Autodesk announced today that they have entered into a partnership with NetSuite, a leading provider of cloud-based ERP software since 1998. Their goal is to provide their customers a seamless integration of PLM 360 and NetSuite ERP (enterprise resource planning), bridging the gap between PLM and ERP.
NetSuite ERP software offers the following:
- Financial Management
- Supply Chain and Inventory
- Order and Billing Management
- Shipping and Fulfillment
- Revenue Recognition Management
- Financial Planning
- Human Capital Management
- Recurring Revenue Management
- Financial Analytics and Reporting
The first thing that jumps out at me is the ability to manage vendor information and inventory with reporting on everything from planning to vendor performance. I think this will be a good offering for companies that wanted the scale-able PLM solution that PLM 360 offers, but were unwilling to move to it due to their ERP requirements. Autodesk expects the ERP integration to enhance adopter’s post-production efficiency and enable intelligent change management. I’ll be quite interested in seeing how well Bill of Materials (BOM) integration and handoffs performs with PLM 360.
All the information is served in a bi-directional link between PLM 360 and NetSuite, allowing everyone in the process of engineering, resource management and distribution to have access to the information, and how it is being used. NetSuite states that it also includes integrated point-of-sale software was well.
“More than 50 percent of product costs are locked in during the design phase,” said Brenda Discher, vice president of Manufacturing Industry Strategy and Marketing at Autodesk. “The integration of our technologies will empower manufacturers to reduce overall costs and improve quality, while better understanding and adapting to fast-changing customer demands (per Autodesk press release).
We have been unable at this time to confirm the price model for NetSuite ERP. It seems to be a per user per month pricing, and numerous websites indicate that similar services are in the range of $100 USD.
Links and more information
More information can be found at the NetSuite website and in the official Autodesk press release.
Guido Haarmans, previously the Vice President, NetSuite Developer Network spent 10 years at Autodesk, “where he was pivotal in creating and growing the Autodesk Developer Network to more than 3,500 members and building a team of over 40 people responsible for all global aspects of the program”. Information gathered from the NetSuite SuiteCloud 2010 page. Mr. Haarmans is currently listed as the Vice President of Business Development for Technology Partners at NetSuite.
Here’s an odd tid-bit of information. I discovered an analysis report on the hypothetical merger between the companies, dated 5/11/2013. I have no idea if it is connected with this announcement, but the timing is interesting. Unfortunately it is priced out at 100 USD, which I will let the rest of you fork over if you desire to. https://reports.reveredata.com/reports/store/report/mna/1044_1690314
