'Own-Language' PLM

Some of the advanced research ideas captured by the PLM International Research Foundation survey have been "bubbling under the surface" for some time.  This one was put forward by the PLMIG itself.

The generally-accepted working language for PLM is English, and it has become accepted practice for all non-native English speakers to standardise on English for PLM so that everyone can understand each other.

This is a workable solution, but it still represents a tremendous barrier to PLM understanding and adoption in the majority of countries in the world.  It is much more natural to think and work in your mother tongue, and it is also more effective.

More than half the world does not speak English as its first language.  Standardising on English for PLM is not only a barrier, it is also a loss in terms of culture, experience and natural thought. We should be aiming for a scenario in ten years' time in which PLM ideas, experience and standards are conveyed seamlessly from one language into another. This is a massive research challenge, but there are massive intellectual resources in universities and academic institutions around the world. We need to put together a consortium of researchers from many disciplines and many countries, and formalise a proposal that vendors and funding organisations can support.

We are on the verge of an era in which technology might enable automatic translation from one language to another, but the needs of PLM are much deeper than this.  In layman's terms, how much of PLM needs to be translated?  Does the knowledge and experience of the "translatee" affect the outcome?  What is the effect of the business and technical scenario in the receiving country?  Is it necessary always to translate via English, or is any continual sequence possible?  How can it be shown that the meaning is unchanged at all points of the process?

The PLMIG aims to set up an international research programme that will run over the next few years in support of the goal that, by 2020, business people in any industrialised country will be able to think about and work with PLM in an entirely natural linguistic framework.  The follow-on goal is that this will lead to natural adoption of PLM in any country of the world.

This will be pure PLM research, and will be focused just as much on PLM as on linguistics.  The aim is to establish new knowledge that can be built upon by applied researchers, PLM vendors and user companies to apply PLM seamlessly in a global context.  The aim is also to publish, rather than to develop closed IP.  We want to generate new knowledge, and disseminate it - commercialisation can follow in due course.

The research will need to be international if it is to be comprehensive and soundly-based.  It will need country-based academic research leads, to cross-check for example: Portugal vs Brazil; Spain vs Argentina; or even perhaps Denmark vs Norway and Canada vs France.  To be genuinely useful, it will certainly need to include the Caucasion and South Asian languages.  This may then draw in research on the current and potential manufacturing situations in the main political and geographic regions.

The challenge goes well beyond simple translation, calling for an array of research strands including:-

• what elements of PLM need to be translated, and how?
• are these elements the same for any country?
• are there linguistic, cultural, educational or other factors specific to some countries?
• are there PLM strengths and weaknesses in different countries, that change the emphasis?
• is the current state of the art sufficient, or are new capabilities required?
• do current vendor offerings offer a practical solution?
• how can current research initiatives be combined or incorporated?
• how can quality control be applied with confidence in an unknown language?

The detailed areas of research can be decided over the next few months, when we know the current and potential state of the art.

To launch the initiative, the PLM Interest Group is calling for initial, informal expressions of interest from universities and academic institutions that would like to take part in a world-wide research project into the subject of 'language-independent PLM'.  We would also like to hear from industrial companies and solution providers that may want to use or support the results.

The first step is to find out what research potential exists around the world, and interested organisations are invited to get in touch via ownlanguage@plmig.com. You will then be able to follow the ideas as they develop.