CIMdata PLM Industry Summary Online Archive
25 June 2012
Company News
Survey Shows Single, Searchable Source for Validated Technical Data-Especially Materials Data, Codes & Standards and Best Practices-Top Design Engineers' Wish List
For engineers it is increasingly difficult to quickly find accurate and trustworthy technical information, a recent survey finds. Navigating multiple sources of information, finding best practices, securing approvals and permissions, along with the difficulty in validating the accuracy of the information, topped the list of frustrations of engineers polled in the "Engineering Tools and Information Spring 2012 Survey" conducted by The Parthenon Group and sponsored by Knovel.
Parthenon Group surveyed more than 600 engineers working in the Aerospace & Defense and Engineering Design and Construction industries about their use of technology, their information needs as well as their satisfaction with various providers of engineering information and tools including Knovel.
The survey identified a number of challenges that engineers face as they aim to improve how they find and interact with critical data. Findings include:
- Access to searchable materials properties, regulations, codes and standards topped the list of information categories engineers seek online;
- Searching multiple sources to find accurate engineering data needed for critical decisions during the design process is a top frustration;
- The ability to extract and interact with data is an increasingly important aspect of engineers' searches for new tools.
"Our research indicates that the lost productivity associated with assembling and validating technical information from multiple sources is a major pain point for engineers," said Terry Bradshaw, Senior Principal at The Parthenon Group. "This is good news for Knovel, whose users regard it as a comprehensive source of trusted technical information and the best one-stop-shop for materials data and best practices, two of the most important types of content in the engineering workflow."
Three distinct clusters of design engineers, defined primarily by their differing needs for engineering tools, were highlighted in the survey:
- Process-Focused. Process-focused engineers rely heavily on workflow and collaboration tools. Their top productivity needs are electronic workflow approval tools and collaboration tools to identify experts within their organizations (34 percent of engineers surveyed).
- On-the-Go. On-the-go engineers rely heavily on mobile tools. Their top productivity need is for engineering-focused mobile applications for tablets or smart-phones (48 percent of engineers surveyed).
- Integration-Focused. Integration-focused engineers seek better ways to analyze and integrate the data. They look for best practices and other forms of institutional knowledge. Their top productivity needs are for integration between technical information sources and engineering software and for better ways to interact with and extract data and formulas from technical information (18 percent of engineers surveyed).
"Customers tell us that Knovel is a must-have during product design and development," says Chris Forbes, CEO of Knovel. "Whether engineers need to get smart on a topic during heavy lifting at project launch, find materials or document decisions in a report, the ability to access validated technical information -- and easily export that information into their work -- is a significant benefit and time saver. By reducing time spent searching and increasing the quality of information available, Knovel significantly improves efficiency throughout the engineering process."
About Knovel
Knovel is a Web-based application integrating technical information with analytical and search tools to drive innovation and deliver answers engineers can trust. Knovel users include thousands of engineers and applied scientists worldwide. Knovel has more than 700 customers worldwide including 74 of the Fortune 500 companies, five of the Top 10 Constituents on the FTSE 100 Index and more than 300 leading universities. Founded in 2000, Knovel is a private company headquartered in New York City. For more information, visit www.knovel.com or call (866) 240-8174.
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