Insights on PLM, variant management and software-defined products from Julian Weyer, consultant at BHC/PROSTEP.https://juwy.de/enhttps://juwy.de/en/blog/ai-agents-engineering-operating-model/https://juwy.de/en/blog/ai-agents-engineering-operating-model/An AI agent took my DIY robot to a buildable design. Lesson: tech stack and rules aren't enough. Quality needs an operating model: method, platform, governance.Thu, 01 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/bhc-user-training-enabling-portfolio/https://juwy.de/en/blog/bhc-user-training-enabling-portfolio/At PALM Forum, Simon Gäde, Fabian Quentin and Sebastian Holtfoth presented BHC's user enabling portfolio, from trainer-led courses to AI enabling assistants.Tue, 29 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/ai-describe-outcome-not-the-path/https://juwy.de/en/blog/ai-describe-outcome-not-the-path/A colleague reminded me this week: describe the desired outcome to the AI, not the path. I still set my own guardrails for my robot project, for good reasons.Tue, 15 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/ai-agent-builds-diy-robot/https://juwy.de/en/blog/ai-agent-builds-diy-robot/An AI agent develops a small DIY robot autonomously, from specs and architecture to CAD and simulation. I only set the framework and requirements.Thu, 10 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/eink-family-calendar-interview/https://juwy.de/en/blog/eink-family-calendar-interview/Interview on a vacation project: a self-sufficient E-Ink family calendar built with an AI coding agent, the simulator trick, debugging, and what stays human.Sun, 06 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/ai-in-engineering-needs-rules-and-trust/https://juwy.de/en/blog/ai-in-engineering-needs-rules-and-trust/Neither blind trust nor total control: how companies can delegate AI in engineering properly – task-specific, based on observation and revocable.Sun, 30 Aug 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/ai-engineering-robot-demo-cad-simulation/https://juwy.de/en/blog/ai-engineering-robot-demo-cad-simulation/Robot demo from CAD data, real microcontroller code and physics simulation, built headless with AI on a vacation afternoon, with no CAD suite at all.Fri, 28 Aug 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/vacation-project-eink-display-webinar/https://juwy.de/en/blog/vacation-project-eink-display-webinar/Instead of family events, the e-ink display suddenly shows webinar dates. Between microcontroller quirks, calendar APIs and rain jackets on vacation.Tue, 25 Aug 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/eink-display-esp32-family-calendar/https://juwy.de/en/blog/eink-display-esp32-family-calendar/An E-Ink display with an ESP32 is meant to become an automatic family calendar on vacation: events and birthdays via CalDAV and CardDAV, with an AI agent.Sun, 23 Aug 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/ai-use-cases-engineering-prostep-webinar/https://juwy.de/en/blog/ai-use-cases-engineering-prostep-webinar/The use case decides, not the tool: where does AI create real business value in engineering complex products, and how does it fit PLM/ALM? With live demo.Thu, 20 Aug 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/two-ai-topics-prostep-consulting-maturity/https://juwy.de/en/blog/two-ai-topics-prostep-consulting-maturity/AI is changing consulting itself, and it is what we advise clients on. The second strand is producing an AI maturity assessment for engineering and lifecycle.Thu, 06 Aug 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/claude-quota-subagents-lessons-learned/https://juwy.de/en/blog/claude-quota-subagents-lessons-learned/This week I burned my Claude quota in minutes – with Haiku, not Sonnet or Opus. Cause: heavy subagent use on research. Three lessons on token overhead.Thu, 23 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/delta-instead-of-maximum-variant-configuration/https://juwy.de/en/blog/delta-instead-of-maximum-variant-configuration/Most configuration methods start from a maximum (150% BOM) and then filter down to 100%. What if you modeled the delta to a base variant instead?Mon, 20 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/bhc-rooftop-summer-party/https://juwy.de/en/blog/bhc-rooftop-summer-party/Sunset, good