CIMdata PLM Industry Summary Online Archive
23 October 2012
Product News
Arena Solutions Updates BOM Creation Software with Fall 2012 Release
Engineers looking to streamline bill of materials creation and management will find important new functions in the Fall 2012 release of Arena Solutions’ cloud-based BOMControl system.
“New features simplify and speed the process of creating and managing bills of materials,” says Steve Chalgren, Arena’s vice president of product management and strategy. “The bottom line for engineering users is savings in time and money.”
Arena’s BOMControl is a cloud-based bill of materials (BOM) and change management software system. BOMControl includes item management, supplier collaboration, compliance management and project collaboration. The system allows engineering, manufacturing and extended supply chains to speed prototyping, reduce scrap, and simplify supply chain management.
The Fall 2012 release includes more than 30 updates and improvements including the following.
1. PartSaver bookmarklet – The new bookmarklet allows users to update their BOMControl workspace with new item and supplier item (approved manufacturers and vendors for the item) records—and the source relationships that connect those records—while browsing component sites. PartSaver supports several major component sites. The bookmarklet saves time through a one-step process for item and supplier item creation with optional datasheet and costs – including volume cost break information.
2. Cloud single sign-on (cloud SSO) – Arena has partnered with PingOne to offer a tier-one cloud single sign-on solution. Once users log into an SSO system, they will not need to re-authenticate with BOMControl. This simplifies IT overhead for password and user management, especially for larger companies with hundreds or thousands of employees. With the feature, companies can easily manage staff use of cloud services as if they were a part of their internal networks. Users can extend their company’s Active Directory or LDAP (Lightweight Directory Access Protocol) solutions to include authentication into Arena BOMControl. The feature also minimizes typical issues of password synchronization and auditing. Arena is the only cloud PLM application provider to offer cloud SSO, delivering the same capability as cloud industry leaders including Salesforce.com, Box, ADP, Google Apps, Success Factors, Workday and NetSuite.
3. Supplier item lookup – In the new Lookup BOM, engineers can quickly obtain base information about parts during the design phase of product development. With a single click of a button, they can review an entire BOM’s specifications and compliance information, and even download datasheets – all without leaving BOMControl. Arena has partnered with Octopart for real-time part information.
Additional updates in the Fall 2012 release include broader file delivery options to Arena document control users from design partners and supply chain members. The software features more inclusive change request capabilities, and faster and higher export limits. In addition BOMControl Help features a new look and Google-style search for easier navigation and better guidance. A new guided video track in the Support Center will help train supplier users on key BOMControl functions.
“BOMControl is a superb tool to help companies work effectively and efficiently, while maintaining control, visibility and speed,” says Chalgren. “These latest updates confirm Arena’s commitment to cloud manufacturing.”
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