Say Goodbye to DLL Headaches with the Aras IOM SDK on NuGet
If you’ve ever built a .NET application that connects to Aras Innovator®, chances are you’ve worked with the Aras IOM (Innovator Object Model) SDK. It's a powerful tool to have in your back pocket - packed full of handy classes and functions to streamline development. You just download the IOM SDK for your version of Aras Innovator and then reference the local copy in a Visual Studio project. Pretty easy, right? It was easy... until you wanted to build an integration that supported multiple versions of Aras Innovator. Or you shared a project with a colleague who saved their local IOM.dll in a different location. Or that colleague's version of the SDK didn't match yours. Sound familiar? Then I have good news for you! Aras published the IOM SDK as a NuGet package, making it easier than ever to integrate with Aras Innovator in a modern development environment. Meet the Aras IOM SDK The Aras IOM SDK is a .NET client library that lets you connect to Aras Innovator and interact with the platform using a high-level API. It abstracts the details of SOAP and simplifies tasks like authentication, querying, and item manipulation. If you're more familiar with the Aras REST API, you might wonder which you should use in your projects. The IOM SDK and the REST API each offer unique advantages. Choosing between them depends on your application's specific requirements and context. You might use the IOM SDK if: In contrast, the Aras REST API may be a better fit when: You're building a custom integration or automation tool in .NET. You're building lightweight or cross-platform applications. You want synchronous or stateful behavior that REST doesn't offer. You prefer a stateless, standard HTTP interface. You're working in a Windows-native context and prefer a .NET-first approach. You need easier integration with non-.NET tech stacks. Your app should send and receive XML. Your app should send and receive JSON. Both the standalone IOM SDK on NuGet and the Aras REST API are suitable for connectors and applications that need to support multiple versions of the Aras Innovator platform. Curious about how Aras InnovatorEdge APIs stack up? You get all the benefits of the standard Aras REST API plus API key authentication and a low-code editor to publish your own custom versionable APIs. Add the SDK to your Visual Studio project To get started, all you need is Visual Studio and a .NET project. Here’s how to add the SDK from NuGet: Open your solution in Visual Studio. In Solution Explorer, right-click your project and select Manage NuGet Packages for Solution. In the Browse tab, search for Aras.IOM Select the package published by Aras Corporation and choose Install. Accept any license prompts. That's it! No more copying DLLs by hand. You can use the package manager to check for updates and install the latest Aras.IOM release in your project. Updating a project that uses a local IOM.dll If you’re upgrading an existing project that has a hardcoded IOM.dll reference, here's how to switch over to the NuGet package: Remove the old reference: In Solution Explorer, right-click the Iom.dll reference and select Remove. Add the NuGet package: Follow the same steps above to install Aras.IOM from NuGet. Rebuild your project: The namespace and classes remain the same, so no code changes should be required. Takeaways Switching your .NET projects to the Aras IOM SDK package on NuGet is an easy way to simplify resource management and improve compatibility across Aras Innovator releases. Want to play with the SDK in the sample app shown in this post? Check out the aras-innovator-cli repo on the Aras Labs GitHub.
What's New in Release 35?
