Siemens PLM Software Announces Version 3 of Teamcenter Express cPDM

November 15, 2007 // Published as a news service by IHS

According to the company, the new capabilities enable more complete design-through-manufacturing data management for small to midsize manufacturers (SMBs) through expanded integration with the user's desktop.

Teamcenter Express is a collaborative product data management (cPDM) product that provides a preconfigured environment targeted at the PDM requirements of SMBs.

Teamcenter Express is the core PDM component of the UGS Velocity series of product lifecycle management (PLM) tools.

With Version 3, Teamcenter Express offers integration with the user's desktop through use of Microsoft Office 2007, web view and markup, attribute mapping for document import, printing and expanded certifications. With these enhancements, SMB users can contribute to and work with data in the Teamcenter Express cPDM database.

Peter Bilello, director of consulting services, CIMdata, said, "The improved integration with the user's desktop enables users of Microsoft Word, Excel and Outlook to easily access data in the PDM database and participate in workflows without leaving their natural work environment. This in turn enables more users and more departments in a typical SMB to work from the single source of product data maintained by Teamcenter Express."

According to Siemens PLM, enhancements include:

• Microsoft Word and Excel integration supports everyday document management tasks such as creating new documents from standard templates, assigning document numbers and adding new documents to the Teamcenter Express database and associating them with existing data; it also supports checking out and editing existing documents.
• Microsoft Outlook integration includes the ability to browse the users' Teamcenter Express inbox, sign off on Teamcenter workflow tasks, select a signoff team and save Outlook e-mails as a dataset to the Teamcenter Express database.
• Attribute mapping features enable mapping of Microsoft Office document properties to Teamcenter Express attributes.
• Web Client view and markup capabilities cover a wider range of document types, and extended analysis and markup functionality, enabling a wider cross-section of users, such as shop floor team leaders and machine operators, to access the Teamcenter Express database and perform tasks such as searching for parts, taking measurements from 3D computer-aided design (CAD) parts, printing drawings and adding markups.
• Printing and plotting of documents and drawings from the user's desktop are enhanced by the addition of a server-based print/plot capability and the ability to add watermarks, the company said.

Version 3 also includes a new Smart Codes tool to generate intelligent part numbers to meet an organization's part coding requirements. Teamcenter Express can be coupled with a variety of CAD applications, including Solid Edge, NX, CATIA, AutoCAD, Autodesk Inventor and SolidWorks.

Siemens PLM Software is a division of Siemens Automation and Drives (A&D).

Source: UGS.