spirits and the best colleagues you could ask for. We simply laughed off the brief rain shower. Impressions from the BHC GmbH rooftop summer party.Thu, 16 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/three-methods-product-configuration-150-percent-bom/https://juwy.de/en/blog/three-methods-product-configuration-150-percent-bom/Experts know the 150% BOM inside out, but few can name the other two methods or when each applies: additive, subtractive and parametric configuration.Mon, 13 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/zombie-variants-variant-management-glossary/https://juwy.de/en/blog/zombie-variants-variant-management-glossary/Over 40 terms now live in the Variant Management Glossary, from Additive Configuration to Zombie Variants. What is a zombie variant, and why check the glossary?Thu, 09 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/variantmanagement-com-relaunch/https://juwy.de/en/blog/variantmanagement-com-relaunch/After confessing that a “vacation project” got a bit out of hand, here is the presentable version of the story: variantmanagement.com is officially relaunched.Mon, 06 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/plm-more-alive-than-ever/https://juwy.de/en/blog/plm-more-alive-than-ever/“PLM is dead,” people say. PLM suite versus PLM discipline: monoliths are under pressure, but configuration management and traceability matter more than ever.Sat, 04 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/variantmanagement-com-astro-migration/https://juwy.de/en/blog/variantmanagement-com-astro-migration/Vacation is for relaxing, but with too many hobbies you end up rebuilding your variant management site. How a legacy CMS became a full Astro migration.Mon, 08 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/ai-compliance-regulations-design-task/https://juwy.de/en/blog/ai-compliance-regulations-design-task/“Can't be done because of GDPR / MDR / TISAX” – and people drop it. Yet most regulations contain no hard ban, just a call to engage seriously with risks.Mon, 18 May 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/jupipe-llm-pipeline-runner/https://juwy.de/en/blog/jupipe-llm-pipeline-runner/Chain LLM calls without framework overhead, GUI or vendor lock-in: JuPipe defines workflows in plain text files, with local models and cloud APIs.Sun, 03 May 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/impact-analysis-change-management/https://juwy.de/en/blog/impact-analysis-change-management/Change management is an unloved duty, mostly because impact analysis gets stuck in hallway talk. What a chatbot needs to answer that question reliably.Mon, 27 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/local-ai-experiments-nvidia-laptop/https://juwy.de/en/blog/local-ai-experiments-nvidia-laptop/After long hesitation: a 13-inch Nvidia RTX laptop for local AI experiments. Hands-on with what I advise on, no subscription, API key or privacy question.Mon, 20 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/private-ai-hackathon-ivip-symposium/https://juwy.de/en/blog/private-ai-hackathon-ivip-symposium/Official program over, trade-show laptop on: two Digital Thread experts spend the evening of the ivip Symposium on a private hackathon around AI and PLM.Thu, 16 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/europes-silicon-valley-heilbronn-prostep-ivip-symposium/https://juwy.de/en/blog/europes-silicon-valley-heilbronn-prostep-ivip-symposium/Day 1 of the prostep ivip symposium: IPAI and Schwarz Digits in Heilbronn, why the real transformation is not technical, and a new SUMS and security initiative.Wed, 15 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/development-vehicle-process-costs-hardware-exchangeability/https://juwy.de/en/blog/development-vehicle-process-costs-hardware-exchangeability/Updating a test vehicle to the latest hardware is costly and slow, and often unnecessary. You just don't know. How hardware exchangeability cuts process costs.Wed, 15 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/plm-digital-thread-fun-symposium-frankfurt/https://juwy.de/en/blog/plm-digital-thread-fun-symposium-frankfurt/The best proof: the prostep ivip Symposium in Frankfurt. A digital lapdog, a LEGO Mars rover and plenty of soldering-iron nostalgia: impressions from the booth.Tue, 14 