Automated Data Preparation According to ECLASS
ECLASS is one of the most important international data standards for the classification of products and services. It enables the comprehensive exchange of product master data across various boundaries — making it equally beneficial for procurement, service delivery, sales, and corporate management alike.
Imagine being able to provide your company's technical data in a structured and standardized ECLASS format at the push of a button. No more tedious manual preparation — instead, an automated classification according to the ECLASS standard that helps you optimize your processes and save valuable time. Sounds too good to be true?
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In this blog post, we want to show you what opportunities arise for your company through the successful extraction, classification, and structuring of technical data according to ECLASS, and how the plusmeta software can support you in successful data preparation. We will shed light on the challenges companies face along the way and present solutions to help you overcome them. Find out how you can take your Technical Documentation to the next level using the right tools, strategies, and the smart AI of plusmeta.
Are you ready to turn your data into intelligent information? Then read on!
Using Technical Data Efficiently with ECLASS
The ECLASS standard is a cross-industry data standard for the classification and unambiguous description of products and services. Developed by leading German companies such as Siemens, BASF, and many other global market leaders, it enables the digital exchange of product master data across industries, countries, languages, and organizations. Preparing technical data according to the ECLASS standard therefore offers companies a wide range of benefits. By applying this standardized classification system, product data can be efficiently managed, exchanged, and utilized, leading to optimized business processes and increased competitiveness.
The greatest benefits of a successful ECLASS implementation are:
Reducing Costs
ECLASS gives companies the opportunity to optimize procurement, warehousing, and sales by consolidating order quantities and reducing product variety. The standardized classification and description of goods simplifies supplier comparison, stimulates competition, and supports supplier base consolidation. Thanks to improved comparability, tendering processes can be accelerated by more than 50%. In addition, the costs of managing product master data can be reduced by approximately half.
Increasing Productivity
ECLASS forms the foundation for seamless processes, automated interfaces, and standardized product information along the entire value chain. Media disruptions are eliminated and manual data conversions become a thing of the past. This not only saves time and money but also optimizes production capacity utilization, reduces capital commitment, increases throughput, and improves availability. This leads to a noticeable reduction in time-to-market and a rapid ROI.
Opening Up International Markets
With ECLASS, product master data can be exchanged digitally in currently 17 languages across national borders. This enables companies to access electronic catalogs and global digital marketplaces. Providing standardized and customer-specific electronic catalogs creates new sales opportunities and also meets the procurement requirements of many large enterprises.
Ensuring Quality
The unambiguous description of characteristics in ECLASS enables the exchange of engineering and CAx data across systems — efficiently and without data loss. Manufacturers no longer need to provide planning data in numerous target formats; instead, they can use ECLASS to create a single electronic catalog containing both product information and planning information for various CAD systems. This saves significant resources and accelerates planning processes.
Sustainably Optimizing Processes
By using ECLASS, companies benefit from standardized data across all areas — from development and manufacturing to sales and service. This results in significant time and cost savings. Using ECLASS, internal workflows can be benchmarked against the market, transfer prices defined, cost comparisons carried out across the entire product spectrum, and uniform reporting structures established.
Remaining Future-Proof
ECLASS is growing faster than any other standard, as it is a simple, machine-readable, ISO-compliant, yet open system. As the currently largest repository of descriptive characteristics based on international standards, ECLASS provides the semantic interoperability that is a fundamental prerequisite for machine-to-machine communication, Industry 4.0 applications, and digital twins. More and more companies are recognizing this and actively participating in the further development of the ECLASS standard for Industry 4.0 environments.
Extracting and Classifying Technical Data: The Challenges
Companies wishing to extract, classify, and structure their technical data according to the ECLASS standard face a number of challenges. Despite the many advantages that ECLASS offers, implementing and applying the standard requires careful planning and extensive effort. The most common issues companies encounter include:
Defining Requirements and Goals
Before starting an ECLASS implementation project, requirements and goals must be clearly defined and aligned internally. This includes determining in which areas and processes ECLASS will be used and what specific improvements are expected.
Data Quality and Consistency
Ensuring data quality is one of the greatest challenges in master data management with ECLASS. It requires clear standards and guidelines for data capture and maintenance that must be consistently followed. The existing data quality, product volume, and product complexity also influence the implementation effort.
Integration into Existing Systems
The introduction of ECLASS often also requires adjustments to internal company processes. End-to-end processes, automated interfaces, and standardized product information need to be established. The deeper the integration into existing processes, the greater the effort — but also the expected benefit.
Implementation and Interface Adaptation
The actual implementation of ECLASS and the adaptation of system interfaces require time and resources depending on the complexity and objectives involved. It is advisable to draw on ECLASS-experienced service providers and the support of the ECLASS community.
Continuous Data Maintenance and Development
ECLASS is a living standard that is constantly evolving. Companies must establish processes to track changes and extensions to the standard, keep their own data up to date, and — where necessary — participate in its further development, for example by submitting change requests via the ECLASS ContentDevelopmentPlatform.
Overall, the introduction of ECLASS is a complex and time-consuming process that requires careful planning, extensive resources, and close collaboration among stakeholders. Companies should be aware of the challenges associated with implementing the standard and take appropriate measures to successfully navigate the process. This includes not only careful planning of data preparation and integration, but also comprehensive training for employees. Close collaboration with experienced partners and service providers who have already successfully implemented the ECLASS standard can also be extremely helpful.
How plusmeta Can Support You in Data Preparation
plusmeta supports companies with holistic solutions for the efficient extraction, classification, and structuring of technical data according to standards such as iiRDS, VDI2770, and ECLASS. By leveraging state-of-the-art AI technologies, plusmeta optimizes data preparation so that companies can fully harness the potential of their data.
For these challenges, the plusmeta platform offers a wide range of support options:
Automated Data Extraction
The plusmeta software enables the automated extraction of technical data from various source files. Relevant information such as product properties, dimensions, or material data is reliably identified and extracted. This saves time and reduces manual effort.
Intelligent Classification
Using machine learning and natural language processing, plusmeta automatically assigns the extracted data to the appropriate ECLASS classes and characteristics. The structure and semantics of the ECLASS standard are taken into account to ensure high classification quality. Companies benefit from consistent and standard-compliant data.
Integration into Existing Systems
plusmeta's solutions integrate seamlessly into a company's existing IT landscape. Via interfaces, the classified data can be transferred to PLM, ERP, or PIM systems — enabling a continuous data flow and eliminating media disruptions.
Developed by Technical Writers
plusmeta's roots lie in Technical Documentation. A large part of the team has a background in the field of technical information, and this is reflected in the software solutions, which are tailored to the real-world challenges of users.
As you can see, with plusmeta's solutions, companies can efficiently prepare their technical data according to ECLASS and thus comprehensively benefit from the advantages of the standard. Through the automation of processes, intelligent classification, and integration into existing systems, plusmeta helps companies improve their data quality, optimize processes, and strengthen their competitiveness.
Conclusion: Using ECLASS for Efficient and Future-Proof Processes
Companies that take the step toward ECLASS invest in their future viability. They lay the foundation for efficient processes, high data quality, and smooth communication with partners and customers. With the right tools and strategies, the various challenges can be mastered and the opportunities arising from the digitalization and standardization of technical data can be seized.
plusmeta accompanies you on this journey with the versatile plusmeta Platform and an AI specially developed for the requirements of Technical Documentation. If you would like to learn more about the various solutions that plusmeta offers, contact us now and arrange a demo appointment today.
We would be happy to personally introduce you to our cloud-based AI software and the various data preparation options available.
