PLM system fuels tank transformation

Reduced costs and time to market, optimised product quality are already being achieved at German plastic fuel tank manufacturer Kautex Textron, following implementation of its product lifecycle management system. “Thanks to the implementation of the MatrixOne solution, we have already achieved major improvements in our engineering processes, such as a unification of BoMs [bills of material] and a central management of CAD data,” says Christoph Hermes, Kautex Textron’s CIO. “The next step of implementing the solution globally is crucial to our goal of providing process standardisation and real global collaboration in engineering. This platform will allow us to centralise our project management and to integrate our suppliers … which will streamline sharing of information with all our partners around the globe.” Other processes that he says will also be improved and accelerated include those around parts management and engineering change requests. And the system will provide real-time visibility into all project information and status from any Kautex Textron location. When complete, the system will be used by some 600 internal users across 31 locations, as well as 150 suppliers.