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/vibe-coding-blessing-and-curse/https://juwy.de/en/blog/vibe-coding-blessing-and-curse/When AI lets anyone build tools, who looks after the big picture? Vibe coding is Excel-tool culture at a new level and makes information architecture matter.Mon, 13 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/prostep-ivip-symposium-2026-frankfurt/https://juwy.de/en/blog/prostep-ivip-symposium-2026-frankfurt/Why do AI projects really fail, why is “dumping data into ChatGPT” no solution, and how to build AI-enabled data architectures? Preview of prostep ivip 2026.Thu, 02 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/cloud-kill-switch-study-digital-sovereignty/https://juwy.de/en/blog/cloud-kill-switch-study-digital-sovereignty/A study by Lünendonk & Hossenfelder: 83% of companies see the geopolitical cloud kill switch as a relevant risk, yet only 14% have a solid exit strategy.Mon, 23 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/abroad-sees-us-better-than-we-do/https://juwy.de/en/blog/abroad-sees-us-better-than-we-do/Read the media these days and you might think Germany is finished. A plea for more optimism – and against the self-fulfilling prophecy of doom and gloom.Thu, 19 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/freedom-of-choice-sovereign-plm-contact-stackit/https://juwy.de/en/blog/freedom-of-choice-sovereign-plm-contact-stackit/With CIM Database Cloud on STACKIT, CONTACT Software brings PLM to a European cloud platform. Proof it's not “Europe vs. USA”, but freedom of choice.Thu, 12 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/eu-cloud-sovereignty-framework-plm-alm/https://juwy.de/en/blog/eu-cloud-sovereignty-framework-plm-alm/Digital sovereignty had no common yardstick until now. The EU Cloud Sovereignty Framework adds eight dimensions and five SEAL levels, but the real work remains.Wed, 11 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/measuring-sovereignty-cia-triad/https://juwy.de/en/blog/measuring-sovereignty-cia-triad/Digital PLM/ALM sovereignty as an end in itself isn't helpful. The CIA triad from information security offers a grid for rating an IT solution.Wed, 04 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/airbus-sovereign-cloud-80-20/https://juwy.de/en/blog/airbus-sovereign-cloud-80-20/Moving PLM workloads to a sovereign cloud takes verifiable requirements, not labels. Airbus's digital chief sees an 80/20 chance. Europe should make it 100/0.Wed, 25 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/plm-alm-sovereignty-operating-models/https://juwy.de/en/blog/plm-alm-sovereignty-operating-models/Besides the vendor's origin, the operating model decides how sovereign a PLM/ALM solution really is. Vendor SaaS, on-premise and managed hosting compared.Thu, 19 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/plm-alm-vendor-origin-sovereignty/https://juwy.de/en/blog/plm-alm-vendor-origin-sovereignty/A PLM/ALM vendor's origin helps determine its legal jurisdiction. An overview of the main vendors, and why origin alone isn't the whole story.Tue, 17 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/how-sovereign-is-our-plm-alm-toolchain/https://juwy.de/en/blog/how-sovereign-is-our-plm-alm-toolchain/Design data, software, BOMs, architecture models: industrial DNA lives in PLM/ALM systems, while more solutions move to the cloud. Start of a research series.Wed, 11 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/caldav-custom-integration-langdock/https://juwy.de/en/blog/caldav-custom-integration-langdock/Langdock has no standard CalDAV integration yet, so I built one: an open-source hobby project linking mailbox.org or Nextcloud calendars to the AI assistant.Mon, 05 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/synology-drive-client-logs-sync-problems/https://juwy.de/en/blog/synology-drive-client-logs-sync-problems/Synology Drive Client not syncing? The logs live in a SQLite database. Here is where to find it and how to analyze sync problems.Thu, 01 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/mbse-is-alive-sdv-europe/https://juwy.de/en/blog/mbse-is-alive-sdv-europe/SDV Europe day 2: from shift left and model first to the prostep ivip SDVxMBSE initiative. The challenge is no longer tooling, but collaboration.Tue, 02 Dec 2025 