Engineering the first GCP-native PLM ecosystem for connected device innovation
Overview
The future of product innovation hinges on unified, intelligent ecosystems, not fragmented tools and siloed processes. In the hyper-competitive world of connected devices, accelerating time-to-market, enabling global collaboration and ensuring digital continuity across engineering and manufacturing has become mission-critical. To lead this transformation, a global technology innovator in internet-enabled devices partnered with HCLTech to reimagine its product lifecycle management (PLM) landscape. Facing complexity from disparate legacy systems and disconnected engineering operations, the client set out to build a scalable, cloud-first PLM foundation to fuel next-generation product development.
At HCLTech, we engineered a first-of-its-kind deployment of Teamcenter PLM on Google Cloud Platform (GCP), making history as the world’s inaugural implementation of Teamcenter on GCP. This milestone transformation was enabled by HCLTech xLMCloud frameworks, designed to streamline legacy migrations, harmonize global product development processes and fast-track enterprise adoption. By orchestrating the shift to a unified, cloud-native PLM ecosystem, we enabled our client with real-time visibility, seamless collaboration and a future-ready digital backbone for continuous innovation.
The Challenge
Laying the foundation for a connected, future-ready ecosystem
Our client, a global leader in internet-enabled devices, was managing its product lifecycle through a fragmented mix of homegrown legacy systems and disconnected tools. With product complexity rising and teams distributed across global locations and supplier networks, this siloed environment created operational friction, data inconsistencies and limited visibility across the value chain.
To scale innovation and drive digital continuity across engineering and manufacturing, the client needed a resilient, cloud-based PLM solution that could unify stakeholders, standardize processes and accelerate product development.
Key business and technical challenges included:
Disjointed PLM ecosystem
- Legacy PLM tools were outdated, difficult to maintain and lacked the agility to support modern engineering workflows.
- Multiple tools and siloed systems fragmented product development and slowed collaboration.
Data duplication and inefficiency
- Manual processes led to frequent data duplication between engineering, manufacturing operations and contract manufacturers.
- Redundant efforts and inconsistent data created downstream errors and delays.
Limited system integration
- The legacy environment lacked seamless integration with enterprise systems such as ERP, CAD tools (NX, ECAD/MCAD) and packaging data platforms.
- Disconnected systems hindered the flow of information across the product lifecycle.
Inconsistent product and BOM data
- Disparate sources of truth for product structures and Bills of Materials (BOMs) caused versioning errors and rework.
- This slowed down time-to-market and introduced compliance risks.
Lack of standardization across global teams
- Engineering and supplier teams across regions operated in silos with no unified platform or harmonized processes.
- Collaboration, traceability and governance suffered due to non-standard workflows and fragmented access.
Uncertainty around cloud deployment
- Teamcenter was not certified for Google Cloud Platform (GCP), placing a big risk on Teamcenter implementation on-time and stipulated performance.
- Architecture and Infrastructure Compatibility Issues and operational tooling gaps
- Possible compliance, regulatory and reliability surprises
With the vision of building a globally harmonized PLM foundation, the client sought a scalable, cloud-native solution that would serve as a single source of truth across the extended enterprise, enabling faster innovation, improved operational agility and end-to-end digital continuity.
The Objective
Unifying product lifecycle to accelerate innovation and global collaboration
The objective was to modernize and consolidate the client’s fragmented PLM ecosystem by deploying a scalable, cloud-native solution that could enhance engineering efficiency, enable real-time collaboration and reduce operational overhead across global teams and partners.
- Establish a unified PLM backbone across internal stakeholders and external contract manufacturers for improved data continuity, traceability and design collaboration
- Migrate legacy PLM systems and disparate data into a single, cloud-hosted Teamcenter platform to streamline part, BOM and change management processes
- Enable seamless integration with CAD, ERP, ECAD, MCAD and packaging systems to ensure end-to-end visibility and traceability across the product lifecycle
- Accelerate adoption and minimize customization to ensure faster go-live, easier maintenance and simplified platform upgrades on the cloud
- Lay the foundation for a digital thread, enabling closed-loop engineering, faster time-to-market and future scalability across product lines and geographies
Our Solution
Deploying a unified, highly available PLM platform on the cloud
We implemented a robust, scalable Teamcenter PLM solution hosted on GCP, guided by xLMCloud solution. The transformation included:
Platform deployment
- First-ever deployment of Siemens Teamcenter on GCP, ensuring high availability, performance and scalability
- Implementation of Teamcenter 4-tier architecture to support a distributed, global user base
Seamless migration and consolidation
- Data migration from legacy systems, including home-grown PLM tools and legacy Teamcenter instances
- Migration of NX CAD data and BOM structures with full traceability and validation
- Configuration of “Out-of-the-Box” PLM functionalities to reduce customization and simplify upgrades
Enterprise integration
- End-to-end integration with NX CAD, ECAD, ERP, Aspire and Cadence
- Enablement of core modules: Part management, BOM management, change management, ECAD/MCAD data, packaging
Parallel execution model
- Simultaneous execution of process configuration, infrastructure setup, integration, data migration and validation testing to meet aggressive timelines
Cloud-native acceleration
- Leveraged HCLTech xLMCloud framework to fast-track deployment, testing and adoption of PLM on the cloud
- Enabled self-service capabilities and global collaboration via a unified, cloud-based platform
The Impact
Operational impact delivered through PLM unification and automation
The implementation of Teamcenter PLM on GCP delivered significant business and operational outcomes:
- 20–30% improvement in operational efficiency
- Global unification of PLM for the entire devices business under a single platform
- Eliminated data duplication and reduced manual intervention across systems
- Accelerated onboarding of contract manufacturers and external stakeholders
- Minimal customization, resulting in simplified maintenance and faster upgrades
- Established a cloud-first, future-ready PLM foundation
Looking Ahead
From legacy complexity to cloud-enabled clarity
With the successful deployment of Teamcenter on Google Cloud Platform — an industry first — we facilitated not only the modernization of our client’s PLM foundation but also unlocked new possibilities for intelligent, agile product innovation. Powered by HCLTech xLMCloud solution, our client now benefits from a unified, scalable ecosystem that connects global teams, streamlines operations and drives real-time decision-making across the product lifecycle.
As our client continues to expand its digital footprint, the path forward includes leveraging advanced analytics, AI-driven engineering insights and deeper integration across enterprise systems. Together, HCLTech and the client are shaping a future where PLM is not just a platform, but a catalyst for transformation, collaboration and competitive advantage.
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