Smith & Wesson Improves Product Development Process with Dassault Systèmes Software Solutions

Lowell, Mass., – March 2, 2009 – Dassault Systèmes (DS) (Euronext Paris: #13065, DSY.PA), a world leader in 3D and Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) solutions, today announced that Smith & Wesson, a leader in the production of quality firearms and safety/security products, has chosen ENOVIA PLM to improve the efficiency of its product design and development process, enabling employees across the globe to collaborate on designs and easily share the most up-to-date product information.  Smith & Wesson will utilize ENOVIA to create a centralized database allowing for common parts identification and to more efficiently capture and re-use its institutional knowledge.

Initially started as a process to replace the company’s paper-based systems, Smith & Wesson opted to go forward with ENOVIA® Engineering Central™ to manage all of its engineering change request/engineering change orders (ECR/ECO), automate business processes and create a centralized database.  Since then, the company’s phased adoption of PLM has evolved to where each additional process enhances the ability of virtually any user to more efficiently accomplish tasks such as engineering changes and frame marking identification.  The implementation has also driven adoption on the shop floor, where product design information stored in ENOVIA is accessed by scanning a production KANBAN card. This provides quick access for operators to the information they need in real time, versus having them interpret design drawings. 

“With ENOVIA, we are able to automate critical business processes, communicate more efficiently both internally and externally, aggregate parts and product quality data in one place and capture what we call our ‘tribal knowledge’ to build best practices,” said Bob Shumsky, PLM systems administrator, Smith & Wesson.  “The most obvious benefit of this implementation has been faster cycles in design and production—drawing approval times have been decreased by 75 percent and ECO approval time reduced 57 percent – both significant metrics.  Overall, we have improved our real-time visibility into engineering changes and the flexibility to make them, versus what we formerly had with paper-based processes.”

Recognizing the opportunity to standardize its process, Smith & Wesson made the decision to build on its already successful implementation of ENOVIA for information management.  Now, approximately 200 design, sales, finance, procurement and marketing personnel have access to a more collaborative environment that makes their lives easier, providing for more efficient production and improved time-to-market.

“Smith & Wesson selected ENOVIA PLM to help it meet two key goals – increase its production capacity and meet changing market demands,” said Michel Tellier, chief executive officer, ENOVIA, Dassault Systèmes.  “ENOVIA PLM is the ideal platform for driving greater interaction among Smith & Wesson’s highly skilled employees and for the simultaneous integration of its tangible design and product information, which ultimately helps it maintain its position as a market leader.”