Revenue Up, Development Costs Down For SMBs Focusing on PLM, Says Analyst Report

Companies using PLM hit product launch targets 81-100 percent of the time; companies unlikely to use PLM only succeed 20 percent of time, survey says

Paris, April 25, 2006 — Dassault Systèmes (DS) (Nasdaq: DASTY; Euronext Paris: #13065, DSY.PA), a world leader in 3D and Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) solutions, today announced findings which show that, faced with the same market dynamics as their larger counterparts —rapid product commoditization, globalization, outsourcing, increasing product complexity— small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are implementing Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) solutions to cut time and costs from product development, while raising quality and promoting innovation, according to a recently released AberdeenGroup report.

 

Small- and medium-sized companies using PLM solutions have increased revenue 19 percent while reducing development and production costs by 16 and 17 percent respectively, according to the report, The PLM for Small to Medium-Sized Manufacturers Benchmark, sponsored by Dassault Systèmes. PLM solutions are erroneously associated with multinational companies. Over the last few years, the report says, new features such as predefined workflows, data configuration templates and industry-specific functionality have enabled SMBs to implement PLM solutions that until recently many believed were out of their reach.

 

Among other findings, the report reveals that the top performing 25 percent of SMBs — those most likely to use PLM solutions— hit their product launch target dates between 81 and 100 percent of the time, while the companies least likely to use PLM solutions hit their product launch targets only 20 percent of the time. It predicted steady growth in PLM implementations as more SMBs respond to faster-moving markets by automating existing processes and implementing new ones.

 

"This report sends a clear message to SME manufacturers, that adopting a PLM solution is a prerequisite of staying competitive. To this end we have invested significantly to ensure our solutions provide rapid time to value through the use of industry-specific templates with pre-defined workflows that simplify deployment and use," said John Moore, director, Industry & Market Intelligence, Dassault Systèmes America. "Most OEMs today are using PLM solutions from Dassault Systèmes. By adopting tailored versions of our industry leading CATIA and SMARTEAM PLM solutions, SMBs can collaborate directly with their OEM customers for a tighter and more profitable relationship

 

A free copy of the report is available at: www.aberdeen.com/link/sponsor.asp