There is no Cloud… PLM
Why don’t you host the server yourself – or use a private cloud vs. someone else’s computer?
A lot of companies we talk to, both large and small, are still a bit skeptical about the PLM potentialities on the cloud. Servers for Product Lifecycle Management software are some of the key repositories of Intellectual Property (IP) for any given company, and if these fall into the wrong hands the results can be very damaging. Your company IP is worth way more than any server and perhaps you’re the best one to know how to protect it.
We know of one green energy company who went out of business over a dozen years ago, and their IT equipment was backed up and sold to the highest bidder at auction. Later on, when the ‘technology’ was resurrected they were able to get their PLM server up and running and recover their design content, saving them millions! I’m sure they would have been able to get their data off the cloud, but back then the cloud didn’t exist… hence, having an on-premise server was the only way to do PLM back then.
The Dark Side of the Cloud
We also know the dark side of the cloud. A ‘reputable’ Cloud vendor (who shall remain nameless) didn’t want to share the bills of materials and part/AML (approved manufacturer) information which was stored on their cloud PLM service by the client company, without extracting a high price for a data download fee. They were trying to make sure the client was ‘locked into’ their tool and giving the IP out would mean the customer could take their content to another competing PLM vendor tool. After a tug-o-war with the vendor it was determined to just mine the PLM database on their own; using a web robot with a login user named Pablo Escobar! Needless to say, the vendor didn’t find this episode very amusing and threatened to sue the client company for mining their own data out of the PLM tool and cranking up the CPU/Disk usage on their leased equipment. You see, there can be a down side to using someone else’s computer. You’ve got to typically play by their rules…
Fortunately, with 4G:PLM you can have it your way. You can order your setup on the cloud (hosted by a reputable hosting firm), or install the server software on your machines locally or on a private cloud (that you maintain). Your choice. We’re here to help. If you haven’t seen our latest – check out our YouTube channel for the best in low cost, affordable (nearly free PLM) PDM/PLM systems.
Next time a PLM salesperson touts the cloud as the best and only way to go, ask yourself if there really is a better way – using another person’s computer, or should you take care of this yourself?