When Affirmed Networks suffered from paper-based engineering change orders (ECO) that resulted in product design confusion, versioning control issues and long shipping delays, the cutting-edge wireless technology company turned to Arena Solutions to ensure synchronization across the supply chain. According to Affirmed Networks technical engineer Ron Garron, Arena helped the company reduce product error delays dramatically. And the problems associated with spreadsheets disappeared. "We've seen dramatic improvement in our order accuracy," says Garron. "Arena has been a remarkable change for us and every day we are trying to find new ways to use the tool to make us more efficient." Arena's centralized cloud-based solution provided Affirmed Network's supply chain team controlled access to the proper versions of the product record, slashing engineering cycle delays by 90 percent and eliminating the need for a costly five-person IT management team.

In addition to listing hard metrics related to Arena, Garron offered this compelling business anecdote of how Arena helped the business: "Recently, we had a team at a sales conference, and I got a message that we needed a product pushed through right away and needed a quote," said Garron. "I created an ECO and pushed it through our ERP system. From the time I got the email - the quote occurred almost instantaneously. Without Arena PLM BOMControl, we would have never been able to do that." Affirmed Networks is one example of how Arena has helped companies achieve supply chain excellence through its suite of PLM and supply chain solutions.

Inventors of Cloud PLM

Arena's suite of PLM and supply chain solutions enable engineering, manufacturing and their extended supply chains to speed prototyping, reduce scrap, streamline their supply chain, improve margins, and collapse time to market. Based in Foster City, Calif., Arena's PLM applications simplify bill of materials (BOM) and change management for organizations of all sizes.

The company has been ranked as a Top 10 PLM provider and Top 5 Supplier Collaboration solution by Business-Software.com. It's also recognized as the most affordable PLM solution. Arena delivers the promised benefits of a cloud-based PLM solution, namely cost savings, reduced security risks, ease of implementation, and a faster path to ROI. In addition, Arena is the most scalable PLM solution on the market able to meet the needs of cash-strapped startups, yet robust enough to satisfy the demands of a global enterprise.