This is one of those questions that is not a simple cut and dry yes or no, it is fairly involved and requires a bit more explanation.
Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) is composed of a myriad of products to manage all aspects of the data associated with conception, design, creation/manufacture, service, and disposal of a product. The range of software products consists of enterprise data management (EDM), enterprise resource planning (ERP), supply chain management (SCM), product data management (PDM), and customer relationship management (CRM). These software packages do not function on their own, instead they are one cohesive solution that passes information between them constantly updating systems and people with all of the product data necessary to manage and coordinate all of the various parts of product. Throw into the mix the computer aided design (CAD) and computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) processes, Repair and Operations Management (MRO), and you can imagine how complex a PLM can be.
So where am I going with this? I would love to say we do everything above, but it may be a stretch to say that we can create and output CAM files to a CNC machine (maybe we can, someone prove me wrong). OnBase provides an incredible amount of value in an organization where documents are the point of contact, but you knew that already.
The fact is that PLM and OnBase don’t really compare or compete as they have similar but different purposes; it’s not really apples to apples, it’s more like a fruit salad.
The way I see it PLM is about the process and OnBase is a player in that process performing functions in AP, AR, updating the ERP, or SCM application. I say repeatedly that we have a place in the PDM world and feature for feature we compare nicely, and have a great solution for managing CAD files and engineering related processes, like drawings management and engineering change management, so by all means get in those games and play.
There are companies out there that are PLM’s, in that they have solutions for all of the acronyms above and they sell those as one solution. OnBase is absolutely a part of the process but not necessarily "the process", so pitching it as an end all be all PLM isn’t the right angle, but being in the inter-workings of a PLM process is great position to be in, as you are now an integral part of the fruit salad regardless of the type of fruit you are.
