Connected Services And Product Development

The last decade of infrastructure and internet development created a shift in the way new products can be designed, manufactured, distributed, and supported. The new ideas came to fruition and created an opportunity to change processes and delivery methods, relying on the technology of real-time connection between organizations and services.

One of the many challenges the manufacturing industry faces is scale and mass customization. We want faster and cheaper (it was always on the top of the demand curve), but we also want custom and tailored to our needs. 

These days, the average product is a combination of mechanical, electrical, electronic, software, and online services, making it more complex. This creates a problem for the division of labor, specialized skills, and the need to coordinate and collaborate between people and processes.

In the same way our cities are becoming more complex, product development is becoming more complex and requires elaborate data to be managed to coordinate the activities. We see the need for innovation to bridge the gap between specialized workers who work in cross-functional teams with their own unique experience pertaining to their products.

What does this mean in a pragmatic sense for companies involved in design and manufacturing? How will this impact relationships between engineers, design contractors, suppliers, and contract manufacturing? 

By using connected services you can un-silo highly specialized information across teams. For example, a design engineer can take into account component costing when designing a product, while inversely a sourcing professional can quickly work with the engineer to propose an alternative for a component all within one workflow.

The model of on-demand connected manufacturing services is also a new business model that makes it possible for vendors to provide support for design, manufacturing of devices, components, and entire products from a single PCB prototype to an entire assembly. To make it happen, cloud-based software platforms should become available to provide instant quotes, manage bill of materials and product information, and track inventory and purchase orders. 

Here are several elements of this new digital product development network and supply chain. 

Online product data and bill of materials 

Data is the foundation of every product development process. It includes information about product design and components. Online and shared product data is absolutely essential to keep everyone on the same page about what needs to be done and who is responsible for delivering components, services, and products. 

Instant Quotation and Cost Modeling 

A modern quotation approach can be applied between connected software. The information about prices can become available online based on the product data and other requirements. Price quotes allow the creation of a cost model that relies on product data and price quotes. 

Sourcing and ordering 

Data and cost models are a foundation for friction-free sourcing and ordering. The sourcing, supplier, and components providers can use the model to schedule supply of components and services on time and for planned capacities based on product information, order information, and quotes. 

About Octopart 

Octopart is the preferred search engine for electronic components. Our mission is to be the most trusted, comprehensive, and accessible part database in the world for anyone and everyone who works with electronic parts data. Today, millions of engineers, scientists, and sourcing professionals use Octopart tools to quickly access a comprehensive, up-to-date library of electronic part data to aid their work from the beginning of a design through fabrication. 

More about Octopart at: https://octopart.com/ 

About OpenBOM 

OpenBOM is a digital network-based platform that manages product data and connects manufacturers and their supply chain networks. OpenBOM’s modern SaaS real-time collaboration and data management technology allows to create and manage Parts, Bill of Materials, Vendors, and Purchases across networks of engineers, supply chain managers, and contract manufacturers. OpenBOM enables people to share and collaborate using an online Bill of Materials from initial design through all stages of engineering, manufacturing, and supply chain.

Headquartered in Boston, MA area, OpenBOM's website is at http://www.openbom.com. For more information or questions please contact oleg@OpenBOM.com. OpenBOM is a wholly-owned and branded product of Newman Cloud, Inc.