Chapter 6: Application and Best Practices

Title: AVEVA NET – AVEVA|s Open PLM Platform for Shipbuilding

Author(s): Martin Gwyther

Address: AVEVA Solutions Ltd, UK Ground Floor, North Wing, Delme Place, Cams Park, Fareham, Hampshire, UK

Reference: International Conference on Product Lifecycle Management 2008 pp. 428 - 437

Abstract/Summary: Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) is a strategic technology designed to store and manage product definition data and to use this to integrate, control and optimise product related business processes. However, conventional PLM (cPLM) solutions systems are designed to support the design-prototype-manufacture model that dominates conventional manufacturing processes. In this model, the different lifecycle phases are discrete and cannot be executed until the previous phase is complete; hence, products are designed, production facilities are configured and physical products are manufactured, in a wholly serial fashion. In contrast, large scale shipbuilding is fundamentally project based and physical prototyping is neither logistically nor commercially viable. Although a single basic ship design may be used to produce a series of vessels, in practice, each ship is unique and detailed design and production is generally executed as a one-off capital project. In this model, the product design is based on a complex network of inter-connected component designs, which evolve through a series of iterations into the final product configuration. To meet both schedule and cost constraints, all downstream activities, including fabrication and assembly, commence as soon as appropriate iterations of the designs they are based on are available. This results in a highly concurrent product delivery process, where the PLM system's ability to support, real-time change control and advanced application integration is paramount. This presentation describes the design and practical application of AVEVA NET, the first lifecycle management solution designed specifically to address the information management needs of the shipbuilding industry.

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