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In the second post, we will continue with a side-by-side comparison of SolidWorks PDM and Bild’s cloud PDM. The goal is to help you and your team understand which PDM is the right fit.
The previous post covers speed of implementation, total cost of implementation (TCO), and ease of use. In this post, we will cover accessibility, and integrations. If you missed the first post, check it out here!
SolidWorks PDM:
SolidWorks PDM has an integrated experience into SolidWorks CAD, which makes it great if you’re accessing PDM through the design tool. But it is exponentially more difficult if you are a collaborator trying to access assets not through SolidWorks CAD. The inaccessibility for collaborators to enter CAD results in 2 issues: a separation of assets and frictioned file sharing.
One of the main value adds of PDM is having a single source of truth for all design related information. But with collaborators finding PDM difficult to access, their design information and feedback sits on other systems more fit for them - Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, etc. When designers want to share the latest designs, it’s never as easy as “check out the latest design in PDM”. The very deep integration into SolidWorks CAD almost makes it impossible to review CAD in PDM without a SolidWorks CAD and PDM license - making the cost of collaboration expensive.
Bild:
While Bild has an integrated experience with SolidWorks CAD, the Bild web-browser interface provides an intuitive and accessible interface for collaborators. With simple to use tools and a built in interactive CAD viewer, Bild’s cloud PDM allows any collaborator to quickly find, review, and provide feedback on any design. With Bild’s one-click data migration, design information that previously existed on Google Drive, Dropbox, or OneDrive can easily be migrated over to Bild, creating a single source of truth for all design related information.
Bild’s web platform makes it easy to add, collaborate, and access any file, removing any restrictions or the need for additional expensive CAD licenses. Furthermore, any external collaborator can review and access designs, if granted permission, without paying for additional licenses to Bild and all through a web browser.
SolidWorks PDM:
One of the main downsides of SolidWorks PDM is its lack of integrations into other tools hardware teams and collaborators use. As we all know, hardware product development is not done amongst just one team, rather a group of cross-functional teams, from electrical engineering to mechanical engineering to manufacturing and more. These other teams are engaging in other tools such as ERP, MES, project management, and other systems. With data being separated into multiple systems and in silos, teams never get the full picture on designs and spend more time finding and retrieving design information.
Bild:
Bild’s cloud PDM integrates into other sources, creating a streamlined workflow for teams to collaborate. Information gets synced bi-directionally enabling Bild to be a single source of truth for all design related information. This allows cross-functional teams to continue working on their own systems while keeping design related information in sync with designers. For the first time, a PDM system can absorb, understand, and organize data across multiple platforms.
There are many more differences between traditional PDM systems and Bild’s cloud PDM that we have not covered in these two posts. If you’d like to see the full Bild platform and experience the change, reach out at contact@getbild.com.