ERP and PLM integrations have capped a busy year for Tweddle Group’s Electronic Parts Catalog platform. The system now supports full API linking to an organization’s Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) applications.
The innovations enable automatic updates in the face of vast engineering change, slashing manual labor and adding significant value to the user-facing ordering module.
We caught up with Business Development Director Nick Horan for more details.
So you’ve been working on some new developments for Tweddle Group’s Electronic Parts Catalog. What can you tell us about that?
The platform has really pushed forward in the last year or so. And this has been done in direct response to the needs of one of our customers.
And this was a customer who wanted to integrate their Electronic Parts Catalog, or EPC application with their ERP [Enterprise Resource Planning] and PLM [Product Lifecycle Management] platforms.
Exactly. Their goal was to automate what’s traditionally been executed by professional services personnel.
With the updated platform, EPC now works like this: Basically, you have three main applications connected to each other.
The main application is the electronic parts catalog. That’s naturally the core, it’s the main hub, right?
Any time there’s an update to the customer’s ERP, it’s a trigger. There’s a call to the EPC that says, ‘We’ve got an update.’ Or updates, right? Because sometimes these updates can be pretty extensive.
"When the ERP has a change, it notifies the parts catalog. The catalog reaches out to the CAD database and requests the latest information for any updated parts."
The EPC checks with the PLM, which functions as the CAD database, and requests the latest information for whichever parts have updated.
Without getting into the weeds on the technical side, this is how the update notification process takes place.
Got it. It’s an automatic trigger/response within the three applications.
Correct. Once that all takes place, it triggers an import protocol requesting the relevant data from these sources.
The EPC starts this import process, which is not only pulling the parts data and pulling the CAD files but also may be optimizing the CAD files at the same time.
Why does this optimization take place?
The optimization depends on an organization’s data structure. Sometimes the CAD files being stored are too big for quick rendering within the EPC. If they’re below a certain file size they’ll just import. If they’re too large, the process involves a step file, which is a common file type for CAD. That step file gets ripped down into GLB.
The GLB file reduces the CAD file size.
The GLB helps create a better user experience. Because, when a user clicks on something, no one wants them waiting around for the file to render. With the GLB, it’s click, bang, the image renders.
Just as important, it creates a needed efficiency in the import process, so it doesn’t take weeks and huge amounts of computing power, both of which obviously cost a good amount of money.
GLB minimizes the file’s import time, for the company, and load time, too, on the user experience side.
That’s right.
And, at a high level, that is the magic of this EPC and how it works.
Wonderful.
If you could help me understand some chronology here, and how it impacts information management: What’s been the standard process for EPC updates before the platform brought in these ERP and PLM integrations? Were people having to sit there and cross-reference this list of updates and manually relink new product data?
Yeah. Unfortunately. Without the ERP and PLM integrations, it’s all done manually by people who have to make the logical connections within the system.
So, if you can imagine, you’re picking through the updates, saying ‘This part data belongs to this SVG,’ right? Stuff like that.
That’s now automated. There’s zero intervention required.
Which is huge, you know, when you’ve got a thousand or more changes coming through at a time.
A thousand?
Sure. Or more! That happens.
Yikes. Okay. So, it’s a time save.
It’s a huge time save.
What’s the impact on human error?
That’s a no-brainer, right? You’ve got databases operating in a straight 1:1 update protocol. So you’re eliminating a good deal of human error, too, once you’ve got these three platforms [EPC, ERP, PLM] all talking to each other in their own language.
"THE ERP and PLM integrations eliminate a lot of human error. That’s a no-brainer, right? You’ve got these databases operating on a straight 1-to-1 update protocol."
Do organizations have the option of overriding the talk between these applications? If I’m running an EPC and I note an error in the source information, or if inaccurate information passes through the automated system, what’s my recourse?
Sure. If a customer has, say, an emergent release, like they need to revise some parts information or have a superseded part and urgently need to get that into the application, they can hit a force update button.
If you can’t wait for the regular update timing, that’s an option in the interface for the admins.
So, you can recall data and just perform a new update pull.
That’s actually an important feature. Because this isn’t a live connection where it’s constantly pinging out to find out if something is new.
The pings go out once a week, although that depends on how the client has it configured.
If something comes up between that scheduled data pull, the user can hit that ‘emergency’ button, so to speak. The signal goes out and the new CAD comes in.
Okay, right. If it’s not refreshing when you need it, you perform a manual refresh.
Exactly.
I can’t imagine having to go through and update a thousand part changes manually.
[Laughs] Yeah, I mean, it’s a heavy lift. It’s been exciting to work on. Everybody pulled together and everyone was diligent and committed to doing it properly. Now that it’s operational and working for customers, you know, it’s a good feeling.
To schedule an EPC demo with Nick Horan, email [email protected]
To learn more about EPC’s new ERP and PLM integrations, listen to the Inside Information Podcast interview with Marco De Angelis and Deanna Morlupi, part of TGI’s EPC development team.
Listen to the Inside Information Podcast interview with TGI’s Roberto Coccoluto.
For more information about Electronic Parts Catalog, visit tweddle.com
FAQ
How does the updated EPC platform integrate with ERP and PLM systems? The EPC now connects directly to an organization’s ERP and PLM applications through full API linking. When the ERP registers an update, it triggers a call to the EPC, which then checks the PLM (the CAD database) for the latest part information and begins an automated import process.
What problem does the new EPC integration solve for organizations? Before integration, EPC updates required manual cross‑referencing and relinking of product data by personnel. The new automated system eliminates this manual work, saving significant time and reducing human error, especially when thousands of part changes occur at once.
Why does the EPC platform optimize CAD files during import? Optimization is needed when CAD files are too large for fast rendering in the EPC. Large files are converted from step files into GLB format, which reduces file size, speeds up rendering for users, and prevents long, compute‑heavy import processes.
How does the GLB file format improve the EPC user experience? GLB files load quickly, allowing images to render instantly when a user clicks on a part. This reduces wait times and improves overall usability while also making the import process more efficient and less resource‑intensive.
How frequently does the EPC check for new data from ERP and PLM systems? The EPC sends update pings about once a week, depending on client configuration. This scheduled pull can be supplemented with a manual refresh if urgent updates are required.
Can users override the automated update schedule in the EPC? Yes. If a customer needs to revise parts information urgently or correct an error before the next scheduled weekly data pull, an admin can trigger a manual “force update” to immediately recall and import new CAD data.
