Windchill Implementation Services: Get Going with Windchill

Product lifecycle management (PLM) improves processes across the entire product lifecycle and Windchill PLM is the leader in the market – but if you’re here you probably already know that. While Windchill is great for improving data management and collaboration, there are some initial installation and ongoing maintenance requirements needed to make your Windchill instance work at peak efficiency for your organization.

An efficient Windchill implementation is essential as businesses must quickly prove the ROI of their technology investments.

Windchill Implementation Services: Installation and Configuration

Windchill PLM acts as a single source of truth (information and data) for everyone internally and externally involved in the launch of products. However, the data it manages is not always maintained directly in Windchill making proper installation and configuration critical components of the initial setup. Since Windchill can be deployed on-premise or in the cloud, make sure you find an expert to assist with your set up who has experience with your requirements. Typical Windchill implementation services include the installation and configuration for:

• Windchill
• Database applications
• 3^rd party components
• CAD workers
• Remote file servers
• Backup and recovery services
• Integration with 3^rd party apps
• Windchill workgroup manager

It also typically includes assistance for configuring to specific customer specifications, the setup of rehost Windchill environments for testing and development, and performance tuning.

Whether you’re installing on-premise or in the cloud, find someone who has experience with your specific Windchill implementation requirements.

Windchill Implementation Services: Upgrade and Migrate

Some Windchill implementations may require taking an existing instance and upgrading or migrating it. These services include:

• Release upgrades (e.g. Windchill 10.x to Windchill 12.x)
• Patch and maintenance updates (e.g. Windchill 10.2 M010 to Windchill 10.2 (M040)
• Critical patch set (CPS) upgrades
• Workspace migrations (e.g. Pro/Intralink to Windchill PDMLink)
• Server migrations (e.g. Oracle to SQL server)

Windchill Implementation Services: Business and System Administration

Windchill needs to be properly configured to meet business requirements. Whoever you select for your Windchill implementation should be able to support you across this entire process and provide guidance on all aspects of Windchill business and system administration. You will need assistance to set:

• ACLS
• Teams and roles
• CAD workers
• Naming and number conventions
• Versioning
• Workflows
• Object initialization rules
• Lifecycle templates
• Participant administration

Windchill Implementation Services: Maintenance and Management

It is highly recommended to implement a monthly maintenance schedule for Windchill. While this maintenance may not seem overly complex, it’s similar to doing your taxes. You are likely smart enough to do It yourself, but it’s worth paying an accountant to do them for you. Someone who is an expert can complete these tasks quickly and without any interruption to your processes.

There are multiple components, data repositories, and third-party apps that require proper installation, ongoing maintenance, and continuous management to support your product development operations. These tasks need to be performed on a regular basis, whether that be monthly, weekly, or even daily (depending on your usage). Neglecting these tasks could result in system failures, data loss, and reduced productivity.

Ideally, whoever completes your Windchill implementation should be knowledgeable to provide these ongoing services as well. Many organizations don’t have a dedicated system admin for their Windchill environments but you can find providers, like 3HTi, who can take care of all of it for you so you can focus on reaching your manufacturing goals.

Remote PLM administration services typically include:

Comprehensive Windchill Implementation Services

Ensuring a complete and efficient Windchill implementation is critical to getting your business up and running and to feel the true impact of Windchill’s benefits. Windchill PLM helps your organization optimize, manage, and collaborate across all aspects of the product development process. To achieve this, you need a partner to support your initial Windchill implementation and provide ongoing support for continual management, maintenance, and administration services.

Find a Windchill implementation partner who can get you up and running quickly – and provides ongoing management, maintenance, and administration services.

At 3HTi, we have over 20 years of experience working with Windchill. We know how to implement it in the cloud or on-premise and have handled nearly every upgrade and migration scenario you can think of. Now that you’ve invested in the leading PLM, don’t let that investment go to waste with a mediocre implementation and management. Partner with us to ensure Windchill provides the services and benefits you need to keep business running smoothly.