Available since May, Release 35 introduces a significant update to the Aras Innovator® user interface, delivering a modern and streamlined look and feel throughout the platform. These changes aim to improve clarity while keeping the layout similar enough to be familiar. In addition to the UI changes, we'll go over a handful of nice-to-have features in this blog. New UI features As you can see, the platform's general look has shifted slightly, but not enough that you’d be unable to navigate as expected. As seen below, things like forms and search grids also got a facelift. Additionally, new helpful messages appear when there is a lack of data in the system. Now it’s instantly clear why a grid might be blank: For example, the above grid is empty because the Manufacturer Parts relationship has no data in that relationship, while the below icon is shown before you initiate a search in the main grid. Theme customization New in R35 is the ability to theme your instance of Aras Innovator. New properties in the Global Presentation Configuration allow you to set your instance's primary, secondary, and branding colors. This will change the default color of things like buttons, grids, and some client theming. Pick related type-ahead When adding an existing item as a relationship, you can search directly for the item you want with an embedded smart type-ahead search box. If you know what you're looking for, this will save you the effort of going through an additional modal search dialog. Rules-Based Grid Display This release introduces a no-code interface that empowers administrators to define rules for dynamically formatting data within tabular grids. Now, you can easily color-code critical information based on specific conditions. Highlight lifecycle state values, flag numerical data exceeding defined thresholds, or apply sophisticated styling based on complex combinations of properties – all without writing a single line of code. In the toolbar of an ItemType, there is a new Manage Rules button, which will open a dialog for setting rules for individual properties. Here’s an example: This quick example, which is provided out of the box, will highlight your Lifecycle State in green when it matches the condition provided. This works very similarly to our responsive forms rule editor and can be utilized for some very powerful, low-effort improvements to your team’s effectiveness. Here’s what the result looks like in the search grid. The formatting of released parts is immediately noticeable. This isn’t limited to the state of the item; any property could be used to have some conditional formatting. Takeaways Those are the major improvements in Aras Innovator Release 35. It’s important to note that we also just made the open release 2025 available. This will allow you to download the newest version for free and test it out. What’s your favorite addition? I’m excited to see how people utilize the new rules-based grid customization. Feel free to use the comments below to share interesting ways of using it!A Complete Guide to the 2025 Aras Community Edition
If you're new to Aras Innovator® or just curious about the latest Community Edition, here’s some good news: the 2025 release is available and packed with the latest features to explore. Whether you're a developer, low-code builder, or systems thinker, this edition is your invitation to dive into a powerful, composable PLM platform at no cost. Why choose the Community Edition? The 2025 Community Edition gives you access to a full-featured PLM platform without any licensing fees. It’s ideal for: Exploring Aras architecture and tooling Prototyping digital thread strategies Learning low-code app development on an enterprise-grade platform Demonstrating value to stakeholders Bootstrapping PLM processes for small organizations You'll get access to core applications like Product Engineering right out of the box, with optional modules including Variant Management, Requirements Engineering, Simulation Management, and more - all designed to help you build traceable, connected solutions. Wondering how the Community Edition compares to a full subscription? This side-by-side breakdown can help you decide if you'll need additional support or features as your project grows. How to try Aras Innovator without installing Want to see Aras in action before installing? Try one of these: Take the interactive product tour to explore digital thread use cases in your browser Request a demo to see how Aras Innovator fits your team’s goals Watch an on-demand webinar to dive deeper into use cases, platform capabilities, and best practices Ready to install? Here's how to get started Here's what you need to know if you're ready to install the Aras Innovator 2025 Community Edition. 1. Check your system requirements The first step is to ensure that your systems are up to the task of running Aras Innovator. Don't worry if that sounds intimidating. While it's important to carefully consider production system specs, an average Windows 10/11 laptop or Windows Server VM should be sufficient to help you evaluate the platform or start building solutions. Client Requirements Server Requirements Windows 10/11 or macOS 15 Windows Server 2012 or newer Chrome (v135+), Firefox ESR (115/128), or Edge .NET 4.7.2 and ASP.NET Core 8.0.1 2.0 GHz processor, 2 GB RAM, 80 MB free disk space SQL Server 2016 or newer 2.0 GHz processor, 32 GB RAM recommended, 1 GB disk space Check out the Installation Guide (PDF) for more details. 