Revision management and maturity states play a crucial role in product development by ensuring control, quality, and efficiency throughout the product lifecycle. Here are the key reasons why they are essential:

• Traceability and Accountability: Tracks every change and links it to its origin, maintaining a clear history.
• Collaboration: Ensures team members work on the latest versions and aids in conflict resolution.
• Quality Control: Enables error tracking, quick rollbacks, and continuous improvement.
• Compliance and Standards: Meets regulatory requirements through thorough documentation and review.
• Life-cycle Management: Defines product stages, helping manage the lifecycle with clear milestones.
• Process Control: Prevents premature advancement by ensuring products meet specific criteria.
• Resource Allocation: Aids in efficient planning and prioritization of resources.
• Risk Management: Identifies risks early and develops contingency plans to mitigate issues.

Revision management and maturity states are fundamental concepts in product development, ensuring organized and systematic progress. Here's a brief overview:

• Revision Management: Tracks and documents changes throughout a product’s lifecycle, enhancing accountability and quality control.

• Maturity States: Define stages from concept to production, managing the process with clear checkpoints and progression criteria.

   

Product Managers and Designers

CATIA V5 does not incorporate the concept of maturity states, a feature that is only available in the 3DEXPERIENCE platform. When you create a part in CATIA V5 and save it in the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, it is classified as a physical product and initially set to the "In Work" maturity state. 

Maturity States

In the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, the maturity states of a physical product help manage its lifecycle by defining distinct stages. Here's an explanation of each state:
 

1. Private

• Description: This is the initial state where a physical product is only visible to its creator or a restricted group.
• Purpose: Allows early development work and iterations without broader visibility. It is useful for preliminary drafts and experimental designs that are not yet ready for team review.
   

2. In Work

• Description: Indicates that the product is under active development and can be accessed and modified by designated team members.
• Purpose: Facilitates collaboration among team members, enabling collective development, editing, and refinement of the product. This state is crucial for iterative development and incorporating feedback.
   

3. Frozen

• Description: The product is in a state where no further changes can be made except by authorized personnel.
• Purpose: Ensures stability before final review and release. It allows for thorough validation, testing, and quality assurance without the risk of unapproved changes. This state acts as a checkpoint for critical reviews.
   

4. Released

• Description: The product is finalized, fully validated, and approved for use or production.
• Purpose: Marks the product as complete and ready for deployment, manufacturing, or customer use. This state signifies that the product has passed all necessary checks and meets all required standards and specifications.
   

5. Obsolete

• Description: The product is no longer in use and has been retired from active development or production.
• Purpose: Helps manage and archive older versions or products that are replaced by newer models. This state ensures that obsolete products are clearly marked, preventing their use in current projects and maintaining an organized product catalog.
   

Each of these maturity states serves a specific role in managing the product development process, ensuring that products are developed systematically, reviewed thoroughly, and transitioned smoothly from concept to completion and eventual retirement. The 3DEXPERIENCE platform's structured approach to maturity states helps maintain high standards of quality, compliance, and efficiency throughout the product lifecycle.

Activating Unique Filename

If you create a new revision of a part (Rev. A, in Released state - created in CATIA V5) in the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, a new revision B is created on which you can make the design modifications. But if you want to replace this part in CATIA V5 with the latest revison it throws an error that the filenames are not unique. 

To fix this error you need enable a setting in the Collaborative Spaces Configuration Center on the 3DEXPERIENCE platform. Below are the steps:

1. Select Platform Management (dashboard) > Content > Collaborative Spaces Configuration Center > xCAD PLM Collaboration > CATIA V5.

2. Click Settings.

3. In the Value column:

   1. Select the Revise check box to activate Unique Filename for the Revise operation.

   2. Select the Duplicate check box to activate Unique Filename for the Duplicate operation.

      You can open revised and duplicated documents in the same CATIA V5 session. This action might impact CATIA links.

   3. Select the Save as New check box to activate Unique Filename for the Save as New operation.

   You must select at least one option to create data using Unique Filename.

4. Click Apply.

Now, open your part from 3DEXPERIENCE, make design changes. Open 3DEXPERIENCE Save with Options and perform Revise/Duplicate/Save as new on the modified part and click OK.

The part's new revision (Rev B) has a unique filename.

Use Case 1: Execute Design Modifications across CATIA V5 and 3DEXPERIENCE

Scenario

A Designer creates a part in CATIA V5, adds geometry, and saves it to the 3DEXPERIENCE platform. They then make additional design changes in 3DEXPERIENCE and send it for review. The Product Manager reviews the part, approves it and releases it.

Later, a QA Engineer identifies an issue with the part, reports it in the 3DEXPERIENCE platform. The Designer creates a new revision to address the issue, makes the necessary modifications in CATIA V5. He then saves the updated part to 3DEXPERIENCE and sends it for review. The Product Manager reviews the revised design, approves the changes, and releases the part, finalizing its status.

Personas

• Product Manager: Oversees the design process, approves designs, and manages product lifecycles.

• Designer: Responsible for creating and modifying parts in CATIA V5 and the 3DEXPERIENCE platform.

• QA Engineer: Reports issues and verifies design changes.

   

Workflow

Use Case 2: Replace Part by Latest Revision in CATIA V5

Scenario

A QA Engineer identifies an issue with a Part, a component of a product designed in CATIA V5, and reports it in the 3DEXPERIENCE platform. The Designer creates a new revision to address the issue, but the replacement operation fails. After activating unique filename settings, the Designer successfully creates and saves a further revision, which is then reviewed and approved by the Product Manager, leading to the release of the revised part and the closure of the issue.

Personas

• QA Engineer: Identify issues in parts, report defects or issues in the 3DEXPERIENCE platform.
• Designer: Create and manage parts in CATIA V5, address reported issues by creating new revisions, modify designs as needed, manage maturity states, and ensure parts are updated and saved correctly in the 3DEXPERIENCE platform.
• Product Manager: Review revised designs, approve changes, release the final part, and close reported issues.

Workflow

Assumption

• The Part is created under a product in CATIA V5 and saved to the 3DEXPERIENCE platform. 
• The maturity state of the Part is "Released"

Prerequisite Roles

3DSwymer (IFW-OC), Collaborative Industry Innovator (CSV-OC), Collaborative Designer for CATIA V5 (UE5-OC), 3D Product Architect (PAU-OC)

Create, Revise and Approve Design Changes on a Part

Here are the steps to follow:
 

Step 1: Create/Design a Part in CATIA V5 and Save in 3DEXPERIENCE platform

Step 2: Activate Unique Filename Settings 

Step 3: Create a Revision in 3DEXPERIENCE platform and design in CATIA V5

• You can launch CATIA V5 using the CATIA V5 connector in the 3DEXPERIENCE platform.

• After enabling unique file names setting ensure that you update the index model and reload the cache.

• If the CATIA V5 session is open, restart the session for settings to reflect.