Global Antenna Manufacturer Accelerates Time to Market with SMARTEAM PLM Solution

World’s leader in mobile terminal antennas AMC Centurion projects 30% time to market gain

Kfar Saba, Israel – December 1, 2003 – SmarTeam Corporation Ltd., a Dassault Systèmes company (Nasdaq: DASTY; Euronext Paris: #13065, DSY.PA) announced today that AMC Centurion AB (formerly Allgon Mobile Communications) has implemented SMARTEAM product lifecycle management (PLM) to achieve multi-CAD data management, improve search retrieval, and establish web-based collaboration with suppliers. A case study detailing the AMC Centurion implementation is available from SmarTeam.

Based in Sweden, AMC Centurion is the world’s leading supplier of mobile phone antennas and serves the world’s leading cell phone manufacturers. The company has produced more than 700 different antenna types.

Hans Palm, manager of Customer Engineering Support at AMC Centurion, presented a detailed overview of the successful, phased PLM initiative at the European CATIA Forum in Paris in November 2003.

“The ROI involved in time saved looking for a document is immeasurable…what used to take hours, and sometimes days, now takes just minutes,” said Palm. “We have also realized a great return on revision handling. We undoubtedly won some major business due to our ability to respond so quickly and thoroughly with the right documents.”

The AMC Centurion SMARTEAM implementation involved a three-step process, including migrating all product-related documents to the system, mapping over 100 standard company processes, and providing secure, project-based web access to preferred suppliers.

“By the time we completed stage one, we had gained experience in the world of PDM and discovered that SMARTEAM was very, very clever,” noted Palm. “With SMARTEAM, we now have total control over the whole development process and associated documentation, as well as the other business processes involved. We anticipate reducing our time to market by 30% within a year.”

Citing improved supply chain responsiveness and customer satisfaction as distinct SMARTEAM benefits, Palm also commented on the cost advantage: “We calculated the costs of the system using competitors, and it was over double the investment, over 100% more than the cost of SMARTEAM!”

SMARTEAM reseller Maxiom Partners, of Goteborg, Sweden, mapped out and implemented the solution’s first phases and is working closely with AMC Centurion to expand the Time To Market project's functionality. In the coming year, plans include connecting SMARTEAM with the company’s ERP system for further gains in product lifecycle efficiency.