2. Install prerequisites Before running the installer, make sure these components are installed and configured: .NET Framework 4.7.2: Download from Microsoft's .NET site ASP.NET Core Runtime & Hosting Bundle 8.0.1: Available at dotnet.microsoft.com SQL Server: Use SQL Server 2016 or newer. You can install SQL Server Express for development purposes if you don't have a full SQL Server license. Enable mixed-mode authentication and remember your admin credentials IIS (Internet Information Services): Enable via "Turn Windows features on or off" on the server. Ensure that Application Development Features (e.g., .NET Extensibility, ASP.NET, CGI) are also enabled Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable: Install versions for 2015, 2017, and 2019. These are often bundled together in the latest Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable Tip: After installing all prerequisites, restarting your machine can help ensure everything is properly registered and ready before launching the Aras Innovator installer. 3. Download the installer Visit the Download page to download the installation files. Be sure to save the .msi file—you'll need it for reinstallation or repair. 4. Obtain your license key You'll need your server's MAC address to generate a Framework License key: Run ipconfig /all in Command Prompt to find your MAC address. Visit the license request page and request a key using that address. 5. Run the installer Double-click the InnovatorSetup.msi file to launch the installation wizard. Here's a step-by-step guide: Welcome Screen: Click Next to begin License Agreement: Read the agreement, accept the terms, and click Next System Prerequisites: Confirm you have: Admin access to the server SQL Server installed and accessible A valid Aras license key. Select all checkboxes to enable the Next button Destination Folder: Choose the install path (default is C:Program Files (x86)ArasInnovator ) and click NextAdmin access to the serverSQL Server installed and accessible Setup Type: Choose Complete for a full install Choose Custom to configure features like Vault Server, OAuth, and more Custom Setup (if selected): Select or deselect optional components License Configuration: Enter your license key Server Web Alias: Define the alias used in the URL (e.g., http://localhost/InnovatorServer ) SMTP and Language Settings: Configure as needed or use defaults Database Configuration: Specify your SQL Server instance Set admin credentials Choose to create a new database or connect to an existing one Begin Installation: Review your settings and click Install Installation Progress: Wait for the wizard to complete the process Finish: Click Finish to exit the installer A detailed guide with screenshots is also available in the Installation Guide. 6. Log in and explore Once installation is complete, open a browser and go to http://localhost/<your_web_alias>; . Log in with the default admin credentials and start exploring. Need help or inspiration? If you have trouble getting started with the Community Edition, you can check out the documentation or visit the Aras Community Forums with your questions. They're a great resource for troubleshooting issues, learning how companies are using Aras to solve problems, and connecting with fellow community members. I hope we'll see you there!Meet the Builders Behind the ACE 2025 Innovation Challenge
Every year, I leave ACE inspired by the Aras community's enthusiasm for problem-solving and openness to sharing solutions. This year's event was one that will stand out in my memory for a long time though. We had a mind-blowing keynote from CERN (yes, that CERN), an amazing turnout for the Tech Summit with six community demos, and the first-ever Aras Innovation Challenge on the main stage! Inspired by hackathons and the traditional "rapid-fire demos" at ACE, the Innovation Challenge provided community members an opportunity to show off the creative and impactful solutions they're building on the Aras Innovator® platform. Participants submitted projects in one of three topic areas: real-time shop floor data, digital thread, or sustainability. And of course, no competition would be complete without some stakes. Participants competed for a speaking slot on the main stage in Boston, complimentary ACE registrations, a joint workshop with Aras, and glory (that is, to get their name etched on the Innovation Challenge hammer, the "Stanley Cup" of the Aras Community). Meet the finalists Four finalists presented their solutions to a bustling crowd of more than 250 attendees at the end of the first conference day. Yogesh & Vilas AI Advisor for Engineering Design Yogesh Kulkarni and Vilas Sarangdhar from TCS presented an AI-powered solution that facilitates the import of unstructured data into Aras Innovator. The tool processes engineering drawings, extracts data characteristics, and creates corresponding item structures. Tom Smith Enhancing Shop Floor Feedback with Aras & LLMs Tom from SMC developed a solution to collect and analyze shop floor feedback. The solution uses AI to categorize and summarize input to help teams consume and respond to feedback. Konrad Golińczak Document Comparison Tool At Demant, Konrad built a solution that