Desktop Engineering - Start Collaborating with Teamcenter Express V4

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Start Collaborating with Teamcenter Express V4

Siemens PLM Software’s mid-market cPDM software lets you streamline engineering projects and gain access to product data.

by Margaret S. Gurney | Published August 20, 2008

Teamcenter Express includes Teamcenter Visualization for viewing and analyzing a range of 2D documents and 3D CAD models.

Siemens PLM Software (Plano, TX) announced Version 4 of Teamcenter Express, the collaborative product data management (cPDM) component of the company's Velocity Series. Designed to meet the requirements of mid-sized manufacturing companies for a low cost of ownership and ease and speed of implementation, Teamcenter Express offers a preconfigured and easy-to-deploy cPDM solution that provides a single source of engineering data, combined with engineering task and process management that is said to be highly efficient.

Version 4, which is built on and delivers complete scalability to the unified architecture of Teamcenter 2007, offers two new modules, an embedded project management option and a new shop-floor access client.

“Teamcenter Express allows SMBs to streamline project scheduling and extend access to product data to the shop floor, while optimizing the use of their precious IT resources.”
— Bruce Boes, Siemens PLM Software, VP of global Velocity Series marketing

The company says Teamcenter Express V4 improves collaboration and control for project managers, lead engineers, and shop floor users. Plus, these two new modules help SMBs (small- and medium-sized businesses) streamline their engineering resources and widen access to their product data.

New Capabilities
For project managers and lead engineers, Teamcenter Express V4 delivers an embedded project and program management option that is tightly integrated with the existing standard document management, project-based security, and workflow capabilities found in Teamcenter Express.

The new project and program management option in Teamcenter Express V4 is accessed using the Schedule Manager application. A project schedule shows dialogs for managing schedule members and their calendars.

This management module improves collaboration and control by managing the scheduling of multiple projects and their related tasks, together with resource allocation and the ability to import and export project plans to and from Microsoft Project.

The second option is for shop-floor users, such as manufacturing team leaders and machine operators; the lower cost web client is a streamlined Shop Floor Viewer that provides access to product data — industry analysts estimate this can save engineers 10 to 12 percent of their time, according to Siemens PLM Software.

Design through Manufacturing
The Shop Floor Viewer includes engineering data searches, where-used queries to determine product usage, and viewing/printing. Visualization capabilities include viewing a variety of 2D document file types and 3D models, as well as the ability to measure and view cross-sections. The company says Shop Floor Viewer is a cost-effective entry point for employees who need basic “find, view, print” access to the single source of product data provided by Teamcenter Express.

MyTeamcenter enables users to configure their own view of product data. Here thumbnail images are displayed for the contents of the selected folder.

“The addition of these capabilities to Teamcenter Express allows SMBs to streamline project scheduling and extend access to product data to the shop floor, while optimizing the use of their precious IT resources,” said Bruce Boes, vice president of global Velocity Series marketing, Siemens PLM Software.

Teamcenter Express V4 also includes new usability enhancements that are said to speed the user’s learning and adoption curve as well as improve the efficiency of managing everyday tasks and processes for design-through-manufacturing, from the user’s desktop and across projects and programs.

Functions Improve Usability
Teamcenter Express V4 has been enhanced with a variety of new functions. As stated earlier, the new project and program management option, which is accessed using the Schedule Manager application, enables project schedules to be imported and exported from Microsoft Project.

Teamcenter Express V4's relation browser provides a graphical interface that enables users to quickly understand and select from complex data structures.

Plus, a project schedule uses dialogs for managing schedule members and their calendars. Another feature, MyTeamcenter, allows users to configure their own view of product data, which can be seen in thumbnail images for the contents of the selected folder.

Teamcenter Express, which is a configuration of the unified architecture of Teamcenter 2007, takes advantage of several usability enhancements. One is the relation browser that provides a graphical interface letting users quickly understand and select from complex data structures.

The Teamcenter Express search capability allows users to create and save searches for product data, and search results are stored on a tab to be easily retrieved at any time.

Visualize & Analyze Documents & Models
Teamcenter Express V4 includes Teamcenter Visualization for viewing and analyzing a range of 2D documents and 3D CAD models. It also enables users to open a web browser from within the interface, making frequently used Internet resources — such as supplier catalogs — readily available.

The Teamcenter Express search capability enables users to create and save searches for product data. Search results are stored on a tab and can be retrieved at any time.

Teamcenter Express’ Shop Floor Viewer, now with a client option that is said to ease access to product data, has a built-in viewer that enables visualization and analysis of 2D documents and 3D CAD models.

The Teamcenter Express web client is easily deployed to the user’s web browser to provide fast access to product data for consumers such as managers, purchasers, and field engineers.

Workflow & Installation
For mid-sized companies, Teamcenter Express includes product structure management tools, BOM creation and editing, and workflow process management. This functionality is frequently only available as additional cost modules with other cPDM software. Plus, because Teamcenter Express is built on Microsoft standards such as Windows 2003 and SQL Server, minimal IT resources are required for implementation and maintenance.

The new project and program management option in Teamcenter Express V4 enables project schedules to be imported and exported from Microsoft Project.

Teamcenter Express has a specially designed installation procedure that includes automatic creation of a Teamcenter SQL database instance preconfigured to industry best practices. The Teamcenter Express web application, file vaults, full text search capability, administrator client and license server are all installed in a single session. Client installation is said to be fast and easy and includes automatic installation of CAD integrations.

Increased Productivity
The company says manufacturing benefits include integration with NX CAM and CAM Express to capture CAM data including toolpaths and shop documentation, management of cutting tool and fixture libraries, process planning for CAM operations, and shop floor viewing of CAM data.

Teamcenter Express V4 enables users to open a web browser from within the interface. Frequently used Internet resources such as supplier catalogs are directly available.

Siemens PLM Software claims it has sold more than 4 million licenses of its Teamcenter PLM portfolio around the world — one of the more recent being an agreement in which Boeing will work with Siemens PLM Software to retire and replace selected legacy systems with Teamcenter.

This portfolio of digital lifecycle management solutions — built on an open PLM foundation — is connecting people and processes with knowledge across the entire lifecycle, easing collaboration from start to finish.

For details, go to Siemens PLM Software, a business unit of the Siemens Industry Automation Division.

Read why DE's editors chose this as a Pick of the Week.

Access information on Teamcenter Express from Siemens PLM Software.

Scroll down to see the Teamcenter Express Version 4 Fact Sheet.

Choose from among four possible demonstrations that include Relation Browser, Shop Floor Viewer, and Project and Program Management 1 and 2.

View all brochures and fact sheets at the Teamcenter Express Collateral Library.

Read up on related information about the Velocity Series: “Siemens PLM Software Launches New Velocity Series Products.”

Scroll down to catch up on feedback generated from users as well as Client Success stories.

Margaret S. Gurney is the editor for new products at Desktop Engineering magazine.