General Questions about 米6体育 and Terms:
What is 米6体育?
米6体育 is the leading Manufacturing Insights Platform. It delivers strategic insights so manufacturers know how to design a product and where to manufacture it to optimize cash flow, accelerate revenue growth and improve margin. Our unique, collaborative software combines Product Cost Management, Design for Manufacturing and Sustainability, and Supplier Collaboration capabilities. The technology includes more than 450 manufacturing process simulations and more than 80 regional economic models. As a result, manufacturers yield insights that accelerate time to market by 20%, while achieving hundreds of millions of dollars in cost savings and a decreased CO2 footprint. 米6体育’s Manufacturing Insights Platform connects Design Engineers, Cost Experts, and Sourcing/Procurement teams. The proof is in the pudding. No one tells our story better than satisfied customers .
Who is 米6体育 for?
米6体育 is suited for everyone involved in any aspect of the product development process. Design engineers will gain useful information early in the design process, identifying manufacturability issues that will reduce the need for redesigns in later stages. Sourcing and procurement can pinpoint which parts are truly overpriced, and have sufficient detailed cost and manufacturing information to negotiate better. They also can explore supplier options faster and with greater ease. Cost engineers can generate detailed cost estimates faster, right from the CAD model, and in bulk. It allows them to generate more estimates than ever possible to provide Sourcing teams with the data they need to maximize their cost reduction efforts and reduce their risk. Manufacturing operations will be able to better manage the product lifecycle as well as timelines, bringing products to market faster and at a higher value. Collectively, 米6体育 delivers a level of communication and collaboration that puts its customers head and shoulders above the competition. Explore the option that best fits your needs and objectives .
What are the benefits that 米6体育 offers product development teams?
All phases of the product development lifecycle are connected to better collaborate and leverage each stage’s digital information. 米6体育 integrates with your PLM and CAD systems to automatically analyze components and provide timely feedback regarding cost estimates and potential DFM issues of the analyzed parts or assemblies. See the top 8 manufacturing challenges . Then read more about how 米6体育 addresses them .
What kind of results can we expect to achieve by using 米6体育?
米6体育 sets up a blueprint for success throughout your process - from concept to delivery. 米6体育 solutions provide increased productivity, reduced costs, faster time to market, and higher profit margins. All facets of the product lifecycle become more efficient and cost-effective. Collaboration and communication are enhanced. Access to suppliers with availability and a good price point are at your fingertips. Manufacturers can turn out a higher value product without compromising quality, profitability, or time to market. See for yourself why 米6体育 consistently receives five star ratings and reviews .
Do you offer training and support for your solutions?
米6体育 is fully committed to ongoing training and support. We offer both live training options as well as recorded training modules to ensure you maximize the power of our solution. Learn more about 米6体育 Academy.
Capabilities Questions:
By how much can we reduce the product lifecycle timeline from design to production using 米6体育?
Traditionally, product lifecycles for specific industries have lasted for several years. In today’s consumer driven market, product makers need to stay competitive. 米6体育 digital solutions shorten the cycle by months – even years – since design, cost, supply, and production issues are identified and remediated upfront. Implementing digital automation technologies such as 米6体育 can have a significant impact on the length of your product development lifecycle. Watch a short video to see why successful manufacturing companies are embracing and benefitting from digital transformation.
My team doesn’t have time to learn new software. What makes your solution easy to implement and use?
米6体育 makes integration and onboarding easy. All processes can be fully adopted across the organization via secured cloud access, anywhere and anytime, increasing agility through an automated digital workflow. Onboard your team seamlessly with this informative video guide .
Our current systems work. Why should we consider 米6体育 instead?
Data access and systems interoperability are fundamental to the digital thread. But spreadsheets and custom systems contain siloed data that cannot be integrated automatically into business systems. Manually adding spreadsheets or other data risks introducing old, incorrect information into a system that cannot be traced or audited for accuracy. These manual inputs break the digital thread and compromise the value of using a single source of information throughout the product lifecycle. Read more on how the digital thread brings design, production, and manufacturing together.
How will 米6体育 help our team collaborate?
Organizations that connect departments and operations digitally are able to use data to make decisions rapidly, reducing time to market and ensuring greater profitability. The manufacturing intelligence obtained from using 米6体育’s solutions provides a single, reliable source of information that stakeholders can use to make informed decisions. This will enable your team to work faster and more efficiently. Watch this video clip to see how you can utilize 米6体育 to collaborate across departments throughout the product’s lifecycle.
