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Two major concepts in DevOps

Continuous integration is the practice of automatically integrating and testing a piece of software each time a code is created by a developer. Continuous delivery goes a step further to package the software, perform regression testing, and ensure that the software is ready for release.

FlexPLM is one of the leading Retail Product Lifecyle Management (PLM) enterprise application by PTC. It has been in the market since mid-2000’s and has some of larger implementations across the globe. You can access more information about FlexPLM from .

Why DevOps?

DevOps lets the IT teams work in a way that enables a manufacturing assembly-line operation for software development. DevOps comprises of Continuous Integration (CI) and Continuous Delivery (CD). DevOps Lifecycle enables continuous product deployment through effective infrastructure automation, configuration management, deployment automation and infrastructure monitoring.

is one of the most used tools for automation of the CI/CD pipeline. It has worked well and has probably the highest acceptability with customers.

With that, let us explore why DevOps for FlexPLM implementations

We will begin with the barriers the client faced in exploiting the full potential of its manufacturing capability. Many of these are familiar to manufacturing businesses:

• End user expect faster turnaround time for changes, manual Change Request process can may it difficult to match end user requirements.
• Development & operations teams can keep shooting each other in the foot, if not in sync.
• Process of making even minor changes like type manager changes and deployment is not completely error proof.
• Lower environments may not have latest server configurations, and this can cause issues to slip through.
• Patches and service packs deployments are not simple click through deployments.
• FlexPLM architecture does not permit , at least our attempts have failed so far. Downtime needs to be managed, considering the users’ geographical spread.

Our learnings from teams that are successfully running on DevOps principles.

• Start small and keep adding layers of automation, it will take some number of iterations to get it right.
• Invest in developing Agile mindset within the team. Plan, deliver, retrospect, adjust and repeat.
• Define your pipelines with long term goals in mind, and with gate events with clear thresholds. Everyone should see what is happening.
• Keep a single repository of code. With Branching and merging strategies aligned to your pipeline events.
• Invest in tools, and building utilities to automate certain tasks that are otherwise error prone e.g. Type Manager loads, test data load.
• Tools like to ensure consistent developer environment,
• Type data as a Config Item can be extremely painful to handle. We had to develop custom utility to compare configurations between two environments, generate a delta config load file (including for deletes and Enums) that is used for deployments
• Implement and integrate code analyzers with your SCM tool. Selecting right rules is critical, there can be a whole lot of false positives because of the old school API’s in FlexPLM
• Building Continuous testing is a must have.in your DevOps pipeline. Most common type of issues that can slip through are configuration issues. Setup automated tests as gate events. These include running unit, system, integration, and performance testing. Design your builds to self-test.
• Smoke testing, Functional testing, Integration testing and Regression testing are part of testing phase. Popular testing tools like Junit and are leveraged for the different testing phases

• Infrastructure as Code – automate your server provisioning and application properties setup for the FlexPLM server e.g. cluster node count, cache sizes etc.
• Continuous Delivery and Deployment need release orchestration and artifacts management., As the team works on shorter deployment cycles maintaining deployment artifacts manually is not possible. Use tools like Artifactory
• System Monitoring There are bunch of tools available as SaaS services, but important thing is to setup correct thresholds. tool built on gives features like real-time dashboards and heap dumps for crash analysis. Obviously, the paid version gives more features such as “” that can be helpful in detailed performance analysis. is a popular log management & analytics tool.

We are sure we’ve just scratched the surface here but hoping this would inspire some to take the first steps. Refer to the for the best in class tool options for each phase of DevOps.

Bon voyage on this new journey!

Author:

Girish Deshpande
Lead Consultant, PLM
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Hemalatha Poola
Senior Project Manager, PLM
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Nitin Ratti
General Manager, PLM
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We’ll roll back the story a bit. The motorcycle manufacturer (our customer) was keen to reduce design-to-market time for its new models by 33 %. To do this, they were implementing a PLM system. Over the last few years, �ֲ���ý��Ƶ had moved the Design to Service phase and the Design to Engineering phase to a PLM platform. Later, the much more complex Design to Manufacturing phase was taken up. This engagement had already helped �ֲ���ý��Ƶ with insights into the customer’s business.

Now imagine this: If the motorcycle manufacturer’s dealers cannot identify the right spare parts and order them, the dealers will end up with unhappy customers who think poorly of the motorcycle manufacturer. The reputation of the manufacturer would be deeply affected. The manufacturer would lose business and the brand would suffer unnecessary erosion.

To fix this problem, �ֲ���ý��Ƶ had created a web-based Electronic Part Catalogue System (built on PTC technology) integrated with Dealer Management System (built on Microsoft Dynamics technology). The catalogue could be accessed over the desktop. Dealers logged in and selected the part number and quantity to order. The system told them what the part/s would cost and when they would be delivered. But the dealer’s employees don’t always sit in an office where they can access a desktop and login. They would be better enabled by an equivalent mobile version to order spares from any location. To extend the compatibility of the web application to mobile phones, without compromising on functionality, we needed to discover and understand the whitespaces on mobile devices. For this we had to conduct discovery workshops. Normally, this would not have been a problem. We would have been physically present at the client’s location for a face-to-face workshop. But with COVID-19 restricting travel this was impossible.

