Cad management across multiple manufacturing lines

Hi all,

I am new to Productstream. My company are considering it for out data management needs. We are a manufacturing company using generic equipment on multiple manufacturing lines, hence we need to keep different revisions of drawings active for different manufacturing lines. Can Productstream manage this scenario?

Our drawings do not contain any xrefs or attributes, so have to be managed carefully.

I have the trial version of the software but it's not proving easy to use. The main problem is that our local reseller hasn't any experience of the product either...

For example:
LINE 1 uses ASSY316 REV 1
LINE 2 uses ASSY316 REV 3
LINES 3,4,5 & 6 uses ASSY316 REV 2

In the case of Lines 3,4,5 & 6, I don't wish to create a separate drawing for each Line.

It would appear that I have 2 options (that I'm aware of):
1) 'Assign' each Revision of ASSY316 to the appropriate Line (don't know how to do this...)
2) Create a new drawing specific to each Line, i.e. L3-ASSY316 etc. This will vastly increase our file storage needs and it seems a primitive solution to the problem.

Any help or advice would be appreciated,
Regards
K

Basically, Producstream does manage multiple revisions, but it wants to always keep the latest as the "active" revision. This isn't to say, however, that you couldn't do what you want with some creativity I don't think!

All the revisions you create are still stored in the Productstream Vault, and you can access them individually as you would need. If you need to edit them, however, you will have to make them the "current" revision, which could throw your whole process out the window.

But, I believe it could be done, but you really need the help of your reseller on this. My biggest question is, is your reseller willing to get the training they need to help you with this? Do they have a tech support system set up for you when/if you do buy Productstream that will help you through the implementation and customization that you will require? If not, what are their plans to support you after they sell a product to you, or are you "left out to dry"?

Productstream by itself is a tough implementation to do without a solid understanding of what it is and does, and how it works. Then, to try and use it in a way that is not the "standard method" would require that much more understanding to be able to adapt it to your needs. I don't want to step on any one's toes here, but have you looked into other resellers that do have the knowledge and expertise required to be a reseller who can meet your needs? Finding a reseller with good tech support is worth gold, so don't overlook this value!

You may also be looking more towards a configuration tool for your needs, although they can get more expensive. I'd talk to your reseller about "Autodesk Intent" as well (although I believe Autodesk is changing the name of that today, not sure what it is called today...).

Before you get into product stream i would recommend the Vault which comes free with autocad, inventor, etc... Especially if you are not going to use any features in PS

Product Stream actually uses the vault or a more elaborate vault with work flow and ECO controil and such

With out knowing your product and the software you use i would not recommend Intent, this software is a rules based database and geared towards a product that is truly configurable.

Say you have 3 lines and three sets of drawing, you would have 3 files (or more) in the vault so you will have an issue with the number of files.

One idea, you may want to consider is creating a Vault for each line. You would have to take into consideration your processes and such.

Patrick K. Johnson
http://www.cadenhancement.com