One of the most advanced inspection programs implemented in the aerospace industry is Pratt & Whitney's (East Hartford, CT) Computerized Product Development (CPD) initiative. The aim of CPD is to reduce engine development lead time and cost.

Tecnomatix (Northville, MI) has worked closely with Pratt & Whitney for a number of years. Using Tecnomatix software, Pratt & Whitney has cut new engine development time in half. The company has reduced development costs by 75 percent, reduced post-certification changes by 80 percent, and put test parts out on the floor in 7 months instead of 15. On one engine part alone, Pratt & Whitney reduced manufacturing time from 10 days to 1, saving $773 per part ($557,000 annually). Pratt & Whitney produces 10,000 parts in-house each year for 800 engines. So the potential for savings is huge. "Tecnomatix is helping us reduce engine development lead-time cost, part costs and time-to-market. We are standardizing our processes with Tecnomatix, and will request that our suppliers also use these software tools," says Dave Pomeroy, manager of manufacturing systems engineering operations at Pratt & Whitney.

Tecnomatix offers the eMPower line of software. The software addresses how a product has to be manufactured . It provides the link between product design systems that address what has to be manufactured, and shop-floor execution systems that address when and where. Its open platform provides a collaborative environment for authoring, simulating and optimizing manufacturing processes. eMPower helps manufacturing companies boost their competitiveness by accelerating product introductions and time-to-volume, allowing rapid change implementation, and the fast transfer of processes.

eMPower products are available in several versions. Each version comprises advanced applications for both mechanical and electronics manufacturing. These versions include: eM-Planner, eM-Plant, eM-Engineer, eMPower for Machining, and eMPower for Quality for most mechanical manufacturing environments; and eMPower PCB Assembly and Test, eMPower Box Build, and eMPower Execution Systems for electronics manufacturing.

Pratt & Whitney's goal is to have its suppliers implement the same software that makes its CPD so successful. The standardization of tools in the extended enterprise will allow a broad improvement in quality, as well as collaboration at a level that permits simultaneous development within the company and among its suppliers. Ultimately, Pratt & Whitney's extended enterprise will be unified through the Web, enabling its management to view the entire process as a whole and control it on the desktop.

For more information on eMPower, call 248-699-2500 or visit www.tecnomatix.com.