Windchill (software)

Last updated

PTC Windchill
Developer(s) PTC
Initial release1998;27 years ago (1998)
Stable release
12.1.2.0 / December 19, 2022;2 years ago (2022-12-19)
Operating system Microsoft Windows, Linux
Available in English, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (traditional), French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, Polish, [1] Portuguese (Brazil)
Type Product lifecycle management
License Proprietary
Website www.ptc.com/product/windchill/   OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg

PTC Windchill is a family of Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) software products that is offered by PTC. [2] [3] In 2004, as part of their expansion in the area of collaboration tools, they arranged having "a hosted version of Windchill to small- and medium-sized customers." [4] [5] As of 2011, products from its marketer, PTC, were being used by over 1.1 million users worldwide. [6]

Contents

History

Windchill was originally developed by Windchill Technology Inc., which was co-founded by Jim Heppelmann, the current President and CEO of PTC. When PTC acquired Windchill Technology, Heppelmann joined the company as senior vice president. [7] Windchill was released in 1998 and was promoted as the first to market with an internet based PLM offering. In 2001, Windchill ProjectLink was added as a project collaboration offering, and in 2002, Windchill PDMLink launched to enhance product data management. [8]

In 2004 the parent company announced plans "to simplify its product management applications." [9]

Technology

Windchill's implementation has been described as multi-tier. Although it can run on a single server, when "serving thousands of end users on a global scale" it commonly uses three tiers: Client, Application and Database tiers. [10]

Windchill software skills are taught in universities worldwide. [11] [12]

Recent Releases

VersionRelease Date
Windchill 4.0November 1999
Windchill 5.0May 2000
Windchill 5.1November 2000
Windchill 6.0
Windchill 6.1November 2001
Windchill 6.2.6December 2002
Windchill 7.0January 2004
Windchill 8.0June 2005
Windchill 9.0September 2007
Windchill 9.1December 2008
Windchill 10.0March 2011
Windchill 10.1March 2012
Windchill 10.2
10.2 M010
10.2 M020
10.2 M030
September 2013
December 2013
May 2014
March 2015
Windchill 11.0
11.0 M010
11.0 M020
11.0 M030
December 2015
June 2016
November 2016
June 2017
Windchill 11.1
11.1 M010
January 2018
May 2018
Windchill 11.2
11.2.1.0
June 2019
December 2019
Windchill 12.0June 2020 [13]
Windchill 13.0June 2023

Market

The Windchill user base ranges from individuals to large corporations. [14] Most customers are in the following manufacturing market segments: Aerospace & Defense, Automotive, Electronics & High-Tech, Industrial Products, Medical Devices, Retail, Footwear & Apparel. Commercial sales are made through a combination of a direct sales force as well as an indirect sale channel. Directly competitive products to Windchill include Empower PLM by Omnify, Teamcenter by Siemens, ENOVIA by Dassault Systèmes and Agile by Oracle. [15]

Products

PDM & Process [16]

Product Analytics [17]

Quality [18]

Service [21]

Collaboration [22]

Utilities [23]

References

  1. "Windchill Polish version". Archived from the original on January 9, 2014. Retrieved January 9, 2014.
  2. "In Focus: Document Automation Requires More Than Scanning". Information Week . June 26, 2006. Archived from the original on January 17, 2021. Retrieved July 14, 2025.
  3. "US Navy Selects PTC's Windchill PLM SaaS". TenLinks News. July 30, 2020. Archived from the original on February 8, 2023. Retrieved July 14, 2025.
  4. Andrew Baxter (November 3, 2004). "Drawing up strength for a new industrial revolution". Financial Times . Archived from the original on January 20, 2025. Retrieved July 14, 2025.
  5. "Hosted PTC Windchill ProjectLink Service Yields Benefits at Pitney Bowes". May 23, 2006. Archived from the original on January 20, 2025. Retrieved July 14, 2025.
  6. "Q4 Fiscal 2011 Prepared Remarks" (PDF). Retrieved July 27, 2012.[ permanent dead link ]
  7. Songini, Marc. "PTC's Heppelmann, the CEO in the Wings". American City Business Journals Inc. Retrieved July 13, 2012.
  8. "The Jim Heppelmann Interview". February 23, 2011. Retrieved July 13, 2012.
  9. Jaikumar Vijayan (January 26, 2004). "Parametric tries to simplify its product management applications". Computerworld . Archived from the original on November 9, 2020. Retrieved July 14, 2025.
  10. "Disaster Recovery for PTC Windchill" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on April 2, 2024. Retrieved July 14, 2025.
  11. "IPEK". September 22, 2020. Archived from the original on April 17, 2025. Retrieved July 14, 2025. Studierenden werden intensiv in Creo Parametric von PTC sowie mit dem PLM System Windchill PDMLink geschult
  12. "Learn Ptc Creo 5 0 Pro E Basic To Advance Guide". October 28, 2020.
  13. "PTC Releases Windchill 12". Archived from the original on May 18, 2025. Retrieved July 14, 2025.
  14. "Parametric Distributes Patch To Correct Flaw". The New York Times . December 24, 2003. Archived from the original on December 26, 2017. Retrieved July 14, 2025.
  15. "About PTC | PTC". www.ptc.com. Archived from the original on July 10, 2025. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  16. "Windchill PDM & Process". Archived from the original on August 5, 2012. Retrieved July 25, 2012.
  17. "Windchill Product Analytics". Archived from the original on August 2, 2012. Retrieved July 25, 2012.
  18. "Windchill Quality Solutions". Archived from the original on January 23, 2014. Retrieved July 11, 2012.
  19. "CFR - Code of Federal Regulations Title 21". accessdata.fda.gov. Archived from the original on October 3, 2002. Retrieved May 20, 2016.
  20. "Guidance for Industry- Q10 Pharmaceutical Quality System" (PDF). fda.gov. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 5, 2015. Retrieved August 29, 2016.
  21. "Windchill Service". Archived from the original on August 4, 2012. Retrieved July 25, 2012.
  22. "Windchill Collaboration". Archived from the original on December 24, 2013. Retrieved July 25, 2012.
  23. "Windchill Utilities". Archived from the original on February 9, 2014. Retrieved July 25, 2012.