By Todd Cummings

So management has determined it’s time to update your engineering document management (EDM) system. Your company is well aware of the benefits EDM can bring to the organization and you’ve been put in charge of implementing a system for gaining better control and management of data, increased productivity, improved quality, better collaboration and communication, and a positive impact on the bottom line.

You’ve interviewed likely users, done the research, and have purchased the system. Now what? The one overriding question of implementation remains. In order to facilitate a smooth transition to the new system, it becomes imperative to recognize both best practices to follow and pitfalls to avoid. By identifying these steps early on, you can assure an effective and efficient implementation.

› › Managing data across multiple geographically dispersed design teams is one of the most important benefits of an EDM system.

While every implementation is unique, there are several similarities. Here are the top seven most common steps to successfully implementing an EDM program.

A pre-implementation consultation includes an in-depth analysis of your existing procedures and processes and a thorough understanding of your goals. You’ll want to craft a plan that gives you measurable results; e.g., finding documents faster, eliminating duplicate files, or better collaboration between team members. This should be a collaborative and interactive process with your EDM vendor that not only educates them about your specific environment, but also educates your company’s staff about the solutions and the steps required for a successful project rollout.

Do not under plan. Make sure you are taking into account the needs of all your users at all levels of the system. While you may have many MCAD users, you’ll also need to consider designing the system for business and other non-MCAD types so that they can easily access information from a project without jeopardizing the integrity of the original design. You should also consider planning ahead for other departments that might want to begin to manage their data in the system.

Next, you’ll want to import your legacy files, plus any legacy databases in which you already store document information. This could be another EDM system or another business systems database.

^^ An EDM system can automate the importation of legacy data into a database, where it is easily searchable on multiple criteria.

While this step may vary in manner and complexity depending on the solution you select, most EDM systems, including Synergis Adept, have some kind of tool for automatically importing legacy files and automatically adding a database record for each file it finds. Some systems also import data from Autodesk DWG and Microsoft Word or Excel files that you have set up for extracting attributes and properties.

If you have been running other EDM systems, or informally tracking your files with a database or spreadsheet, you might choose to import your existing database records. Synergis, as well a few others, provides custom conversion services to import this external data.

Because the volume of nested file folders can be the bane of a migration project, look to the vendor for tools and expertise when migrating data from other EDM systems, other non-standard database formats, or from simple and complex databases.

Collaboration with remote users and distributing documents to remote or global teams has become an established fact in business. Depending on your needs, you might want to set up vaults at remote locations or allow remote users to access your data in a centralized repository. Ask your EDM vendor to help set up the best configuration for your particular situation, while giving you plenty of room to adapt as your installation grows.

Moving large files across the wire requires that you have an optimal infrastructure in place. For example, a dial-up connection between remote locations is a recipe for frustration and potential failure. There are hardware upgrades to clients and possible LAN, WAN, and Internet connections to anticipate. Testing ahead of going live can help you address infrastructure challenges.

Data contributes the most value to your organization when it’s in a standard format that can be shared among other business information systems. To get there, you will need to look at the import and export functionality of your EDM system. For routine processes, it’s best to automate the exchange of data by using an API.

Some EDM systems, however, scramble file names and folders, making it extremely difficult to access your data after it is imported into the EDM system. Make sure you have an exit plan that allows you to retrieve your data assets anytime, anywhere.

The proven way to win user acceptance, and rapidly gain benefits from the software is through training—either in a classroom or onsite. Ideally, you’ll want to get your administrators thoroughly trained prior to implementing the system. With classroom training offsite, an administrator can learn how to implement a system from people who have real-world experience. Your administrator can then train your staff to use the system in less than a day. It might be wise to send at least two representatives to training to ensure that the knowledge you are investing in stays with your enterprise should an administrator leave the company.

Most vendors offer a number of ways to support your software after installation. This can include telephone support (annually or as-needed), Web-based support, and onsite support. You’ll want to determine the option that best meets your organization’s needs. Some vendors offer educational Web casts, or archive recorded Web cast trainings. Don’t make the mistake of assuming technical support will substitute for actual training when trying to implement a system. Most software vendors make this plain by referring customers to a training course.

It’s not uncommon for companies to purchase an affordable off-the-shelf product and add custom features to achieve a higher ROI, rather than investing in a higher-end, more expensive implementation. For example, you might require special features, such as numbering new files to match your own reserved numbering system, or you might want to force certain fields to follow certain conventions.

Just don’t over-engineer your system. You might think that you need a custom application, but find that the system does 80 to 90 percent of what you require right out of the box. Find out if your vendor has already created an application that is similar in scope to what you’re looking for. Also remember to ask about the maintenance of any code so you won’t be set back in time or money when a new version of the software comes out.

Todd Cummings is the vice president of research and development for Synergis Adept Engineering Data Management software. Todd has directed R&D at Synergis Software for more than 11 years and is passionate about the value EDM brings to an organization. Send your comments about this article through e-mail by clicking here. Please reference “Effective EDM, August 2006” in your message.

Jim McKittrick, CAD manager and Adept systems administrator at Gillig Corporation, the second largest producer of heavy-duty transit buses in North America, was charged with implementing the company’s document management system.

“We conducted an in-depth analysis of our business process and determined that Engineering, Accounting, Sales and Publications could all benefit from Synergis Adept. The Synergis Software Services Team helped us identify exactly what we needed to do. We leveraged Synergis’ in-house Application Development Team to create a one-time customization of Adept, which included some of Synergis’ existing off-the-shelf extensions, an automated part-numbering extension designed for the company’s exacting specifications, and a ‘Sign In Recorder’ extension that easily imports data from Adept into other business systems such as ERP/MRP. After training our users with a test Adept database, we migrated our data from another system, set up Adept, and got all the custom extensions running in one weekend in April 2004. It has been live ever since.”—TC

Synergis Adept
Synergis Technologies
Quakertown, PA