CIMdata PLM Industry Summary Online Archive

16 April 2008

Implementation Investments

Leading Innovator in Bicycle Design and Engineering Selects Arena PLM to Streamline New Product Development

Arena Solutions announced that Ritchey Design Inc. (http://www.ritcheylogic.com) has chosen on-demand Arena PLM to streamline its current product development process, boost productivity and improve global communication and collaboration. Arena PLM will help the company speed the development and release of future products as well as enhancements to current products, including its Break-Away Bikes, a line of ultra-light, racing-quality bikes that separate so they can be packed in a standard suitcase for easy travel. Ritchey will also integrate Arena PLM with its Box Solutions ERP system, further streamlining company processes by linking product planning with product execution.

An early innovator of advanced bicycle design and a longtime proponent of the sport of cycling, Ritchey has always been at the forefront of the cycling market. With products becoming increasingly complex and plans to ramp up the frequency of new product introductions (NPIs), Ritchey decided to modernize its design-through-manufacturing processes by replacing its manual methods for communication and approval -- faxes, emails and spreadsheets -- with Arena PLM. Not only will the company benefit from having its data protected by financial-grade security, but it also will gain the ability to have all product information and history -- including bills of materials (BOMs), suppliers, costs, quotes, specs, drawings, files, compliance records and much more -- tracked in a single, centralized, version-controlled product record. Ritchey employees and suppliers will be able to log into Arena PLM over the Internet, from anywhere in the world, to have real-time visibility into current product data. This will help them make better, faster design decisions, develop superior products and more quickly bring those products to market.

"Arena PLM offers us a tremendous boost in capability and efficiency. By adopting Arena PLM, we significantly reduce the time and distance challenges that result from me being in Taiwan while Tom Ritchey, our owner, is in the San Francisco Bay Area -- or on his bike somewhere else in the world. Because we can access Arena PLM online, no matter where we are or what time it is, we can communicate around 100-percent accurate data and continue moving our products forward," said Rick Hartwell, product development manager of Ritchey Design Inc. "We're all excited about using Arena PLM, knowing that collaboration from concept through production will be faster, easier and ultimately more effective with a world-class PLM system in place."

Arena Solutions offers Ritchey Design the lowest total cost of PLM ownership. Unlike traditional client/server PLM software, Arena PLM is an on-demand PLM service that is delivered over the Internet, so Ritchey has no software or hardware to buy, no expensive installations, no maintenance fees, no costly upgrades, and no incremental IT resources to hire. Because companies get up and running on Arena PLM in a matter of weeks (not months or years), Ritchey will quickly realize a positive return on investment.

"We're so pleased that industry leaders like Ritchey Design are choosing Arena PLM to help them manage mission-critical processes related to the design, and introduction of their products," said Craig Livingston, chief executive officer of Arena Solutions. "I have no doubt that Arena PLM will yield Ritchey some very positive results, not the least of which is the ability to more easily roll out high-quality products that delight even the most discerning cycling enthusiast."

Become a member of the CIMdata PLM Community to receive your daily PLM news and much more.

Tell us what you think of the CIMdata Newsletter. Send your feedback.

CIMdata is committed to your privacy. Your personal information will never be sold or shared outside of CIMdata without your express permission.

Subscribe