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/is-mbse-dead-sdv-europe-day-1/https://juwy.de/en/blog/is-mbse-dead-sdv-europe-day-1/At SDV Europe in Berlin, the term MBSE doesn't come up even once. Do shift left and model first dominate the discussion now? A status report after day 1.Mon, 01 Dec 2025 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/choice-overload-variant-management/https://juwy.de/en/blog/choice-overload-variant-management/An FAZ article on choice overload nails a familiar topic from PLM/ALM and variant management: too many options sound customer-centric but overwhelm.Thu, 27 Nov 2025 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/no-software-defined-product-without-mbse/https://juwy.de/en/blog/no-software-defined-product-without-mbse/Software-defined products like SDVs hit their limits fast without sound systems engineering. Why a continuous Digital Thread across the whole lifecycle is key.Thu, 20 Nov 2025 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/what-alm-really-means/https://juwy.de/en/blog/what-alm-really-means/Is ALM a management approach, a tool category, or both? I untangle the term, place it next to PLM and systems engineering, and show what matters in practice.Fri, 11 Jul 2025 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/book-tip-model-based-product-line-engineering/https://juwy.de/en/blog/book-tip-model-based-product-line-engineering/Fresh off the press: the new book on Model-Based Product Line Engineering (MBPLE) by Marco Forlingieri, Tim Weilkiens and Hugo Guillermo Chale-Gongora.Wed, 02 Jul 2025 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/real-customer-needs-variant-management/https://juwy.de/en/blog/real-customer-needs-variant-management/Without understanding real customer needs, you build past the target or keep complexity lean and miss the customer. Why a good product navigator matters.Tue, 08 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/variant-management-customer-focus-complexity/https://juwy.de/en/blog/variant-management-customer-focus-complexity/Variant management is about more than reducing complexity. Almost every definition leaves out the customer focus. Here is why it is essential.Tue, 11 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/lost-in-traceability-navigator/https://juwy.de/en/blog/lost-in-traceability-navigator/Traceability is not all the same. My Traceability Navigator helps you define the right requirements and implement them in the PLM toolchain.Thu, 06 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/choosing-alm-tool/https://juwy.de/en/blog/choosing-alm-tool/Choosing an ALM tool is a decision for years. As a vendor-neutral consultant, I show 5 aspects that really matter, beyond the demo videos.Fri, 21 Feb 2025 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/configuration-talking-past-each-other/https://juwy.de/en/blog/configuration-talking-past-each-other/“Configuration” means three different things in projects, all at once. Here is how to spot and resolve this confusion of terms in meetings.Tue, 28 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/variant-spaces-minizinc-sat-solver/https://juwy.de/en/blog/variant-spaces-minizinc-sat-solver/MiniZinc is a practical entry point to SAT solving. Here are the first steps for modeling variant spaces, easy to follow even without a math degree.Tue, 21 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/sat-solvers-variant-management/https://juwy.de/en/blog/sat-solvers-variant-management/What is a SAT solver, and why does it matter for variant management? A plain-language look at the core technology behind product configurators.Tue, 14 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/halloween-variant-management-pumpkin-lifecycle/https://juwy.de/en/blog/halloween-variant-management-pumpkin-lifecycle/Pumpkin Lifecycle Management: what do pumpkins have to do with variant management? A Halloween-style look at PLM and product variety.Thu, 31 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/understanding-variant-spaces/https://juwy.de/en/blog/understanding-variant-spaces/How do you describe billions of variants? With set theory — surprisingly intuitive. I show it using car variants in a parking lot.Fri, 23 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/long-term-software-update-strategies/https://juwy.de/en/blog/long-term-software-update-strategies/Long-lived