Hägglunds Vehicle, Sweden: STEPs ahead

- Using EXPRESS Data Manager is a great step forward for us, says project manager Roger Ljung of the LOTS-project at Hägglunds Vehicle. The project deals with establishing standards in product data and information meant for technical publications and manuals. In general terms EXPRESS Data Manager is used for describing all kinds of product data, making them into information useful for the outside world, e.g. partners, subcontractors and customers.

An easy choice

- Instead of a proprietary system with its limitations, we now have a system that separates data from applications, Roger Ljung says. - This makes it possible for different departments of the company to share the same data, e.g. design, manufacturing and logistic support. It also simplifies the communication and interpretation of data with our suppliers and subcontractors. This is in fact the essence of the system.

For Hägglunds Vehicle the search for standards in this area brought them to EPM Technology (EPMT). As EXPRESS Data Manager is the only system cohering to the STEP and the ISO standards, the choice of partner was easy.

Interchangeability

- The importance of standards in this area is of utmost importance, Roger Ljung says. - You may compare it with the use of telefax. If the recipient doesn't interpret the message the same way as the sender, the two will not understand each other. To take this a step further, construction data linked to drawings and a construction program need to be based on a standard like STEP to be fully interchangeable.

- It all has to do with interpreting data in a uniform way. This is what we mean by effective flow of information. The STEP standard is still undergoing development, there is still great potential for improvements. But I believe that EPM Technology's way of solving this represents the future. EXPRESS Data Manager has a long life ahead of itself in our company, that much I can say.

A crucial point with STEP is the possibility to do conformity testing, i.e. testing that the Express schema/application protocol have been implemented in a correct manner.

The end of traditional programming

Traditionally, product data systems have been proprietary, involving the extensive use of consulting agencies and a lot of programming. The results of this have been systems comprehensible only for the user company, often only for the department in question. Another factor considered to be a drawback is the implementing company's dependence of the consulting agency.

The concept of "open data" changes all this. The detachment of data from applications is particularly appropriate for product data with a predetermined life cycle. This life cycle may span for several decades.

Involving thousands of components

- So where do the large gains pop up?

- With the STEP standard the models are already there, ready to apply, Roger Ljung explains. - You don't have to start from scratch every time. Examples may be product composition, organizational data and handling of data.

- We haven't been working with the system long enough to see any gains as such yet, at least not financially. But what we do know is that it will lower the costs and ease the efforts of communication considerably. Until now this has to a large extent involved manual registration of data, and this now lies in the past. This again means great savings for us, remembering that we manufacture products with thousands of components.

- It also has to do with keeping up with the progress in the business. This requires continual technological advances, working with state-of-the-art tools and techniques.

Competent people

- Even though we use EXPRESS Data Manager in the field of documentation, I wouldn't call it a document handling system. It is much more than that; it deals with data on a much lower level than documents.

An EPMT system is not implemented and installed over night. The LOTS project, which started more than two years ago, is still in progress. - We still have EPM Technology people working with us on the project, Roger Ljung tells us. - Let me add that they are very competent people with heavy international experience in this field. We are fully satisfied with choosing and working with EPM Technology.

This is Hägglunds Vehicle

The Swedish company Hägglunds Vehicle, established as early as 1899 and now part of the Incentives enterprise, manufactures military vehicles, all terrain vehicles as well as camouflage systems, trailer- and salvage equipment.

At present Hägglunds Vehicle employs 950 people. Sales for 1995 was SEK 1,061 billion, with products mainly exported.

The company has several subsidiaries and affiliates in Europe, the US, Asia and Australia.