compares versions of Word documents in Aras Innovator. The tool uses AI to make intelligent comparisons and summarize the differences, helping users quickly understand changes. Gilbert Delabrousse Aras Lite MES: Streamlined Shop Floor Management Gilbert at Inensia shared a lightweight manufacturing execution system (MES) built on Aras Innovator. The solution helps operators follow and log work instructions while managers monitor assembly line status in real time. And the winner is... After each finalist made the case for their solution on the main stage, the audience voted for their favorite solution. The next day our CEO, Roque Martin, announced the community's choice at the "Aras in the Round" session. Congrats to Tom Smith, the first winner of the Aras Innovation Challenge! Missed the session or want to learn more about Tom's solution? I was curious about how he chose the topic and how he implemented it, so I followed up with him after the event to chat about it. Why shop floor data? Tom's a senior integration engineer at SMC, one of the largest pneumatics manufacturers in the world, so it's no surprise that he was drawn to the real-time shop floor data theme. The opening moments of his presentation made it clear that some shop floor challenges aren't exclusive to manufacturing spaces though: "Every manufacturing environment thrives on continuous improvement, but collecting and making sense of real-world shop floor feedback can be a challenge. Imagine you're on the shop floor in a manufacturing environment, and you have an idea. Where does that feedback go? Do you write it on a sticky note and put it on your manager's monitor? Or maybe you write it up in an email that gets buried in with a thousand other emails. Or worse, maybe it goes nowhere at all." Who can't relate to the experience of having an idea, but no idea what to do with it? Where to start? Tom's solution addresses three common challenges teams face when improving shop floor operations. 1. Feedback collection Shop floor feedback is often recorded manually, leading to delayed responses or lost ideas. Tom addresses this pain point with a super simple form, making it easy for users to submit feedback. 2. Categorization When feedback is reported, it's typically unstructured, which makes it hard to interpret and act on. Tom's solution makes it easier for teams to search and filter by using AI to categorize input. 3. Summarization AI also helps Tom summarize and recommend actions based on the feedback. These insights are delivered via weekly email, ensuring feedback is shared in an easily digestible format. This strategy enables faster issue resolution, supports data-driven decision-making, improves team communication, and ultimately aligns stakeholders around continuous improvement. How does it work? Tom's solution begins in Aras Innovator, where he created an ItemType to store all the shop floor feedback. To collect the input, he built a lightweight web form with three simple fields: Employee ID, Job ID, and Description. The submit button sends the form data to Aras Innovator via the OData REST API. Next, an onAfterAdd server event sends the description to a large language model (LLM) for categorization. Tom uses Ollama 3.2 LLM, which is open-source and runs locally to ensure that no sensitive data leaves the company's systems. The code prompts the model to categorize feedback into three key areas: Cost, Delivery, and Quality. The server method updates the feedback item's category property with the result. To close the loop, Tom uses the Aras scheduling service to trigger a weekly server method that uses the LLM to summarize the latest feedback and suggest actionable tasks. The method then emails the insights directly to managers. Takeaways Tom's solution demonstrates that leveraging AI in PLM doesn't need to be a "big bang" effort to have a tangible impact on the business. I think the key is identifying the right opportunity and using AI as a tool rather than the whole solution. By letting the LLM handle the tasks it does best (like categorization and summarization) and keeping the rest of the implementation simple, you can quickly deliver a valuable solution that's ready to iterate and improve. What do you think? Could you incorporate LLMs, generative AI, or machine learning in your future Aras projects? Are you already doing something similar today? Let us know in the comments below! Thanks again to Tom and all of the Innovation Challenge finalists. Thank you for reading along and supporting your fellow builders!The Real MVPs of ACE 2025? Our Community
