Raise the Umbrella

This article reviews how information systems can keep track of multitudes of design changes and avoid problems in the issuing of bills of materials. Sometimes, as in the automaker’s case, engineers find a novel way to make available software perform a second job. The DaimlerChrysler technology fitted a second need, which engineers did not even know they had until they put two and two together: a system that kept track of documents could keep track of equipment, too. As information technology people layer and link a company’s various software systems, they create a full-blown digital umbrella that works for the company. Most companies layer their technology systems, first implementing one, then another, and then finding a way to link the two. In other words, companies first identify a need that technology can fill, then purchase new technology or find new uses for what they have, as in DaimlerChrysler’s case.