Case Studies ACCO BRANDS Boosts Innovation, Collaboration; Cuts Cycle Time in Half

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	ACCO BRANDS Boosts Innovation, Collaboration; Cuts Cycle Time in Half

ACCO BRANDS Boosts Innovation, Collaboration; Cuts Cycle Time in Half

Technology Category	Application Infrastructure & Middleware - Data Exchange & Integration Functional Applications - Product Lifecycle Management Systems (PLM) Platform as a Service (PaaS) - Data Management Platforms
Applicable Industries	Consumer Goods
Applicable Functions	Business Operation Product Research & Development Quality Assurance
Services	Software Design & Engineering Services System Integration
Challenge	ACCO Brands aimed to improve innovation, collaboration, and standardize product life cycle management (PLM) to speed time to market, reduce costs, and enhance product quality. The company identified several areas for improvement, including product change processes, document collaboration, and supplier corrective actions. The product change process took an average of two months for final approval, and document collaboration was hindered by separate document management systems for each major supplier. This led to inconsistent versions, miscommunications, mistakes, and lost time. Corrective actions were also slow, relying on phone calls and emails, making it difficult to implement closed-loop corrections quickly. Read More
About Customer	ACCO Brands is a leading global provider of consumer goods, known for brands such as Swingline and Kensington. The company focuses on innovation and collaboration to enhance product quality and speed time to market. ACCO Brands operates on a large scale, with a significant presence in the Americas, Europe, and Asia. The company sought to improve its product life cycle management (PLM) processes to support its aggressive growth strategy. By adopting advanced PLM solutions, ACCO aimed to streamline its operations, reduce costs, and enhance product quality, ultimately achieving faster time to market and better collaboration for innovation. Read More
Solution	ACCO Brands adopted the Aras Innovator Solution Suite, an enterprise PLM solution from Microsoft Gold Certified Partner Aras. The solution was chosen for its low cost, faster deployment time, and flexibility. Aras Innovator provided a single version of the truth for data, enabling better global collaboration. The solution runs on Windows Server 2008 and Microsoft SQL Server 2005, with an enterprise service-oriented architecture based on the Microsoft .NET Framework. The web-based user interface allows ACCO to collaborate with suppliers worldwide, streamlining processes such as product changes and supplier corrective actions. The centralized location for product management eliminates the need for FTP and email, ensuring that all personnel work from the same controlled files. Read More Log in to view content
Contents

Technology Category

Application Infrastructure & Middleware - Data Exchange & Integration

Functional Applications - Product Lifecycle Management Systems (PLM)

Platform as a Service (PaaS) - Data Management Platforms

Applicable Industries

Consumer Goods

Applicable Functions

Business Operation

Product Research & Development

Quality Assurance

Services

Software Design & Engineering Services

System Integration

Challenge

ACCO Brands aimed to improve innovation, collaboration, and standardize product life cycle management (PLM) to speed time to market, reduce costs, and enhance product quality. The company identified several areas for improvement, including product change processes, document collaboration, and supplier corrective actions. The product change process took an average of two months for final approval, and document collaboration was hindered by separate document management systems for each major supplier. This led to inconsistent versions, miscommunications, mistakes, and lost time. Corrective actions were also slow, relying on phone calls and emails, making it difficult to implement closed-loop corrections quickly.

About Customer

ACCO Brands is a leading global provider of consumer goods, known for brands such as Swingline and Kensington. The company focuses on innovation and collaboration to enhance product quality and speed time to market. ACCO Brands operates on a large scale, with a significant presence in the Americas, Europe, and Asia. The company sought to improve its product life cycle management (PLM) processes to support its aggressive growth strategy. By adopting advanced PLM solutions, ACCO aimed to streamline its operations, reduce costs, and enhance product quality, ultimately achieving faster time to market and better collaboration for innovation.

Solution

ACCO Brands adopted the Aras Innovator Solution Suite, an enterprise PLM solution from Microsoft Gold Certified Partner Aras. The solution was chosen for its low cost, faster deployment time, and flexibility. Aras Innovator provided a single version of the truth for data, enabling better global collaboration. The solution runs on Windows Server 2008 and Microsoft SQL Server 2005, with an enterprise service-oriented architecture based on the Microsoft .NET Framework. The web-based user interface allows ACCO to collaborate with suppliers worldwide, streamlining processes such as product changes and supplier corrective actions. The centralized location for product management eliminates the need for FTP and email, ensuring that all personnel work from the same controlled files.

Impact #1	ACCO Brands achieved faster time to market and better collaboration for innovation and quality.
Impact #2	The company reduced product change cycle times by over 50%, saving more than a month on each proposed change.
Impact #3	The solution provided greater visibility into customer issues and supplier quality, enabling data-driven innovations.

Impact #1

ACCO Brands achieved faster time to market and better collaboration for innovation and quality.

Impact #2

The company reduced product change cycle times by over 50%, saving more than a month on each proposed change.

Impact #3

The solution provided greater visibility into customer issues and supplier quality, enabling data-driven innovations.

Benefit #1	Reduced product change cycle time by over 50%.
Benefit #2	Achieved faster time to market for new products.
Benefit #3	Improved global supplier quality.

Benefit #1

Reduced product change cycle time by over 50%.

Benefit #2

Achieved faster time to market for new products.

Benefit #3

Improved global supplier quality.

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Overview

ACCO BRANDS Boosts Innovation, Collaboration; Cuts Cycle Time in Half

Operational Impact

Quantitative Benefit