Data Appliance

CATRack, a new product lifecycle management (PLM) system from CSC (www.csc.com; Falls Church, VA), provides speedy and secure access to large-scale product model data, both within an organization and among outside design teams and other global collaborators. The CATRack is geared toward engineering and manufacturing companies that design and build big, intricate aerospace, automotive and heavy equipment products. CSC developed the “appliance” in collaboration with IBM and Dassault Systemes (www.3ds.com); it uses IBM high-performance rack-mounted BladeCenter servers and runs Dassault’s CATIA and ENOVIA software applications. The turnkey system can support six different PLM configurations and up to 730 users from internal departments to the shop floor to external design collaborators and suppliers. And in case you’re wondering: it comes pre-assembled.