products need sustainable update strategies. I show why business model, product architecture and ALM have to fit together.Thu, 11 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/siemens-realizelive-2024-las-vegas/https://juwy.de/en/blog/siemens-realizelive-2024-las-vegas/In mid-May I joined BHC and PROSTEP at Siemens Realize LIVE in Las Vegas: a talk, a Mars rover demo and a week of international exchange. A look back.Fri, 17 May 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/siemens-realize-live-2024-las-vegas/https://juwy.de/en/blog/siemens-realize-live-2024-las-vegas/With BHC and PROSTEP, we are heading to a major PLM vendor event again in 2024: SIEMENS Realize LIVE, May 2024 in Las Vegas. We will see all the news on site.Thu, 25 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/ecc-2024-variant-configuration-live/https://juwy.de/en/blog/ecc-2024-variant-configuration-live/Thanks for the invitation to the Ecatalog Conference 2024. KiM GmbH and 4PACE have some great variant configuration offerings 👍😃 ... from AI to VR 💯Thu, 18 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/easter-egg-variant-management/https://juwy.de/en/blog/easter-egg-variant-management/Does the Easter Bunny run variant management for its Easter eggs? A playful look at PLM and “variare” — the Latin word for “to color”.Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/what-is-configuration/https://juwy.de/en/blog/what-is-configuration/“Configuration” means three different things in projects. I clear it up: variant configuration, configuration management, parameterization.Sun, 28 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/the-doesle-model-railway-reunion/https://juwy.de/en/blog/the-doesle-model-railway-reunion/Alumni reunion of the model railway club at my old school in Heilbronn. My “Dösle” was still there, the ultimate patent-worthy (😂) helper tool.Sat, 06 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/liveworx-2023-boston-impressions/https://juwy.de/en/blog/liveworx-2023-boston-impressions/In May 2023 I was at PTC LiveWorx in Boston. A few impressions.Thu, 18 May 2023 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/plm-alm-talk-liveworx-boston/https://juwy.de/en/blog/plm-alm-talk-liveworx-boston/Designing an optimal PLM/ALM integration with systems engineering methods: the BHC talk by David Whitney and me at PTC #LiveWorx 2025 in Boston.Wed, 17 May 2023 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/bhc-prostep-ptc-liveworx-boston/https://juwy.de/en/blog/bhc-prostep-ptc-liveworx-boston/100% PLM and 100% ALM – that is what PROSTEP AG and BHC GmbH stand for. As a BHC crew member, I experienced the latest PTC trends at #LiveWorx 2025 in Boston.Mon, 15 May 2023 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/liveworx-plm-alm-talk-teaser-2/https://juwy.de/en/blog/liveworx-plm-alm-talk-teaser-2/I'm looking forward to speaking with David Whitney about integrating PLM and ALM at PTC LiveWorx 2025 😃 The talk covers the role of systems engineering.Sat, 15 Apr 2023 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/traceability-product-lifecycle-whitepaper/https://juwy.de/en/blog/traceability-product-lifecycle-whitepaper/Together with my colleagues at BHC GmbH, I wrote a whitepaper on traceability. Find out what traceability involves and how to put it into practice.Wed, 15 Mar 2023 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/bhc-at-mercedes-digital-product-forum/https://juwy.de/en/blog/bhc-at-mercedes-digital-product-forum/The BHC GmbH crew at the Mercedes-Benz AG Digital Product Forum 2022. It was great to see so many good contacts in person again.Thu, 21 Jul 2022 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/automation-nostalgia-drink-schunk/https://juwy.de/en/blog/automation-nostalgia-drink-schunk/At the ivip Symposium I ran into a bar-mixing robot. Its gripper comes from my former employer SCHUNK. Instant nostalgia 😉Thu, 09 Jun 2022 00:00:00 GMThttps://juwy.de/en/blog/twelve-years-schunk-chapter-ends/https://juwy.de/en/blog/twelve-years-schunk-chapter-ends/After 12 years at SCHUNK: a look back at a formative time and ahead to the new chapter as a PLM/ALM consultant at BHC Consulting.Thu, 30 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT