3D models and drawings of the products and components are an important source of information for work preparation and quality management in particular. The SAP integration makes this data available directly at the SAP workstation in the context of the materials and BOMs at the touch of a button. This is done either by directly accessing CONTACT Elements' content server or the SAP document pool, in which the models and drawings are automatically mirrored.

In order to make decisions, developers also need data from logistics, for example information on stock levels, lead times or current purchase prices. Users can use the appropriate SAP dialogs to obtain this information directly from the CONTACT Elements interface. This solution is useful when the data in the source system is itself structured, for example the stock by location or the purchase prices by supply sources.

The central work planning department supplies the globally distributed production facilities with plant-specific manufacturing BOMs. Mapping design changes to manufacturing BOMs plays a key role in collaboration between product development and work preparation. The xBOM Manager supports this interaction during the transition between development and production planning by ensuring the reliable transfer of any changes made to the BOMs. The plant and order-specific manufacturing BOMs are also available directly in SAP.

Redundancy in the parts inventory results in high costs: According to the strategic parts management specialist CADENAS, a single part incurs process costs of 500 euros or more. With an inventory of 100,000 parts, even 0.5 percent fewer parts would bring about annual cost savings of 250,000 euros. The principle of a single source of truth provides an overview of the company-wide inventory, for example when companies operate multiple ERP instances due to acquisitions or mergers. CONTACT Elements' Shared Object Lifecycle Management helps avoid unnecessary redundancy.