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Manual

Manual

3.1.3. Comparison: "pool integration" - total integration

Based on the following tabular comparison the difference in the use of PARTsolutions with or without PDM linking is made clear:

 

No PDM linking or "pool integration"

Total integration with PDM linking[a]

  • Meta information / classification

  1. No PDM linking

    Parts are not checked in by users. The classification as a "standard part" or "purchased part" must be conducted manually and is this not always correct. The meta attributes (ERP number, etc.) must also be passed on manually, Problem: High error proneness with high damage potential; knowledge needed from every engineer.

  2. "pool integration"

    Some restrictions from 1 apply.

    Some PDM systems can automatically take the meta attributes from the library and pool parts during check-in. This at least confirms that the meta information in the PDM is available (ex for proper BOM lists).

Automatic passing on of meta information (supplier description, standard description, ERP numbers, material information) and automatic classification in the PDM.

The geometry document immediately comes across as validly managed PDM standard / supplied part in the CAD. Even the status (ex. released and unchangeable) is always correct. Meta information is entered into the corresponding fields of the PDM system during creation.

The BOM list and the usage list are correct. Important: This occurs in the background - the CAD user does not need to know details about this!

[Note] Note

The more case differentiation there is for specific product groups, the more useful the PDM linking becomes. This results in the possibility of defining which of the methods corresponds to the respective products in the company for supplier catalogs or semi-finished products (cross-section length, etc.). The process runs automatically in the background. This even allows you to simplify the operating instructions.

  • Access protection

Restricted write-protection on all parts. An engineer could have accidentally modified a part. All colleagues receive this modified part directly from PARTsolutions without noticing. The part comes as a modified PDM standard / supplier part into the CAD and is thus also write protected.
  • Safety

The parts in the pool are blocked. Deleting is not prevented however. If you accidentally delete there all assemblies are most likely damaged (without your knowing which ones since there is no usage protocol). Only in very few CAD systems can a new creation of a part recreate the assemblies, because the area and part ID has changed, which causes the installation relations to be lost. This is why you need a separate storage for the pool.

Safety from accidental deletion of files from the general pool. Respectively no special solution for the replication and securing of the pool data necessary.

A global pool no longer exists. The parts are created in the user area and automatically directly checked into the PDM by PARTsolutions. The local workspace can and should be regularly deleted. During new parts selection in PARTsolutions (or for selection on a different work station) the part is copied from the PDM safe. Since the safe is backed up anyway, nothing must be done concerning data backup.

  • Improve performance

Every time an assembly is opened, all standard and supplier parts are loaded into the main storage pool of the CAD via the network.

Performance improvement of assemblies through minimal network load.

Only during the one-time check-in/out of the assembly from the safe into the local work file do you have to wait. This means that all standard and manufactured parts will be copied. Work on the assembly is local.

  • Conclusion

PARTsolutions is not integrated in the PDM processes, in other words erroneous special processes must be defined for the manual work of the engineers, which are usually difficult to handle and error-ridden.

PARTsolutions always delivers parts "fresh" from the PDM. It makes no difference whether the standard part came from PARTsolutions or from an old assembly in the PDM. The processes are continuous. PARTsolutions geometries are not an exception. By passing on of ERP information, no manual additional work is necessary. PARTsolutions is "seamlessly" integrated between ERP and PDM as a supplier of standard, manufactured, and repeat parts.

With the ERP and PDM integration of PARTsolutions no "process gaps" exist, in other words standard, manufactured and repeat parts do not need special treatment when dealing with the CAD data.

[a] Refers mainly to PDM interfaces with "direct PDM linking" (PARTsolutions actively checks in/out; ex. for: CIM database, PRO.FILE, SAP-PLM, SmarTeam, Vault, ...). With "indirect PDM linking" some things count only limited (attribute allocation occurs directly via the CAD file; ex. for: PDM9000, ProfiDB, DBWorks, ...).