“Would remote design sessions and workshops with the business and IT team of the client be the solution?” we wondered. We were apprehensive because there were complex and nuanced processes to explain. Worse, if done incorrectly, the workshops could affect the quality of the deliverables. The situation challenged us to create new ways to conduct the workshop.

We love a technological challenge and this time we went full throttle!

For those trying to set up similar workshops, we have lessons to share. These can prove handy when you try to implement your workshops to overcome the challenges posed by COVID-19 and perhaps even turn the process into a default mode of interaction, much beyond COVID-19.

The opportunity for us was to enable a digitally connected workforce. Here is how we did it (summed up in Figure 1), without a drop in productivity or compromising the outcomes.

Figure 1

Structural change

• De-facto enablement of remote connectivity to customer network to ensure seamless work delivery
• Setup infrastructure with the customer and validate the connectivity (VPN, etc.)
• Trial run with limited stake holders

Procedural change

• Virtual workshops enabled by tools like Adobe XD and Microsoft Teams which promote asynchronous and synchronous multi-way communication
• Prepare and circulate workshop calendar with clearly defined expectations from client stakeholders and desired outcomes from each workshop topic

Functional change

• Prescriptive approach during workshops focused towards driving consensus tailored with predefined templates covering use case, requirement gathering, questionnaire etc. This approach reduced the workshop duration and the need for direct customer engagement by up to ~50% without compromising the quality of output
• Hybrid or Agile based execution ensuring iterative process, remote conference room piloting demos using customer’s data enabled with Train the Trainer approach and remote UAT assistance.

Did we get the desired results to develop the mobile application?

The workshops succeeded. We developed the UI and UX wireframe design for the mobile interface leveraging our VSC model (Virtually Seamlessly Connected) which defines methodologies, tools, processes to execute projects where complete project or program execution need to be done remotely or by working from home. We even equipped our development team to work from home (laptops, high bandwidth Internet connectivity, access to customer’s environment, etc.). The development is progressing well. We hold daily virtual stand up meetings, ensure transparent reporting on productivity, manage governance and 100% business continuity.�� There has been zero work disruption and we are on target to meet delivery timelines. Plus, we are confident that the customer’s dealers will get an application they are comfortable with – we plan to make them so comfortable that they believe they created the application. Isn’t that the true goal of all application development?

We know you too can use this methodology. But if you face a challenge—especially when working on PLM projects!—you know you can depend on us to create the right remote solution.

About Author:

Akhil Jain is VP, PLM, at �ֲ���ý��Ƶ. He is responsible for managing the PLM practice and delivery for Manufacturing and CPG globally and comes with strong technology consulting and implementation experience in PLM packages focused on Manufacturing, Retail and CPG. Prior to �ֲ���ý��Ƶ he was managing the PLM practice and delivery for Infosys.

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Faster Shipping

, the current shipping wait time has gone down by a day, when compared to 2018. What does this suggest? Retail businesses are in a race to improve delivery times. People want their deliveries in the shortest possible time and they will prefer a business that will make this happen. Smart supply chains that leverage the power of IoT and analytics will lead the way.

Subscription e-Commerce

Subscription commerce is another technology-led trend that has been growing exponentially. Here, customers, rather than purchasing a single product, subscribe to a constant supply of it. The best example is Dollar Shaving Club, which delivers shaving essentials to it members on a monthly basis. Founded in 2011 with a seed investment of $1 million, it was recently acquired by an FMCG biggie for a whopping 1 billion. The trend indicates that people are willing to fork out money to get the experience they prefer.

Personalized Shopping

The use of artificial intelligence and big data in e-commerce has proven to be a huge hit. The reason is simple – consumers prefer relevant purchase suggestions to irrelevant ones. According to a study, feel that retailers do not know what they want. The writing on the wall is clear. Retailers need to listen to what their consumers want and leverage technology to make it happen.

Shopping on Social Media

Mobile phones have transformed shopping behavior throughout the world. With people spending huge amounts of time on social media, shopping on them or simply checking out the products is getting popular. Online retailers are already taking advantage of social analytics and reaping big benefits. ��

Experiential Commerce

People, especially millennials, are focusing more on experiences than material. The preference for ‘retail experience’ has led to integration of new technologies with traditional shopping. Concept stores like Amazon Go are already testing waters by offering unhindered, unmanned shopping experiences. This technology-enabled twist to the age-old way of shopping in brick and mortar stores will get more popular in the days to come.

The prevailing demographic is changing rapidly. By 2020, tech-savvy millennials will form the biggest chunk of consumers in the market. Retail businesses must evolve to suit their needs, if they are to stay relevant.

The way forward? Partner with the right technology expert like �ֲ���ý��Ƶ. What retailers need today is our technological expertise and the practitioner’s knowledge of the industry that our parent group, ITC, brings to the table.

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