Two-thirds of manufacturers say digital thread integration critical for business goals, survey reveals

September 19, 2024

Manufacturers' most common goal for their product digital thread is to drive product quality as well as efficiency across their operations, including those downstream in traceability and service (Courtesy Tech-Clarity, Inc.)
Manufacturers’ most common goal for their product digital thread is to drive product quality as well as efficiency across their operations, including those downstream in traceability and service (Courtesy Tech-Clarity, Inc.)

A recent report published in Tech-Clarity and commissioned by Razorleaf, discusses the state of global manufacturers’ use of digital resources to achieve their business objectives. The report reveals a gap between understanding the need to implement the right tools to optimise productivity and successfully integrating those tools.

The report, ‘Integrating Data and Processes Across the Product Digital Thread,’ gathered and analysed responses from 138 global companies that manufacture products or provide engineering services.

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“The current challenge is that most manufacturers don’t have fully integrated ERP, PLM, or supply chain systems, let alone integration across these and other domains that carry crucial product information,” said Jim Brown, founder and president of Tech-Clarity, which published the report.

“Yet why have companies taken up the digital thread? Because achieving quality, efficiency, and better decision-making depend on it,” he noted. “Over two-thirds of the participants in the study report that integrating data and applications across the product digital thread is important or critical to meeting their business goals.”

“The next frontier in productivity is optimising the digital enterprise,” says Eric Doubell, CEO of Razorleaf. “Companies have the data already in existing CAD, PDM, ERP and MES systems. Now they need to make the data readily available and seamlessly useable across domains, then apply this information in flexible, targeted ways to their specific product and business needs. Systems-agnostic integrators can help automate the interconnection of custom, native, and best-in-class tools, making it easier for departments and suppliers to communicate and make accurate and faster decisions.”

The full report is available here.

www.razorleaf.com

tech-clarity.com

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