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实例探究 > Alstom Uses aPriori to Model Supplier Costs for 100,000+ Parts While Implementing Zero-RFQ

Alstom Uses aPriori to Model Supplier Costs for 100,000+ Parts While Implementing Zero-RFQ

技术

分析与建模 - 数字孪生/模拟
应用基础设施与中间件 - 数据交换与集成
功能应用 - 产品生命周期管理系统 (PLM)

适用行业

铁路与地铁
运输

适用功能

采购
产品研发

用例

数字孪生
自动化制造系统
预测性维护
供应链可见性(SCV)

服务

软件设计与工程服务
系统集成

挑战

Within the Rolling Stock Division, Alstom’s Design to Cost department is tasked with evaluating new projects and developing cost models to facilitate more effective supplier negotiation. The team needed a tool to generate manufacturing cost models for a diverse variety of train car components. Each car requires thousands of distinct parts, and Alstom’s global operations offer many different car designs. The right tool needed to offer detailed manufacturing cost models for the shell of the rail car and everything inside. Often, Alstom needed to source simple components at the last minute, leading to a scramble to find savings and source the part without delaying product development. Every new RFQ introduced a risk for delay, as suppliers could take up to three weeks to return a quote. Rushed RFQ processes limited Alstom’s ability to wait for multiple quotes for maximized savings. The Design to Cost team faced the challenge of supporting an urgent timeline while ensuring the most cost-effective option possible.

关于客户

Alstom is a global leader in the transportation sector, particularly in the manufacturing of rolling stock, which includes trains and rail systems. The company operates in over 60 countries and employs more than 75,000 people. Alstom’s Rolling Stock Division is the largest within the company, responsible for designing and manufacturing a wide range of train cars and components. The Design to Cost department within this division is tasked with evaluating new projects and developing cost models to facilitate more effective supplier negotiations. The team works with different branches of the company spread across the entire globe, making it essential to have a robust and efficient system for managing supplier costs and sourcing components.

解决方案

Alstom selected aPriori as a tool capable of modeling manufacturing costs for the huge variety of components that go into rolling stock products. aPriori quickly matured as a solution used across virtually all the products managed by the Rolling Stock Design to Cost team. Digital manufacturing simulation is an essential capability for a team charged with generating a high volume of manufacturing cost models across a number of sub-systems. The department uses aPriori for both simple parts and extremely complex assemblies like complete car body shells. Once a 3D CAD model for a part is uploaded into the PLM system, aPriori generates a digital twin of the design. Its production can then be modeled with aPriori’s digital factories, which have been configured to reflect the capabilities and cost structures of different suppliers. With the ability to generate supplier-specific manufacturing cost models directly from 3D CAD files, Alstom’s purchasing team is now able to award purchase orders to suppliers based on the aPriori output, avoiding the need for lengthy quoting and negotiating timelines.

运营影响

Alstom has been using aPriori since 2013, with over 30 active users on the Design to Cost team spread across France, India, the US, and South Africa.
The Zero-RFQ initiative has dramatically accelerated Alstom’s sourcing process by automating supplier selection, significantly reducing the purchase process lead-time.
By collaborating with suppliers to configure aPriori’s digital factories to reflect each supplier’s cost structure, Alstom benefits from near-instant quotes without sacrificing accuracy.

数量效益

Alstom’s team estimates that the Zero-RFQ process is driving a 40% savings on recurring costs.
In a recent 12-month period, aPriori handled around 26,000 different parts.