global internal and external teams enables a company to avoid
costly delays in the development cycle.
Choosing the right suppliers can accelerate time to market.
Consequently, the right PLM solution for apparel companies should enable the
sourcing team to get involved early in the planning process, and move forward
with product design as an integrated process. The right PLM solution will
streamline supplier cost comparisons and evaluations, aid in compliance
management, and identify supply chain issues that put the company at risk of
missing market windows - enabling an AFA company to orchestrate this complex process across a globally extended supply chain.
Keeping track of timelines and milestones and providing visibility into the schedule across all parties can greatly speed the entire concept
to store timeline, making calendar management critical for PLM in the fashion
industry. Stakeholders need easy access to deadlines just as management needs
immediate access to project status, and views into performance across teams,
seasons, collections or products to ensure on-time delivery of both samples and
products. In addition, the PLM system must drive proactive calendar management
with timely alerts and notifications.
- Ease of Use
and Rapid Implementation
Solutions focused squarely on the needs of AFA companies are
characterized by both ease of use and ease and speed of implementation. Ease of
use assures that the variety of users who need access to the system are able
and willing to readily use it. This includes everyone involved, regardless of
location, from partners to designers, and from product managers to executives.
Ease of use assures that the benefits of PLM are realized without long,
expensive learning curves and training cycles.
Equally as important is the speed with which the system can
be implemented.
The industry is rife with true stories of PLM
implementations that have dragged into their second and third years without
payoff. Yet the reality is that quick implementations are also possible, and
real. A system should implement in one season and deliver benefits in the next.
Additionally, the right PLM solution for the fashion
industry will support the aforementioned four key product development processes.
About the Author:
Ray Hein is executive vice president of market strategy and business development at Centric Software. He is widely
recognized as an industry thought leader in collaborative PLM solutions.
