Cloud-based collaboration platform empowers manufacturers to achieve greater product success and maximize the value of their supplier relationships

 

Directworks, a leading provider of cloud-based sourcing and supplier management solutions for manufacturers, today announced the launch of Directworks 2.0, their next generation collaboration platform built exclusively for manufacturers. The completely reimagined Directworks platform is now generally available to manufacturers who are seeking a better way to engage, select, and manage the suppliers of their critical product components.

The Directworks 2.0 launch reinforces the company’s commitment to market-driven product development, cutting-edge innovation, and continued feature enhancements. “Manufacturers asked for something better and we listened,” said Greg Anderson, President of Directworks. “The new Directworks platform is purpose-built for manufacturers and enables our customers to select the best suppliers and capture greater value from their supplier relationships to achieve important business objectives and create a competitive advantage.”

 

Purpose-Built for Manufacturers

Directworks 2.0 reflects the company’s exclusive focus on manufacturers and incorporates unique capabilities and innovative features that empower customers to achieve greater success in their direct materials sourcing and supplier management activities. Leading manufacturers use Directworks to collaboratively engage cross-functional stakeholders and suppliers to realize these benefits:

• Select the best supply partners: Securely share requirements, including 2D and 3D technical designs, and efficiently collect the information required to evaluate suppliers, negotiate terms, assess tradeoffs, and make better, data-driven sourcing decisions based on total landed cost.
• Achieve product cost targets and accelerate time to market: Manage a product bill-of-materials through the costing and supplier selection process. Assign activities, monitor progress, and manage the process to achieve target costs, qualify suppliers, and increase speed to market.
• Capture greater value from supplier relationships: Collaborate with suppliers to drive product innovation, cost improvements, and a greater level of strategic supplier engagement in product design and costing. Maintain detailed information in comprehensive supplier profiles and actively manage any supplier concerns that may impact product sales and profitability.

 

A Completely Reimagined Platform

Directworks 2.0 is more than a release; it is a completely new platform designed to support the evolving sourcing and supplier management needs of manufacturers. Today’s faster paced, increasingly complex business environment is changing the way that manufacturers select and work with their supply partners. The Directworks platform was built for today’s more collaborative approach to sourcing and supplier management and offers these enhanced features and capabilities:

• Simplicity and ease of use: A modern user interface and intuitive user experience empowers people to work better, faster, and smarter and promotes greater solution adoption.
• Configurability and automation: A flexible architecture allows for the configuration and automation of any business process to ensure process and workflow standardization while minimizing manual work and dramatically improving productivity.
• Advanced capabilities for manufacturers: A manufacturing and direct materials focus delivers a product-centric data model (e.g. bill-of-materials), an integrated technical document viewer, a total landed cost sourcing approach, and other manufacturing-specific features not found in general solutions that are designed for indirect spend management.
• Big data and big insights: A valuable database of manufacturing, product, supplier, and cost information enables powerful business insights to be used across an enterprise for managing supplier-related activities and making better business decisions.
• Extensibility and integration: A modular design provides for the future expansion of solution capabilities while an open integration framework enables the exchange of critical information between existing systems and Directworks.
• Unlimited enterprise licensing: Unlimited access for cross-functional stakeholders as well as suppliers promotes greater sharing of information and knowledge while placing no limit on the value that can be realized with Directworks.

 

Early Market Validation

“The market response to the new Directworks platform has been overwhelmingly positive,” commented Anderson. “Direct materials sourcing and supplier management are mission critical activities for manufacturers, but other enabling technologies have long fallen short in this area. We are excited to be delivering valuable innovation to such an important market.” The Directworks platform is currently in production or being configured for deployment at several Directworks customers.

 

About Directworks:

Directworks provides a cloud-based sourcing and supplier management platform that is purpose-built for manufacturers. Leading product manufacturers use Directworks to select the best suppliers and maintain a high quality, cost competitive, and reliable supply chain that enables them to grow revenues and increase profitability.

 

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