Jeff is the VP for Windchill Digital Thread. His team leads Navigate, Visualization, Windchill UI and Digital Product Traceability. Prior to joining PTC, Jeff spent 16 years implementing and using PLM, CAD and CAE at Industrial, High Tech & Consumer Products companies including leading the first Windchill PDMLink implementation in 2002. He was active in the PTC/USER community serving as Chair for the Windchill Solutions committee and on the Board of Directors for PTC/USER helping to bring voice of customer input together and create a community where people could network for tools and processes. Jeff attended Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Lehigh University.
The sunsetting of Oracle Agile PLM marks a significant shift for many manufacturers relying on this software for their product lifecycle management needs. As the end of support for Agile PLM approaches, it's crucial to understand what this means for existing users and why transitioning to a new PLM solution is essential.
What is Agile PLM?
Agile PLM is a comprehensive software solution (acquired by Oracle in 2007) that manages various workstreams across a company’s new product introduction (NPI) processes. These processes include BOM configuration, parts management, engineering change workflows, and supply chain collaboration.
What does “end of support” for Agile PLM mean for existing users?
Oracle’s decision to end extended support for Agile PLM means that Oracle will no longer provide updates, support, or security patches for the software after 2027. This will lead to several challenges for existing users, including increased security risks, potential IT compliance issues, and a lack of new features to keep up with industry standards.
Oracle does offer an alternative solution to Agile with Oracle Fusion Cloud PLM, introduced in 2015. The reality is that most existing Agile customers chose not to pursue migrating to the newer Oracle PLM alternative citing a number of reasons including: a lack of comparable functionality, challenging integration strategies, an incomplete digital thread, and its limitation to SaaS deployment only.
The opportunity for PLM modernization
Transitioning to a newer generation PLM system is critical for users to stay ahead of the challenges stated above. However, many companies are using the reality of losing support for Agile PLM as an opportunity to “re-imagine” their PLM strategies. Why?
- Products are becoming more complex and customers are demanding more options. A robust PLM system is pivotal to managing product configurations and data with a digital thread.
- Quality, regulatory compliance, and supporting sustainability efforts are becoming a bigger challenge in today’s world. PLM is a natural home for managing the processes and data needed to protect market share, brands, and cost of non-compliance.
- Stronger supply chain visibility and collaboration is paramount. While outsourcing manufacturing has been prevalent for multiple decades, many companies are now also outsourcing significant portions of their design and engineering processes, as well. Modern PLM solutions must be able to account for all aspects of a company’s design and supply chain ecosystems.
As one can imagine, hundreds of existing Agile customers have been actively evaluating PLM solutions, including PTC’s Windchill. Several common themes have emerged from these interactions with Agile customers:
- Serving more stakeholders: We’ve heard from many customers that “they want more from a modern PLM than in the past.” This includes extending PLM across engineering, operations/supply chain, manufacturing, and service.
- Better, more comprehensive data management: As part of serving more PLM stakeholders, another common theme has emerged – improving overall data management. This means tighter integration of critical workstreams and the data they use. This "digital traceability" ensures instant visibility across product requirements, design, configuration, components, supply chain, and quality processes to meet customer needs effectively. Strong processes for product revision, version, and variant control are also essential to support this expanded spectrum of PLM capabilities.
- Emergence of application lifecycle management: Products are becoming more digital, and software has become a larger part of a product’s definition. As such, a complete PLM strategy must be able to integrate the critical processes of documenting software requirements, managing software projects, and ultimately integrating software into a product's bill of materials (BOM).
- Increasing importance of service: Traditionally many companies have chosen to manage their services and aftermarket processes completely separate from product development and NPI processes. However, in the digital world, many companies see tremendous value in having a natural connection between these processes and service functions. There are significant opportunities to improve service responsiveness and costs by simply having shared data between development, manufacturing, and service.
- Reducing reliance on custom or homegrown systems: Surprisingly, most Agile customers have augmented their Agile PLM system environments with supporting custom solutions. One of the most common complaints we hear from these customers is that there is a significant opportunity to rationalize or eliminate the number of homegrown systems in the PLM ecosystem. Customers want to be able to uptake innovation more rapidly from their PLM provider, and they don’t want to continue investing in custom systems.
- Practical AI applications: Almost every customer interaction includes a discussion of PLM and artificial intelligence. Companies are intrigued by the possibilities AI may offer. However, many customers do not know where to begin their PLM—AI journey. The most common use cases typically center on productivity enhancements, predictive capabilities, and cost savings.
What are analysts saying
According to the ABI Research report on PLM for large manufacturers, PTC ranks significantly higher than Oracle in both PLM innovation and implementation. PTC is recognized as a leader with an overall score of 83.3, while Oracle is categorized as a follower with a score of 62.01.
The report highlights several key factors contributing to PTC's higher ranking, including:
- Commitment to innovation: PTC excels in investing in its Windchill PLM road map and applying new technologies such as generative AI and Augmented Reality (AR) to aid in product development.
- Implementation flexibility: PTC's comprehensive deployment offerings include on-premises, hybrid, and SaaS models, facilitating greater collaboration and real-time updates.
Quadrant Knowledge Solutions also compared top PLM solutions. According to Quadrant, PTC offers several advantages over Oracle Fusion:
Comprehensive solutions and a digital thread: Windchill is a comprehensive solution for end-to-end digitalization and efficient product development. By enabling a digital thread throughout the product lifecycle, manufacturers can make informed decisions based on unified, real-time information.
Advanced features and innovation: PTC’s PLM offerings are known for their comprehensive features that equip companies with the tools to drive innovation, accelerate time to market, and improve profitability. The company’s emphasis on software-driven innovation, model-based digital thread, and Industry 4.0 capabilities positions it as a leader in the market.
Cloud-native solutions: Windchill+ is a cloud-native solution that provides all the benefits of cloud computing and services. This includes better automation of the digital thread and advanced generative design and AI capabilities.
Acquisitions and integrations: PTC’s strategic acquisitions, such as Codebeamer and Onshape, enhance its capabilities in application lifecycle management and cloud-native CAD platforms. These acquisitions enable PTC to simplify complex products and software engineering at scale, providing better automation and advanced design capabilities.
Why should you consider Windchill for a new, modern PLM solution?
PLM has become a C-suite topic for most companies. Companies are looking to PLM solutions as a platform to serve more stakeholders, provide opportunities for a strong financial impact, and ultimately optimize a company’s ability to drive more competitive product offerings in their markets.
Windchill offers a modern, comprehensive PLM solution that serves as the cornerstone of PTC’s overall digital thread strategy. Windchill can address the challenges faced by Agile PLM users. With robust security features, continuous updates, and a user-friendly interface, Windchill ensures that your product lifecycle management processes remain efficient, secure, and competitive.