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NetSuite partners with Autodesk for manufacturing solution

The relationship aims to transform modern manufacturing by helping manufacturers confront shifting economic conditions, deliver quality products and address customer innovation requirements, all with a flexible, cloud-based system.

May. 17, 2013

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Cloud-based financial and ERP management provider NetSuite and Autodesk Inc. have announced a strategic alliance to offer manufacturing companies seamless integration of Autodesk PLM 360 and NetSuite ERP.

The relationship aims to transform modern manufacturing by helping manufacturers confront shifting economic conditions, deliver quality products and address customer innovation requirements, all with a flexible, cloud-based system. The integration between Autodesk’s PLM 360, a next-generation cloud-based product lifecycle management solution and NetSuite’s cloud business management solution, including NetSuite Manufacturing Edition, is a major breakthrough in delivering an end-to-end cloud-based solution for ideation, design, manufacturing, service, multi-channel sales, and beyond to the manufacturing industry.

“Nimble manufacturers are disrupting the industry with technologies and techniques to accelerate product development and delivery and drive customer-centric innovation while controlling costs,” said Roman Bukary, NetSuite VP of Manufacturing and Distribution. “NetSuite and Autodesk’s integrated PLM / ERP offers manufacturers the broadest cloud-based business management solution, enabling end-to-end visibility and tremendous gains in speed, efficiency and, most importantly, innovation.”

“More than 50 percent of product costs are locked in during the design phase,” said Brenda Discher, VP of Manufacturing Industry Strategy and Marketing at Autodesk. “The integration of our technologies will empower manufacturers to reduce overall costs and improve quality, while better understanding and adapting to fast-changing customer demands.”

The bi-directional integration of these revolutionary cloud technologies gives manufacturers a single, closed-loop solution to accelerate product design and development, reduce risk of errors and delays, streamline supply network collaboration, and gain critical real-time visibility into costing, scheduling, capacity and profitability.

Market research shows that manufacturers are increasingly turning to cloud-based Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) applications to run product development, production, supply chain, order management, financials and other core business applications without the time and cost burden of on-premise software and servers. Gartner predicts that nearly half (47 percent) of manufacturers worldwide will be using or piloting SaaS applications by 2015, up from just 2 percent in 2010.

Through the integration of NetSuite and Autodesk, everyone involved in the management of processes, projects, and people is uniquely positioned to drive continuous innovation and efficiency across organizations of all sizes. By uniting product lifecycle management (PLM) with enterprise resource planning (ERP), Autodesk and NetSuite are enabling manufacturers to:

  • Speed the cycle from concept to design to delivery, and finally recycle. Product concept, design and engineering data in Autodesk PLM 360, once released, feeds into NetSuite manufacturing to assemble bills of materials (BOMs), source components, assess capacity and more, with role-based authorization across both PLM and ERP systems. Autodesk’s leadership in design, engineering, visualization and simulation software provides an incredible advantage for customers.
  • Bridge the gap between PLM and ERP. Though leading manufacturers depend on both PLM and ERP solutions, integration between the two has traditionally been one way, depriving companies of the opportunities to improve performance and profitability. Autodesk and NetSuite bridge the gap between PLM and ERP with a seamlessly integrated closed-loop solution.
  • Sharpen costing and pricing. On-demand visibility into component and production data, as well as forecasting and demand planning, shared across PLM and ERP systems enables manufacturers to optimize costing and pricing to maximize profitability.
  • Enable intelligent change management. Seamless integration between Autodesk PLM 360 and NetSuite ERP gives designers, engineers, and multi-tier partners as well as other stakeholders a massively scalable platform to ensure that changes are properly documented, propagated and managed in both PLM and downstream manufacturing.
  • Drive post-production efficiency. NetSuite’s acclaimed inventory, order management and fulfillment capabilities help manufacturers improve customer satisfaction, while NetSuite SuiteCommerce supports sales at physical locations (with integrated Point-of-Sale) and through Ecommerce, enabling easy creation of multiple branded or geo-specific websites and expansion into direct-to-consumer Ecommerce.
  • Enable a virtuous circle of innovation. Feedback from customers and partners captured in NetSuite CRM, service and PSA modules gives designers and engineers essential insights to understand customer acceptance of a product, assess criticisms and issues, and to adapt accordingly. The integrated solution also supports closed-loop quality corrective action with suppliers.