How can 米6体育 help us to be more productive?
Countless ways. Here are a few examples: For designers and cost engineers, design for manufacturing (DFM) and design to cost (DTC) issues can be identified in earlier stages, allowing for timely responses and less costly adjustments. Cost outliers can be prioritized and corrective action taken more expediently. Sourcing will be looped into cost targets, leveraging that information to make more informed buying decisions (and even as a negotiating tool with suppliers). For the enterprise, greater collaboration, increased productivity, and enhanced product value ensure return on investment for stakeholders, provide product speed to market, and increase revenue share. Learn how 米6体育 will help you to collaborate across teams for greater productivity in this video .
How does using 米6体育 help to quantify work/credibility/return on investment with stakeholders?
The beauty of digitizing your system is that it serves as a blueprint for success throughout the entire manufacturing process. It provides a more robust and comprehensive model that covers the breadth of manufacturing parts, assemblies, players, verticals, and uses. All phases of the product development lifecycle are connected to better leverage each stage’s digital information. As a result, work and ultimately, credibility, are quantified through increased productivity, reduced costs, faster product introduction to the market, and higher profit margins. 米6体育’s solution illustrates increased efficiencies, more cost-effective supplier and design options, and more efficient communication and collaboration, leading to measurable productivity and revenue boosts. Then read "10 Ways to Add Value with 米6体育."
Can you provide case studies or use cases to illustrate the benefits?
Of course! We have many satisfied, long-term customers with case studies ranging from industrial equipment, aerospace and defense, high tech and electronics, auto and transportation, and the consumer goods industries. Additionally, whether you are in design, sourcing, cost engineering, quoting, or production, rest assured there is a use case to further illustrate our capabilities and how you can benefit from 米6体育’s solution. Download our customer success stories to find out how you can benefit from 米6体育.
Product Features and Resource Questions:
How often is 米6体育’s material library updated to reflect current material cost increases?
It is essential that we provide our customers with the most current information to make informed decisions that affect everything from design through manufacturing. Moreover, world events and market fluctuations can have a profound effect on your manufacturing decisions and budgets. Updates are available quarterly. You can be confident that you are accessing real-time, validated data on material costs. See how 米6体育 can help you understand your material costs.
Can we use the material library to model out future planning to get ahead of potential costs rather than reacting to them?
Future planning, particularly regarding cost changes, is a smart move. We’ve factored it into our solution through the digital factory feature. Watch this video to see how you can get ahead of costs.
How can we determine the most cost-effective supplier to use?
We understand that keeping costs in line to ensure profitability is paramount. Our Regional Data Libraries provide up-to-date information on supplier pricing in 79 geographic areas throughout the world. Delve deeper into the power of our RDL .
Do you know if a supplier’s quote contains an upcharge or are they strictly material rates?
米6体育 appreciates customers’ concerns regarding supplier upcharges, particularly during volatile times. It underscores why manufacturers need a digital solution that can mitigate supply chain issues such as upcharges. Our software helps you design new products with a readily available and interchangeable bill of materials (BOM) as well as optimize manufacturing and assembly – providing supplier alternatives and more supply chain flexibility. Conversely, suppliers can utilize our quoting software to factor in items which influence their profit margin and costs. Check out our Quoting for Suppliers video demo .
How do you quote logistics such as additional storage fees and fuel increases?
Our Regional Data Libraries are a great starting point to work around current supply chain issues. If your regular suppliers are experiencing higher fuel prices and extra storage fees as a result of the supply chain, the Regional Data Libraries can provide more affordable options not impacted by the supply chain. Our software leverages the component’s geometry to determine what is required in order to manufacture the component and interprets the implications as such in times and costs. Discover more about how our RDLs can help you find cost-effective suppliers.
What cost-control recommendations can we expect?
Cost drivers such as design features, sourcing decisions, and manufacturing processes impact manufacturers’ ability to deliver products to market. It’s imperative for manufacturers to reduce costs wherever possible. However, not all costs are obvious. 米6体育's aP Design is the most effective cost-control tool in highlighting cost outliers. Watch how aP Design solution helps you improve manufacturability to reduce cost.
Can we get cost outlier details for each commodity?
