Leading global automotive manufacturer integrates By Windchill PLM part master with SAP, resulting in savings of $ 5mn

About the client

Our client is a leading global automobile component supplier with over 60 years of manufacturing excellence. They have consistently delivered the same quality and innovation to different markets. Their product catalog includes sealing, fuel, brake components, and fluid transfer systems. Currently headquartered in Northville, Michigan, they employ approximately 25,000 people globally and operate in 21 countries worldwide.  


Client challenges

As a leading global components supplier, they run large-scale supply chain operations and deal with massive materials inflow. Their primary challenge was integrating their Windchill PLM part master with SAP, as inconsistent part numbers were reflected across multiple applications. There were also concerns with extremely poor data quality on part numbers and descriptions. Traditional point-to-point integrations involve high maintenance, and updates to parts information were unavailable on a timely basis across the enterprise. Their requirement was an integrated system that was seamless, non-disruptive, entirely automated, and adapted to multi-scale needs.  

Solution

Our expert team did an assessment first and then implemented the following activities: 

  • Created an API and services-based integration design. 
  • A common reusable error handling and audit framework was developed. 
  • Implemented Boomi Molecule for increased scalability and failover support. 
  • SAP was updated when new parts information was generated in PLM. 
  • Automatic Master data retrieval for SAP with every update. 
  • Streamlined API calls for efficient and seamless event handling. 
  • Seamless data conversion enables effortless SOAP data conversion to XML format. 
  • Centralized exception handling helped log all the exceptions in a shared repository for easy tracking.
Results at a glance
$430K savings in month 1  $5 million in IT savings year 1  70% increase in data quality 
Benefits
  • Our solution improved work efficiency and application performance. 
  • Error-handling tasks were completely simplified, and the centralized integration allowed for streamlined operations. 
  • New part numbers are available in real time across all downstream systems the moment they are generated in Windchill. 
  • Data quality issues with parts information eliminated. 
  • Drastic improvements in operational processes, which involve billing and invoicing. 
Technology

Boomi, SAP