This year’s Aras Community Event (ACE) was held in Aras’ hometown of Boston. The week kicked off with the Aras Tech Summit, an all-day event focused on our incredible developer community. It’s my favorite part of the event, and other developers seem to agree. This was our first open-invite Tech Summit, where anyone attending ACE could join. With 70 registrants, having so many knowledgeable developers in one room was incredible. We started the day with introductions, and participants shared what they wanted out of the day. The overwhelming majority were interested in seeing what other developers were doing with Aras Innovator®. Coming in as a close second was AI capabilities. With the rest of the morning dedicated to community demos, attendees were presented with new ideas, strategies, and applications developed by other users. Some demos highlighted how fully custom clients use Aras and DevOps solutions specifically created for developers. And of course, there were some AI-related demos as well. These demonstrations launched discussions, and the presenters were able to share some of the more interesting things they’ve done with our platform. It’s great being in a room full of people who like to talk about the nitty-gritty of Aras Innovator. Afternoon sessions included community updates from our new Senior Manager of Developer Relations, Eli Donahue. Eli’s new role and the return of Chris Gillis to the Aras Labs team mean great things for the Aras community. More resources mean more time for blogs, forum posts, and Community Projects. Keep your eyes out for some more exciting announcements in the coming months. After the community update, there were lab demos primarily focused on AI. The community response to these demonstrations was exciting, and we’re working on figuring out the best way to share these projects going forward. The day wrapped up with some open forum discussions. Topics included potential use cases for Aras InnovatorEdge, customizations to the Aras platform, and sharing potential developer pain points. It was a full day of discussions and talking shop. Luckily, it was followed by the Aras welcome reception, which spiced up the event with some great food and conversation. Thank you to everyone who participated in this year’s ACE Tech Summit, especially those who presented. These community events are stimulating and wouldn’t be possible without all of you. Looking forward, we have a few options for those who couldn’t join us in Boston. In the fall, we will have our second annual Virtual Tech Summit, a shorter online version of the full event. Watch out for future announcements. If you’re in Europe, I highly recommend attending our ACE Connect events, each with its own Tech Summit. I could not recommend these events more highly to a developer interested in Aras Innovator. The first Aras Connect will occur in Japan in June. It will be followed by Aras Connect events in France, Germany, the UK, and the Nordics in fall 2025. We would love to hear your feedback. Feel free to comment on this blog post or contact me for further conversation.Experience the Power of Community at the ACE 2025 Tech Summit
It’s that time of year again! Our annual Aras Community Event (ACE) is right around the corner. This year the event is taking place near Aras’ hometown of Boston from March 31 to April 3. This year’s ACE is special as it marks the 25th anniversary of Aras as a company. The event is shaping up to be one of our best yet, with tons of great presentations and breakout sessions for everyone. Like most who have attended it, the Tech Summit is my favorite part of the event. It will be on Monday, March 31. In previous years, it was invite-only. This year, we're opening it up to the entire community, welcoming anyone who wants to participate. We hope to bring in some new technical voices who might not have participated in the past. Email Beth Ewing after completing your ACE registration to register for the Tech Summit. The session lasts most of the day and allows the Aras Innovator® tech community to get together and discuss all things Innovator. In the past, we’ve covered everything from new features to best practices, and even explored ways to enhance the product based on feedback from users like you. The Tech Summit provides a space to hear how our partners and customers are using Aras Innovator. This year we’ll have presentations from customers and partners, in which they will share some of the interesting modifications they’ve made to our platform. Community presenters will: Show capabilities they built in Aras Innovator and discuss how they did it (ex: Impact Matrix extensions, pervasive search) Demo the tools they use to manage their Aras Innovator development projects Share how the next generation of engineers are building PLM skills and knowledge with Aras Between Aras presentations, customer showcases, and open discussion, the Tech Summit is a favorite part of the ACE experience. (It certainly was my favorite part of last year’s event!) The summit will be followed by a welcome reception, and the following days are filled with interesting sessions to attend. If any of the above topics are interesting to you or someone you know who is attending ACE, register now to save your place! Here's a quick breakdown of the Tech-Summit agenda: Welcome & Introductions - get to know the attendees and presenters Community Demos - community members show off what they've built and share their knowledge AI Spotlight - AI demos and insights from Aras Lab Lunch Community Update - what's new and what's coming Open Forum Discussions - bring your questions and ideas! This session is all about connecting with your fellow Builders and learning from the group's collective experience. I’m looking forward to ACE this year and to meeting some of you there. Please feel free to reach out if you have questions regarding this year’s Tech Summit or want to get involved. To secure your spot for the Tech Summit, email Beth Ewing after completing your ACE registration. Registration is open right up to the event, but I’d recommend locking in your registration and hotel as soon as possible!
