How Aerospace and Defense Companies Can Scale Quality With Integrated PLM and MES

Arena by PTC recently attended Operations Calling, the premier manufacturing event hosted by our partner Tulip. The event brought together leaders in manufacturing, engineering, and digital transformation to discuss the future of operations. Arena Senior Customer Success Coach Marshall Wood participated in a panel discussion alongside Chris Brickner, Director of Quality Assurance and Regulatory Compliance at Echodyne, to explore the tangible benefits of integrating product lifecycle management (PLM) and manufacturing execution systems (MES). The conversation highlighted how a seamless PLM-MES connection drives quality, compliance, production efficiency, and collaboration—especially for highly regulated industries like aerospace and defense.

The Power of PLM and MES Integration

Manufacturers today face mounting pressure to deliver innovative products faster, while maintaining rigorous quality and compliance standards. As Chris Brickner shared, “We wanted to move from paper- and file-based systems to Tulip for a more structured build process, one that automatically populates device history records and incorporates control measures during assembly.”

How Does Arena PLM Work With Tulip MES?

By integrating Arena PLM with Tulip MES, Echodyne established a single source of truth for engineering documentation, device history records, and manufacturing execution. This eliminates the risk of outdated or conflicting information. “You need a centralized hub, with one version of the bill of materials and supporting files that capture your engineering efforts,” noted Marshall Wood. “Having a single place to get the definitive answer for your product record is just integral.”

Operators benefit from having the right information at the right time, reducing errors and rework. “The information is right at the fingertips of our operators, and they can be confident they’re working from the latest document revision,” added Brickner.

What Are the Benefits of PLM-MES Integration for Aerospace and Defense Companies?

For companies in aerospace and defense, compliance isn’t just a box to check—it’s a core business requirement. Echodyne’s journey to integrate PLM and MES was driven by the need to meet AS9100 standards and deliver quality products to customers. “While compliance with numerous standards is mandatory, we control how it’s achieved. We can employ control points that ensure we’re providing the highest quality product from incoming inspection to final shipment,” Brickner explained.

How Does PLM-MES Integration Improve Quality and Traceability?

The integration enables automated data capture, robust traceability, and real-time visibility into quality events. By ensuring operators always have access to the latest SOPs and BOM revisions, organizations can maintain high-quality standards and reduce the risk of errors caused by outdated information. This also streamlines regulatory audits and empowers teams to proactively identify and address nonconformances. “You track your defects better, and you get a more holistic view of your nonconformance reports (NCRs) and your root cause. You can mitigate a lot of scrap and rework with a tighter PLM-MES integration,” noted William VanBuskirk, U.S. Alliances Lead at Tulip.

Unlocking Production Efficiencies

Beyond compliance, PLM-MES integration delivers significant production efficiencies and enables smarter, faster decisions on the shop floor. By shortening feedback loops between engineering and manufacturing, companies can iterate on designs faster and deliver improvements to market sooner. Quick validation of design changes enables teams to accelerate new product introduction (NPI) and avoid late-stage surprises. “Reducing the design-build cycle from two months to one doubles your opportunities each year to create the right product,” Wood observed.

How Does PLM-MES Integration Support Design for Manufacturing?

Successful manufacturing isn’t just about using the right technology but also about connecting and empowering the people involved. The panelists agreed that collaboration between design engineers, process engineers, and shop floor supervisors is essential for effective design for manufacturing (DFM). “Incorporating design for manufacturing is crucial to what we do. It helps us avoid unexpected issues during production,” Brickner added.

How Does PLM-MES Integration Enhance Team Collaboration?

With Arena and Tulip, geographically distributed teams can collaborate seamlessly, sharing feedback and validating changes early in the process. Engineers, process teams, and supervisors can communicate effectively without being physically present, thanks to real-time notifications and updates delivered through familiar tools. This level of connectivity ensures alignment across time zones and locations, making it easier to exchange feedback, validate changes, and maintain visibility throughout the product lifecycle. “Delivering information directly to someone’s inbox or other preferred workspace ensures visibility, and that’s exactly what these integrations make possible,” Wood explained.

What Are Key Steps for Successful PLM-MES Integration?

Integrating PLM and MES successfully requires a focused approach.

• Conduct a Gap Analysis: Identify where disconnected processes create delays or compliance risks. This helps prioritize which workflows need immediate attention and ensures resources are allocated to the most critical integration points.
• Engage Cross-Functional Stakeholders: Involve engineering, quality, and operations teams early to define integration goals. Early collaboration fosters buy-in and uncovers potential challenges before implementation, making the transition smoother for all teams involved.
• Monitor Key Metrics: Track cycle time reduction, defect rates, and audit readiness to measure the impact of integration and drive continuous improvement. Regularly reviewing these metrics enables organizations to adjust strategies proactively and sustain long-term benefits from the integration.

Leveraging Tulip AI Tools for Enhanced Quality

Looking ahead, Echodyne is excited to leverage more of Tulip’s AI-powered tools to further enhance quality processes. “We built AI capabilities around receiving inspection and want to consolidate them within Tulip, so everything is in one place rather than scattered across external file systems,” noted Brickner. The goal is to automate final inspections, integrate nonconformance records, and streamline CAPA processes by connecting Arena’s PLM data with Tulip’s MES platform.

The cloud-native architecture of Arena and Tulip makes this possible, offering open APIs, secure environments, and the flexibility to configure solutions to fit evolving business needs. “Because we’re cloud-based, everything is seamless. I’m excited about the opportunities that lie ahead for us to drive efficiency in our manufacturing process,” Brickner concluded.

Innovation Without Compromise: Quality and Compliance at Scale

For highly regulated companies like Echodyne, the PLM-MES integration enables quality, compliance, efficiency, and collaboration at scale, while supporting rapid growth and innovation. As the aerospace and defense industry continues to evolve, cloud-native platforms like Arena and Tulip help manufacturers stay ahead of the curve.

Ready to see how PLM-MES integration can transform your operations? Watch the on-demand webinar from Operations Calling to learn more about Echodyne’s journey and the future of manufacturing excellence.