Pall casts Accolade globally

Pall Corporation will use software from Sopheon to capture and use the learning that emerges during the product development cycle. The company plans to deploy Sopheon's Accolade product development software globally, which will entail 400 users initially in research and development, manufacturing and marketing.

Pall—a supplier of filtration, separation and purification products—will use the software to track, evaluate and prioritize hundreds of projects based on key performance metrics. That will enable resources to be directed to projects with the strongest revenue and profit potential, while weaker concepts will be dropped before major costs are incurred, according to a recent press release from Sopheon.

John Miller, Pall's CTO, says, "Accolade will get the most from the stage gate process we have recently adopted and, in particular, will give all involved with that process a clearer and more complete view of the project portfolio details critical to setting priorities, making project funding decisions and maximizing return on investment. Pall is a learning organization, and Accolade is the ideal tool for capturing, sharing and leveraging the learning that occurs throughout the product development process."

One of the principal benefits Pall is said to anticipate from its use of the system is improved communication among team members. The company's product development professionals communicate considerable information throughout the organization. The new system is expected to help streamline and organize that communication by providing a virtual, centralized workspace for sharing task updates and process documents, and by enabling real-time information exchange via built-in collaboration and threaded discussion tools. In addition, the solution's "smart document" technology is expected to speed the creation of project plans, status reports and other key deliverables