Maruti Udyog: Beating Competition

Maruti Udyog Ltd, a subsidiary of the Suzuki Motor Corporation
of Japan, has been the leading Indian passenger car manufacturer for about two
decades now. "In early 2000, all the product design work was being done on
paper, and a growing need was felt to automate the process," CV Raman, GM
Engineering, Maruti said. "The management also wanted to integrate the
engineering function with manufacturing," he added.

Among the company's product development challenges, the need
for shorter cycle times was always a major concern. The management wanted to
launch new models faster, and reduce the time taken up in making minor changes,
and in the development of product variants.

A second challenge was co-development, since Maruti's goal was
to collaborate closely with its global teams and suppliers on the development of
new platforms. Other challenges included streamlining the process of vehicle
localization and enhancing quality and reliability. All of these challenges
pointed towards the need to have a product lifecycle management (PLM) solution
with capabilities for information management, process management, knowledge
capture and support for global collaboration.

Maruti selected UGS's PLM software solution that included
Teamcenter, NX and Tecnomatix software.

Teamcenter provides a wide range of functionalities for release
management, including bills of material management and change management. It
handles the vehicle localization process, coordinates the parts approval process
and integrates design and engineering information with the company's ERP
system. It also provides the infrastructure for global collaboration by
permitting real-time data-sharing with suppliers in India and with the global
Suzuki team.

NX supports vehicle design by providing advanced tools for
styling, product design and digital mockup. Its system-based modeling solution
(WAVE) simplifies the creation of product variants. NX is also used for tool
design and the development of machining programs.

Tecnomatix automates manufacturing process planning and allows
for assembly feasibility studies, ergonomic analyses, welding cell simulations,
etc.

"Post PLM, the time taken to reach the market has been
reduced because of quicker decision making," says Raman.

Since implementing the UGS PLM solution, engineering change
notice (ECN) time at Maruti decreased by 50%. The number of ECN errors was also
reduced by half.

Three-dimensional parametric models showing all elements of a
vehicle and design reviews including digital mockups made design much easier to
understand than when it was all done on paper.

The factory simulation functionality had equally beneficial
results. Digital three-dimensional plant layouts reduced errors and cut down on
personnel costs for accommodating new product introductions. In addition, Maruti
saw a 50% reduction in assembly/build issues.

From the business perspective, all this meant that the vehicles
got to the market sooner with a 25% reduction in design-to-launch time and a
further expected reduction of 15%, as more of the collaboration with Suzuki and
the suppliers is done electronically in real time.

From the customers' perspective, resulted the implementation
of Teamcenter, NX and Tecnomatix, has in reduced prices for five car models.

Underlining the significance of PLM, Raman says: "As the
number of projects increases with time, there will be an urgent need to
integrate project management virtually across the organization."

Stuti Das

stutid@cybermedia.co.in