Economy Isn't Hurting Some PLM Investments
Despite the tough economy, some apparel manufacturers are proceeding with their PLM (product lifecycle management) initiatives.
Two IT providers have been signing on some big clients. Minneapolis-based Lawson Software reported that Madura Garments in India has installed Lawson Fashion PLM, a Web-based software application that helps manage pre-production. Madura produces clothing under labels such as Allen Solly, Van Heusen and Louis Philippe and has been challenged in managing the brands over a vast supply chain. Company officials especially wanted better control over the many fabrics it obtains from its mills. The company uses the materials between various collections and across multiple seasons and has to deal with hundreds, if not thousands, of points of information.
In addition, the company has been on a growth track, so it was looking for PLM to help it become more efficient in gaining access to information.
“We are already deriving value from the added capabilities [of Lawson PLM] that help us better manage our products from the time we begin designing an item until it’s ready for the retail shelves,” said Neeraj Pal Singh, Madera’s vice president of information systems.
Up to three weeks have been saved for fabric-sample request cycles, company officials said.
The implementation process also gave Madura an opportunity to re-engineer its business processes and help structure systems to provide better transparency of information across the company’s supply chain. In addition, the new system enables product- development activities to work simultaneously, which helps reduce product-development timelines for new collections and reduce time-to-market, Singh added.
Meanwhile, Campbell, Calif.–based Centric Software Inc. is also making inroads on the PLM front, having signed Rigby, Idaho–based Klim USA to use its Centric 8 PLM and sourcing applications to manage Klim’s technical motorcycle- and snowmobile-gear business.
Klim’s suppliers are spread out through Canada, Sweden and Asia, and the company is looking to PLM to put everyone on the same page during the sample-making process, explained Blake Summers, director of information technology at Klim.
“This will enable us to maintain our high-quality standards while reducing costs and bringing products to market more quickly,” he said.
Summers said he was drawn to the collaboration aspects of PLM so that crossed signals between various suppliers would not be an issue during sample-making.
Klim is known for quality, technical equipment used by some of the best dirt-bike and snowmobile riders in the country, so there is no compromising on quality, nor in the back office, Summers said. —Robert McAllister