Calling Methods via Configurable Web Services
In previous blog posts, we’ve covered how to set up a Configurable Web Service (CWS) within Aras Innovator®. In this post, we will cover a way to extend the functionality of a CWS endpoint by calling a server method. Creating our Method To start, we will need to create the server Method that will be called via our CWS endpoint. In this example, we will be creating a new endpoint for registering Alternate parts. If a user passes in a Part Number for a part, and a Part Number for an alternate part, this method will create a Part Alternate relationship between the two. Log in as an admin Navigate to TOC -> Administration -> Methods Create a new method with the method code below gist.github.com/christophersgillis/f25bfd73feb7148715a44d72ac01e880 Save and close the Method Note that at the start of this method we are retrieving two properties: the base_part_number and an alternate_part_number. When we make our web service below, we will configure the method endpoint to accept these two parameters. Defining our CWS Web Service Now that we have our Method defined, we can configure our CWS service such that we can call this Method from it. Log in as an admin Navigate to TOC -> Administration -> External Access -> Web Services Create a new CWS web service Title: Parts Management Endpoint Name: PartsManagement Click save and now configure a new endpoint related to this web service Instead of clicking Add ItemTypes as you might have done following our previous blogs, click Add Global Methods Search for and select the method we created above The Alias here will determine what the actual URL will be, so set the Alias to AddPartAlternate We’ll also add two parameters to match what the method is expecting: the base_part_number and alternate_part_number Save both the endpoint and the web service and open Postman for testing Calling our Method With Postman open, we can set up the sample call we will be using to test our new Method endpoint. If you’ve been following along, your request should look something like the screenshot below. Note that because this is a Method endpoint, the request type should always be POST. After configuring the Authorization for the request (either using an API Key or authenticating via OAuth), we should be able to click send and see that our Part Alternate was successfully added! This is just one example of the ways that we can leverage server methods to make our CWS endpoints even more valuable. Let us know if there are any business needs that this functionality would be useful to address. We hope you will be joining us at this year’s ACE Tech Summit March 31, 2025 from 9:00 AM – 4:30, followed by a reception. Details and registration information may be found here.Requirements Engineering and Variant Management Updates in Release 33
The recent rollout of Aras Innovator® Release 33 included upgrades to some of our existing applications. Our goal is to improve the user experience for Aras's Variant Management and Requirements Engineering applications. Let’s take a look at what’s new in Release 33. Variant Management In our newest release of Variant Management, we’ve introduced the concept of Configurator Context. Since products are always evolving, Configurator Context captures the applicable features, options, and rules for specific scopes of work, streamlining the concurrent management of past, present, and future product designs. When resolving Variability Items, you can now select a specific Context to automatically resolve particular features and options based on the selected context: In this example, the RP Series 2024 robot arm is specifically for Palletizing; no other valid options exist, so none are displayed. This is also visualized more clearly in the Configurator Context ItemType within the Variability Structure Tree Grid View. Here you can see that for the same RP Series Robot Arm, we can quickly see which options for each feature applies to the given context: And these can be set directly for each context within the Context Editor tab, shown below: Requirements Engineering In addition to the upgrade to Variant Management, there is also a new version of the Requirements Engineering document. This brings the Requirement Document Itemtype more in line with our standard Technical Document Framework. This comes with multiple benefits and the ability to better customize your Requirement Documents to fit your needs. Let’s take a look at the changes. The Technical Documentation Framework is a flexible and powerful tool for customizing documents and creating powerful links between items. We’ve written blogs on how you can modify your technical documents to contain new content, and those should still function as expected with the new version of RE. The main difference you’ll notice between the old Requirement Documents and the upgraded version is in the amount of options you have for authoring your Requirements. Many of the standard Tech Doc elements are now at your disposal. These can be inserted directly into your individual requirements, which can then be embedded in your Requirement documents. Formatting and spacing should be preserved when embedding. Here’s a quick example of what a more complete Requirement document would look like: As you can see, each requirement has sub-components which can be individually modified. Try experimenting with all the new components available for more powerful and relevant Requirements Documents. That was a quick overview of some of the big upgrades to applications in Release 33. Applications like Manufacturing Process Planning and Enterprise Search were also changed for compatibility and other minor improvements. There are exciting things coming down the pipeline, and there are great reasons to be on recent releases of Aras Innovator. To learn more, consider registering for our annual Aras Community Event (ACE), March 31 – April 3, 2025 in Boston! We hope to see you there.A Few Tips for Styling Responsive Forms with Aras Innovator
