For manufacturers to remain competitive in highly aggressive and mobile markets, they must find ways to work together more effectively. Invariably, this creates a need for the exchange of information about the product, most importantly the physical description represented by the data created by the CAD system or systems which were used to define the product. It is still quite common for manufacturing companies to exchange this information in the form of 2D drawings, and while they may have advanced to using electronic versions of paper prints, one has to ask — is that an effective way of collaborating for today's competitive markets?

Clearly not, given the availability of a variety of technologies such as high speed networks, portals, instant messaging and web conferencing tools — to name a few. And while there are a few notable exceptions, what is limiting the adoption of these technologies by manufacturers, particularly mid-size enterprises? Several things:

  • Data availability — because product definitions are created with highly proprietary CAD applications, getting accurate representations has previously required that all parties use the same CAD system, something many small and mid-size businesses can ill afford.
  • Data management — many compliance and regulatory requirements such as ISO require that data be version controlled and also be traceable; it also must be easy to find the correct data.
  • Workflow — the exchange of information can be done from a totally ad-hoc method to the most rigorous and structured process, but the vast majority of requirements can be met by easily defining the appropriate workflow at the source.
  • Data security — in the electronic age, every manufacturer has valid concerns regarding the security of their data
  • Cost — meeting the above requirements can be done, but at an extraordinarily high cost which can be borne only by the very largest manufacturers at the top end of the supply chain, and this by definition limits their adoption

Fortunately, technology has advanced sufficiently to provide a complete solution to the above requirements that even the smallest organizations can afford. Actify's has combined its leading product data visualization solution, SpinFire, together with Microsoft's SharePoint collaboration technology and integrated leading partner to solve the supply chain collaboration problem in a unique and innovative way that is both highly effective while also being cost effective for even the smallest organizations.

Do you have a need to make product data accessible for view, measure and markup purposes — including access to all the product manufacturing information? Take a look at the SpinFire product line. Need to able to easily set up supplier or partner collaboration portals, or set up internal project sites, that provide document versioning and management? Check out the DesignShare product line. How about the protection of intellectual property? Need to be able to assign rights and privileges to data, including restricting printing rights, preventing screen capture programs from being used, expiration dates to information? Check out SpinFire Protect.