Centric Software, Inc., is introducing a new version of its landmark product lifecycle management (PLM) system to support the complex requirements of the footwear industry.
Centric 8, Version 4.6 specifically delivers PLM software capabilities for the footwear industry, according to Chris Groves, CEO of Centric, provider of PLM software for apparel, luxury goods and consumer goods companies.
"Importantly, the new version provides the product structure capabilities that footwear makers require in an out-of-the-box format," he explains. "Customers need no customization, and can be up, running and generating return on investment in three to four months—or sooner."
Citing the level of complexity in materials and product options in the footwear industry, Groves states that Version 4.6 will give footwear designers and manufacturers specific capabilities that make PLM more advantageous to their operations than ever. Features include:
Footwear product structure – Centric 8, Version 4.6 incorporates an understanding of the complex compatibilities between components of a shoe that are inherent in the footwear industry.
The system allows for material compatibility and specific product relationships, such as recognition that a particular curved high-heel sole requires a heel of a certain height. This advanced capability—incorporated within Centric 8 in its out-of-the box form—is unique to Centric among PLM software for fashion, footwear, luxury goods and consumer goods products.
Formal/informal size definitions – Beyond supporting sizes on a material-by-material basis, the new version accommodates formal size ranges and sizes for materials. Centric 8 intelligently sets the material sizes correlated with style sizes on a bill of materials (BOM) line, such as matching heel tips of varying sizes with the appropriate heel.
The Centric capability provides a reliable way to understand when sizes for two materials are interchangeable, and how to map material sizes to style sizes.
Mass replace/mass change – The new version allows for mass replacement in the BOM, and mass change of material/color/size. The bulk application of changes throughout all applicable modules of the PLM system allows companies to easily re-use and re-purpose base styles and designs, as well as change out individual variables.
For example, explains Groves, changing prices for leathers can require mass replaces in material usage across the heel and upper of a shoe, as well as in multiple shoes in a collection. Centric 8 handles these mass replacements and changes of materials instantly and accurately. The PLM system instantly reflects the price change for the replacement leather, in this example, in the shoe's FOB cost.
"With Centric 8 Version 4.6, we believe that Centric is uniquely able to deliver a level of sophisticated, complex product structure management to footwear industry customers in a configurable— yet out-of-the-box—system," says Groves. "Coupled with Centric's Agile DeploymentSM methodology, customers achieve measurable value faster than ever."
