Collaboration between Microsoft and PTC: When the world of social networking meets product development

Microsoft and PTC collaborate on the development of a product development platform to encourage communication, collaboration and innovation in a Web 2.0 environment.

PARIS - PTC (Nasdaq: PMTC), the Product Development Company, is stepping up its collaboration with Microsoft in the field of 'social' networks. PTC believes that the market is on the verge of a major shift in terms of product development. The turning point will be marked by the combination of social networks in the world of product development: a concept known as Social Product Development.

"Collaboration is always a key component of product development. Today's technologies focus on the possibility for companies to share information and knowledge among team members in a secure and friendly environment, "said Rob Gremley, Executive Vice-President Communication and Marketing at PTC.

According to a recent study conducted by Forrester for PTC Consulting, out of 7 000 software users surveyed, 89% of people use some form of 'social' technology at least once a month and 70% use these technologies for business purposes.

For Kathleen Winder, Director of SharePoint Collaboration Partnerships, Microsoft. "Microsoft ® Office SharePoint ® Server 2007 (MOSS) combines Web 2.0 technologies for social networks to enhance collaboration in a professional environment. PTC brings value added product development through its Windchill solution ProductPoint, which extends the Microsoft Office SharePoint Server platform and allows the use of structured CAD data and products "

The PTC ® technology designed to support the Social Product Development consists of three software layers combined into a single platform which is complete, secure and easy to use:

* Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 (MOSS) for documentation, collaboration and social networking;
* ProductPoint ® Windchill ® PTC for the sharing and reuse of structured content, such as CAD models;
* A layer of creative applications may include PTC Pro / ENGINEER ® to create digital models, PTC ProductView ™ for visualization, annotation, and review of numerical models lighter, PTC Mathcad ® for documentation of calculations of engineering and Microsoft ® Office for creating documents, spreadsheets, presentations or other content.