Absolutely! Whether you are in design engineering, sourcing, cost estimating, or senior management, we have a solution tailored to your requirements. No matter where you are in the product lifecycle, you’ll have access to the same data and insights via 米6体育, with the added bonus of embedded applications specific to your role. Find out which 米6体育 solution meets your role’s needs and objectives.
How can we determine our total addressable spend for parts and assemblies related to our total Cost-of-Goods Sold (COGS)?
To truly impact product costs so it drives down the Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) by entire percentage points, manufacturers must look to deploy a product cost management methodology further upstream in the development process and across all departments and levels – not just inside manufacturing or cost engineering. Access our whitepaper to learn more.
I understand that leveraging 米6体育 can improve productivity, but can you walk me through how it saves us money?
Of course. We offer several cost-saving solutions, depending on your objectives. For instance, one of our solutions automatically analyzes your digital twin CAD models every time they are checked into your Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) system. Now you can ensure that every product is optimized for manufacturability and cost. Its fact-based, easy to analyze data ensures that you can be confident in your decision-making. Explore our host of solutions and consider requesting a demo.
What is the average percentage savings that your customers see on costs and how can we quantify to stakeholders?
While every enterprise is unique, there are similar cost-savings and methods for quantifying value with stakeholders. We have clients that have seen a 5-15 percent reduction in material costs. Others have saved 15-30 percent in research and development costs. Our manufacturing simulation software is data-driven and fact-based. Clear and compelling visuals support cost-savings value, enhanced time to market, and increased productivity. Quantifying return on investment has never been easier with 米6体育’s products. Learn more on how to set and achieve cost targets to increase profitability.
Technical Questions:
What is cost model workbench?
米6体育’s Cost Model Workbench (CMWB) is an ideal solution for those who want more control over their digital factories, allowing them to build and edit their own digital factories or maintain existing digital factories. What are its benefits? Cost model workbench allows you to edit and configure digital factories from a standard 米6体育 cost model template close to your desired one. Depending on your chosen product tier, you also may have the option to find, copy and modify an existing 米6体育 cost model or develop one from scratch. NOTE: The latter requires extensive knowledge and experience to achieve. Again, depending on your product tier, you also can select your preferred cost model – directional or absolute, with the latter requiring more customized digital factory and cost model work. Learn more in our Digital Factory guide . Then download the cost model workbench data sheet .
How does 米6体育 ensure cloud performance?
We understand that you can’t afford any downtime when it comes to performance. We have three database locations throughout the world. Customers work from one database location within their geographic region to ensure optimal performance. 米6体育's cloud solutions currently use default AWS Amazon Machine Images and Docker’s Image Security Protection. Download 米6体育’s Cloud Security whitepaper .
How can sourcing and procurement teams use detailed part and assembly reports for fact-based negotiations?
In multiple ways. For one, sourcing and procurement can work more collaboratively with suppliers to uncover mutual cost savings, identifying cost drivers for more transparency and better negotiating outcomes. Suppliers can benefit by quoting quickly, while ensuring that parts meet quality, delivery, and target cost expectations as well as profitability and improved win rates. 米6体育 automatically detects potential manufacturability issues for a single part or for an entire bid package. But that’s not all. 米6体育 also analyzes cost variances across a range of manufacturing different routings, materials or regions of the world in a matter of minutes. Learn how data makes the difference in fact-based negotiations.
How fast can we cost a part or assembly from our 3D CAD models?
The short answer? In a matter of minutes – sometimes less! Start by loading your CAD file into our software. 米6体育 will simulate the manufacturing of a part, analyzing potential manufacturing issues and cost outliers. You’ll get recommendations sent directly to you via email on reducing cost outliers such as renegotiating supplier pricing or redesigning products in a more affordable way. Watch our video to learn more.
How can we determine the best and/or most cost-effective global regions for manufacturing opportunities?
米6体育’s Regional Data Libraries provide cost comparisons. Determine the best option for your product .
We need to respond to parts and assembly quotes expediently. How does 米6体育 ensure that’s possible and completed with accuracy?
By automatically preparing estimates from a CAD file, 米6体育 provides suppliers with the ability to quickly, and accurately quote parts and assemblies – including large RFQs and bid packages -sometimes as fast as 30 seconds for a single part. As a result, your customers don’t have to worry about productions being slowed down while they wait for your quotes. What’s more, because our quoting tool is highly accurate, manufacturers can determine overall product cost more precisely and consistently, and quote with less risk. Peruse our Guide to Manufacturing Cost Estimation .

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