Invensys Rail Systems signals packaged PLM is up to its projects

Invensys Rail Systems (IRS), the global transport systems division of Invensys, is reporting success with its MatrixOne product lifecycle management (PLM) system, now running at its Westinghouse Rail Systems (WRSL) subsidiary. WRSL has gone into production with MatrixOne Engineering Central and Document Central at its R&D organisation, and the firm is currently rolling the new system out across all new projects – which will include the latest two, together worth more than £850m, to renew signalling on London Underground. IRS IT director Ceri Gosling says the first railway signalling project went live on the new system about three months ago with its WRSL’s engineering and project delivery departments, and that around 20% of projects are now running under MatrixOne PLM. “We’re using the system to manage critical configuration and control on our major signalling and safety systems projects. It manages engineering drawings, documents and descriptions, controls access and manages change. “And since our signalling equipment will be in for a long time, undergoing change and maintenance while engineers move on, it will also retain our configurations with full audit trail information. MatrixOne effectively becomes our corporate memory.” The system also manages the engineering BoM (bill of materials) for the firm’s production side, with links into IRS’ heavily customised production management system. Gosling says there weren’t actually many packaged PLM system providers able to handle the scope and sophistication of IRS’ requirements. “We looked at a lot of systems, and our view at the end was you get what you pay for. But for us it came down to just two – PTC and MatrixOne. “MatrixOne was selected as much for the people and the company culture as the technology.” And he indicates that the firm, along with consultants from IBM Global Services, have been good team players, enabling rapid development and implementation. “PLM projects are very different to ERP systems,” he explains. “Where ERP took a very prescriptive approach and you bent your business processes to meet the application because that was the lowest cost model, with PLM it’s the other way around. “With PLM you get the applications, but you’re really getting a very configurable development environment. You have to define a lot of the processes yourself.” As for integration with the firm’s various CAD/CAM systems, he says that has been smooth. “We have most of the engineering environments, partly because we’ve grown so much through mergers and acquisitions, but MatrixOne has integration out of the box for most systems from their previous projects.”