Tackling PLM at Verian Semiconductor

Equipment manufacturer seek to drive product development performance by deploying product lifecycle management solution from Aras

Equipment manufacturer seek to drive product development performance by deploying product lifecycle management solution from Aras

Lawrence, MA — November 1, 2004 — Varian Semiconductor Equipment Associates will use a product lifecycle management (PLM) solution from Aras to provide visibility and actionable metrics for product development and engineering change.

Headquartered in Gloucester, Mass., Varian is a producer of ion implantation equipment used in the manufacture of semiconductors. The company reported $154.8 million in revenue for its 2004 fiscal year ended in October.

Varian's market position requires the constant advancement of product technology and the flawless execution of business processes. Increasing product and process complexity led Varian to look for a practical solution to simplify and integrate the overall product change process for better coordination. Following a review of PLM solutions on the market, Varian selected Aras PLM based on functionality, cost of ownership and the ability to deploy the solution incrementally.

Aras said that its PLM solution will enable Varian to manage, measure and improve its overall product development process. The fact that the Aras solution is based on Microsoft .NET technology appealed to Varian for reasons of simplicity and affordability. By utilizing Microsoft .NET technology, Aras takes advantage of the common Microsoft platforms in addition to being entirely based on standard Internet protocols including HTTP / HTTPS, XML and SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol).

In addition to the product change process, Varian Semiconductor plans to use Aras PLM for project management, quality systems compliance support and the process for managing customer and engineering commitments.

Varian is counting on the implementation of Aras PLM to enable cycle-time reduction by unifying and streamlining the change management process. The hoped-for benefits also include improved quality and availability of product information throughout the company.

"In our industry, superior quality and customer responsiveness are essential to maintain leadership," said Jim Sutton, manager of IT engineering systems for Varian Semiconductor. "The metrics in the Aras solution give us the visibility we need to direct our product and engineering change processes and enable us to meet our continuous improvement initiatives."

"Aras understands the challenges of semiconductor equipment manufacturers like Varian Semiconductor, and that is why we are committed to delivering practical business ready solutions that deploy quickly, adapt easily, and scale rapidly," said Rick Lucier, CEO of Aras.

For more information on Aras PLM  Version 6, see the SDCExec.com article "Putting the KPIs in PLM to Improve Product Development."
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