In previous posts, we’ve covered the basics of responsive forms. In this blog, we will dive even deeper and share some tips and tricks for making responsive forms more visually appealing to your end users. Here are a few tips on how to make your responsive forms convey more information in the same space. Nested columns In our first introductory blog on responsive forms, we outlined how your form can be broken down into columns to better organize your properties. A cool thing that you might not know is that you can actually break your columns into additional columns. While that might sound complicated, our UI makes it very simple to configure. Here’s a quick look at what this looks like in action: To configure this, you need to open your responsive form editor and just drag a box from the Structure tab into one of your columns: From here, you can select any of your unused properties and drop them directly into the new columns you’ve created. It’s important to keep in mind the length of your property when doing this and reserve this practice for shorter properties. Good examples are things like Revision, State, Generation, Part Number, and things like Booleans or Cost. Color coding important properties In another of my previous blogs, I showed how you can set rules to customize your forms. These can be based on things like who is viewing the form or what the actual value of the property is. This can be used in multiple different ways, but one that I’ve found useful is to check the current variable of your item and style the Revision property a different color if you’re not looking at the most current version of the Item. This gives your user a very quick visual indication that they might be looking at an older version of an Item. Here’s a quick look at what that rule would look like: Another great place to use this is on lifecycle/workflow states. Using a simple color code allows users to quickly understand what is happening with their Items once they open a form. I recommend playing around with these to see what is possible. In the same vein, utilizing rules to hide specific properties from identities is much easier than it was in the old form system. This allows you to have fewer specialized views, which require less maintenance. Concluding thoughts Responsive forms continue to receive enhancements with each release. There has never been a better time to give them a try, and trying is as simple as pressing this button on your Item’s form: Keep in mind that this button just changes your view and doesn’t overwrite any of your existing forms. You can freely switch back and forth between your classic and responsive forms. Give them a try, and let us know what you’re able to build! Consider sharing with colleagues via comments. We want to hear from you.Streamline Collaboration with Aras Supplier Management Solutions
Supplier Management Solutions is new to Aras Innovator and supports Releases 22+. This new application allows you to collaborate seamlessly with your suppliers. Your suppliers can see relevant data approved by your organization through an external portal. The SMS application includes additions to our data model and the Aras Portal, and we’ll go over both below. The Aras view This application adds multiple new ItemTypes, which, in typical Aras fashion, are completely customizable to fit your needs. The package includes a hub for suppliers and additional Item Types linked via properties and relationships. These include all the Items you’ll need for assessment, procurement, and risk management. These items can also be augmented to link directly to other standard or custom Item Types. The Aras portal view The Aras Portal is a separate web service that runs alongside your Aras Innovator server. It connects directly and securely with your server while respecting our complicated permission model. It’s a great way to ensure that suppliers have whatever access they need, without exposing critical business information. The Aras Portal can be accessed either via desktop or mobile, with both views being shown in the screenshots below. It’s important to note that things like our viewers (CAD, PDF) and SSVC are all available in the Aras Portal. This allows for direct, in-context communication between suppliers and manufacturers, whether logged into Aras Innovator or your portal. After showing this application off at ACE 2024, customers expressed great interest. This connectivity between manufacturers and suppliers opens the door for collaboration and efficiency. If this seems like something you could use, let us know in the comments or reach out to our presales team directly for a demonstration and consultation on how to get started using Supplier Management Solutions. For a closer look at this exciting new application, register now for our upcoming webinar, Optimizing PLM Supplier Management Solutions, on November 5. It’s not too soon to start thinking about ACE 2025. Hope to see you there!
