Arena by PTC is a cloud-based PLM and QMS platform. Arena helps product companies that rely on distributed teams and global supply chains to develop products, ensure regulatory compliance, and respond to customer demands.
N/A
Qualio
Score 7.0 out of 10
N/A
Qualio is an all-in-one quality management platform helping companies maintain compliance, managed documents, audits, suppliers and complaints in one place.
N/A
Pricing
Arena PLM and QMS
Qualio
Editions & Modules
Arena PLM Launch
Contact Sales
Arena PLM Enterprise
Contact Sales
Arena QMS
Contact Sales
Arena QMS Enterprise
Contact Sales
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Arena PLM and QMS
Qualio
Free Trial
Yes
No
Free/Freemium Version
No
No
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
No
No
Entry-level Setup Fee
Required
Optional
Additional Details
Arena's cloud-based PLM and QMS solutions include role-based subscriptions to meet diverse team needs. Their fixed-fee QuickStart™ implementations supports rapid deployment.
Arena PLM is well suited for part number, BOM and file management. Processing changes (ECNs, ACOs, DCO's, etc.) in Arena is very easy to do and provides great visibility on the status of submitted requests. The ability to communicate with Suppliers and grant them access to files in Arena is extremely helpful. Arena does not appear to be the best suited system for managing software
I think that Qualio can work for some organizations, but not all. I dont think it is well-suited for a pharmaceutical or medical device company, but this could work for a company that doesnt require FDA oversight, computer system compliance, audit trails, etc. Perhaps this would be useful at an organization where only storage and receipt of documents is tracked, but not necessarily to the level of detail that is expected in the industry
It provides easy, 'login-anywhere' internet cloud-based access to fundamental PLM functions.
It provides secure access control for employees & vendors (but you pay per person for access licenses).
Data is effectively 'always backed up' in the internet-cloud.
There is an option to attach thumbnail graphics representative of each item and create a Bill of Materials view that also displays the graphics to help provide item recognition for BOM readers.
Is flexible enough to customize for use for different types of medical devices, enabling us to integrate it into our processes and support our quality automation initiatives.
Supports a distributed/remote workforce by enabling electronic record-keeping and signatures.
Generally supportive of the quality system regulations we are subject to.
Arena lacks the capability to edit documents within its interface and requires users to upload new versions of documents when changes are made. This makes it a bit more challenging to collect and implement reviewer feedback
Arena's requirement tracking world does not have the proper functionality we need and was not useful for us.
I would appreciate if similar documents are grouped together. For instance if engineering documents are put in one category and management document in a different category
Qualio has links to external documents but it would be helpful if it linked the user to sections within the document also
I would prefer that users be able to purchase licences directly without contacting a representative
We have so much time and effort invested into Arena. The history of approvals, revisions, etc. are necessary for many of our customers. We also have entire device histories recorded. Having to re-create that on another platform would be a feat requiring years of effort. But mostly, Arena just works. It's transformed our business into a much more streamlined system, resulting in a massive cost and time savings.
as i already mentioned earlier.... Qualio definitely makes things run smoother, especially with keeping compliance in check and reducing errors. The setup took a bit to get everyone on board, and yeah, the costs can stack up over time. But overall, it’s been a solid tool that’s saved us time and stress, so it’s definitely worth it.
The Arena interface is fairly intuitive, and has very complete functionality. Documents are easily accessed according to prescribed user permissions, and the navigation pane is clearly positioned and sensibly structured. Notifications are sometimes a minor distraction, and document organization and hierarchy display may be difficult to follow at first. After a brief learning curve, perceived usability quickly increases for the typical user.
Most features are intuitive and easy to use. My favorite thing is the customer support. If I encounter a problem or don't know how to do something, a real person gets back to me within hours with a detailed solution.
Seems like when I need to access our workspace for an emergency situation, this is when maintenance is scheduled, just the luck of the draw, I guess, and I just wait until the maintenance is complete, and then can proceed
Upon initial observation, Arena Solution appears to possess a rather intricate nature, yet this complexity was effectively navigated during the initial configuration phase with the invaluable assistance of an expert well-versed in Arena, a factor that greatly contributed to our comprehensive mastery and autonomous handling of Arena Solutions thereafter.
Two great things Qualio has for customer support. 1. They are available online and on the phone, if needed, 24/7 with very friendly and knowledgeable people. Usually, the wait is no more than 10 or 15 min, and while you wait, you can search their online help library. I used to call first, but now I've found that their online help library usually has he answers already and the instructions are clear. Usually, I learn more than I needed. So I now go there first and only call if I don't find anything in the online help library.
The On line training was easy to understand and was very efficient for most of our users. We used the training tools to make sure we use all of the features to their fullest and correctly! After a few weeks mos of our users were very proficient with ARENA PLM and were able to work on their own and use mos of the sections and PLM capablilities.
I've used SAP, Agile in the past, for PLM, and unless the server is in your office, you cannot configure anything, and should it crash, you as the client are stuck until the issues are resolved. In my 15 plus years using Arena, there has only been one instance where the server was down, and the support team quickly resolved the issue with no loss or data or breach of any kind. Both PLMs are very light on what you can configure for your own company, most of it is out of the box, and you are stuck with it, whereas Arena Solutions gives you much more freedom to really tailor it to your company's specifics and what works for you.
Qualio is more intuitive to use and more economical for a small enterprise. I was not working for the company at the time it was selected, although I have experience with several other QMS systems and found Qualio to have some unique properties, such as the configurable templates and strong search engine.
Arena is easy to customize and therefore easy to scale. Different user groups with access restrictions can be easily created and new training plans can be created to support different user bases. Suppliers can also easily be added or items can be shared with them
Arena PLM and QMS has allowed [...] to efficiently respond to Design Changes and process them effectively.
Arena PLM and QMS has completely automated our CAPA process, removing all paperwork and 99% of other electronic files.
Arena PLM and QMS has allowed our Contract Manufacturing Organizations (CMO) to upload current manufacturing data; this puts [...]'s finger on the pulse of a CMO thousands of miles away. No more surprises.
