Plant design management systems (PDMS) help users create and optimize designs for industrial plants and facilities such as factories and power plants. These systems increase the accuracy and efficiency of plant design projects while improving collaboration and interoperability. They can be used by multiple stakeholders, including designers, engineers, production managers, project managers, and executives involved in the process of managing and designing plants.
PDMS are used mainly in manufacturing and industrial environments, but can also benefit companies from other industries, such as utilities, oil, and gas, to maximize their plant automation efforts. Some solutions even integrate plant simulation features that allow additional scenario analysis within a PDMS, all of which can fully integrate with other CAD&PLM solutions. While similar, PDMS should not be confused with building design and building information modeling (BIM) software, which are primarily used within the building and civil infrastructure sectors and are more beneficial for architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) companies. PDMS are used in the industrial engineering and processing industries.
To qualify for inclusion in the Plant Design Management Systems (PDMS) category, a product must:
Model and simulate manufacturing processes for new plants and factories
Define the physical infrastructure of a plant, including equipment and space planning
Utilize 3D plant design models and technical specifications to evaluate plant operation performance
Track plant design costs and identify opportunities for time and materials savings
Design and simulate factory lines for production automation using digital twins
Ensure compliance with regulations for safety, quality, and environmental protection
Provide analytics and data management for intelligent plant design and modeling