Collaborating via the Web

The next stage of product development and engineering support software looks to enhance engineers' ability through collaboration via the Internet.

In today's competitive environment, time is of the essence, especially in the automotive industry. For automakers, it could mean not getting a new car model to market quickly and efficiently enough to recoup the costs of development and keeping up with the competition.

With many engineering departments and operations spread out over various locations, and with the increasing amount of partnerships occurring in the industry, responding to requests for engineering support and coordinating various project development activities have become more difficult and time-consuming. In addition, the costs of travel can quickly mount during the course of a project. Therefore, many automotive firms have begun investing in Web-based product development tools, enabling engineers to collaborate more easily with colleagues at other locations and companies. These tools also allow engineers to respond more quickly to requests made by customers.