Phil Crowe
Lead PLM Consultant, Blatchford
Medical devices are designed, engineered and manufactured to an incredibly high standard, saving and changing lives. For this reason, medical device manufacturers are heavily regulated, and the processes that go into producing devices need to be accurate, efficient and kept up to date.
Blatchford makes mobility possible. Blatchford designs and manufactures products to offer individuals the best possible mobility, function, comfort and cosmesis after amputation or other pathology.
Blatchford’s products prioritise users’ wellbeing and long-term health. Through engineering expertise, technology advances and a clear focus on people, Blatchford’s innovative prosthetics, based on bio-mimetic design principles, work perfectly in sync with the body to provide efficiency of movement and function.
To keep serving these goals, the team at Blatchford decided to optimise and improve the current processes with digital transformation, including the implementation of PLM.
Blatchford is supported on its digital transformation journey by PLM specialists, Concurrent Engineering.
Product lifecycle management is crucial in an industry like medical devices, and it has to be done correctly. Amit Bose, Phil Crowe, and the Blatchford implementation team are in the process of ensuring everyone is aligned with a vision with a clear picture of the future. Investing in a state-of-the-art PLM solution and wider digital transformation will enable growth and further success.
Blatchford identified PTC Windchill as its preferred PLM solution because it was better aligned with the overall vision compared to the offerings available from other vendors.
Achieving a successful implementation meant finding a partner that could challenge when needed, add value and keep the project on track. This meant working with a company with deep expertise in PLM and understanding of the challenges of the medical device industry. Concurrent Engineering was chosen based on their ability to meet Blatchford’s needs in these areas.
The project embraced a cross-functional team from the start, including the mechanical design team, operations team, and quality team from Blatchford. They are working collaboratively with PLM specialists, Concurrent Engineering, who support the Blatchford team with subject matter experts, PLM technical knowledge and deep project delivery expertise.
Concurrent Engineering understood the challenges Blatchford faced and communicated these fluently at all levels of the business - from sales through to the team involved in implementing the solution.
The team at Concurrent Engineering offered the flexibility Blatchford needed from day one — and continue to provide flexibility through the implementation phase of the PLM solution. Working collaboratively with Concurrent Engineering, Blatchford approached the project with transparency, a fluid dialogue and an eagerness to learn from an expert in the PLM space.
While early in the process, Blatchford has found the ability to work interactively with the solution architects at Concurrent Engineering key to the progress so far. Blatchford is currently on the path to a successful implementation of Windchill, which started in 2021.
There is a strong realisation that the project is in its infancy, but the vision remains the same.
The key objective for the project is to gain a single source of truth that will impact every part of the product lifecycle - from design to enduser adoption and discontinuation.
As the PLM project enters the implementation stage, it will realise key business benefits. These include digital workflows with a check, review and approval process in Windchill and removing bureaucracy and inefficient processes making it easier to get work done and giving employees more opportunity to focus of value-add activities.
The project has been deemed a success so far and the teams at both Blatchford and Concurrent Engineering will continue to work together to deliver the state-of-theart PLM solution. Follow the journey as the teams share updates on the benefits and best practices of implementing a PLM solution.
