Free Webinar on the Promise and Reality of the Digital Thread

This webinar will share findings from recent primary research undertaken by CIMdata.

ANN ARBOR, Michigan, USA 9 February 2023—CIMdata, Inc., the leading global PLM strategic management consulting and research firm, announces an upcoming free webinar, “The Promise and Reality of the Digital Thread.” The webinar will take place on Thursday, 9 March 2023, at 11:00 a.m. (EST) and will last for one hour.

The concept of linking multiple representations of a product, each tuned to the needs of various creators and consumers along the lifecycle, is very powerful. Until recently, tracing these linkages has been primarily a manual process. But now, with recent advances in commercial PLM solutions, the digital thread, with automated linkages and traceability, has become a practical possibility.

With the newness of this approach, there is not much available in the way of lessons learned or actual value achieved. This lack of real data is a barrier to broader investment. On the solution side, providers are constantly seeking additional insight into the current state and future investment drivers within industry, which is crucial to their solution strategies and roadmaps. CIMdata, on behalf of the Aerospace & Defense PLM Action Group, has recently completed an extensive industry research project on the digital thread. Aras, Eurostep, Jama Software, PTC, and Siemens Digital Industries Software were also research partners.

This webinar will share CIMdata’s perspective on the digital thread: what it is, what drives its value, and how to realize value in practice. Key findings from the industry research will be provided.

Attendees at this webinar will:

• Gain an understanding of the basic concept of a digital thread.
• Learn about the basic guidelines for designing and incrementally implementing a digital thread vision.
• Understand the perspectives of industry leaders regarding the nature of the digital thread and drivers for investment.
• Learn where and how industry leaders have successfully implemented portions of their digital thread vision.
• Learn where and how industry leaders are planning to invest in expanding their digital thread vision.
• Recognize the most significant barriers faced and the mitigation methods employed by industry leaders in pursuit of their digital thread vision.
• Find out how industry leaders view the current state of digital thread-enabling technologies and the degree of alignment with their solution providers.

According to James Roche, CIMdata’s Director, Aerospace & Defense Practice, and the host for this webinar, “The concept of the digital thread is vast and inspiring, and the value potential is real. Leaders in many industries are pursuing digital thread strategies, often without a clear vision, and in many instances within or alongside digitalization, another vast and inspiring concept. Such initiatives are high risk. The industry research recently completed by CIMdata provides a critical fact base to guide thoughtful planning with greater reach and reduced risk.”

James Roche has 35+ years of experience in transformation and the IT enablement of product development and manufacturing processes. Before joining CIMdata, he was a PLM Practice Manager at CSC Consulting and A.T. Kearney. He was also at EDS, serving as the chief architect for General Motors’ global engineering systems and as the head technical negotiator for strategic supplier contracts.

Anyone with responsibility or interest in product program integration, systems engineering, PLM program planning, or, more generally, in digitalization or digital thread will find the presentation interesting.

During the webinar, attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions about the topics discussed. To find out more, visit: https://www.cimdata.com/en/education/educational-webinars/webinar-the-promise-and-reality-of-the-digital-thread-results-of-industry-research. To register for thewebinar, please visit: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/2001858157211776781.