The Future of Open Source in PLM: Can It Solve Key Problems?

Open Source PLM topic was coming in my blog a few times in the past. The topic was quite popular back between in the 2010s. It was the time when Aras Enterprise Open Source model was gaining a lot of attention and initial traction. Here is my article about potential rise and failures of PLM open source thoughts about possible opportunities for PLM open source.

I see openness and networks as a significant opportunity to transform the PLM market. Until now, most PLM systems have been built to support a ‘single company’ model, focused on organizing internal data and processes. However, manufacturing is a networked industry, where contractors and suppliers work together. The question is: how do we create a PLM system that best fits the future of manufacturing? Could open source be the model that achieves this?

Coincidentally, while writing this article, István Csanády‘s LinkedIn post about FOSS CAD caught my attention. It’s worth checking out—there are many insightful points and comments on CAD development and open source. I particularly liked István’s conclusion about focusing on solving real problems: 1) making CAD more accessible; 2) developing pricing that aligns with value; and 3) treating industry-standard CAD technology as infrastructure.”

How Open Source Became So Popular

Open source software (OSS) has gained tremendous traction across industries over the last two decades, thanks to its collaborative development model and transparent codebase. By 2023, over 80% of companies were using open source technology in some form, with many core platforms like Linux, Kubernetes, and Apache at the heart of cloud infrastructures. The success of OSS has been driven by its ability to accelerate innovation, lower development costs, and foster community-driven contributions.

Some key data points about open source software:

1. Market Size and Growth of Open Source Software:
   • The open-source software market was valued at $35.9 billion in 2023 and is projected to grow to $41.83 billion by 2024, with a CAGR of 16.5%. This aligns with data from various reports, indicating a substantial annual growth driven by adoption across cloud, APIs, AI, and other technologies​(Grand View Research)​(Market Reports).
   • Further, by 2028, this market is expected to reach $77.75 billion, with an annual growth rate (CAGR) of 16.8%​(Market Reports).
2. Open Source Services Market:
   • The open-source services market is projected to grow from $34.99 billion in 2024 to $76.07 billion by 2029, also with a CAGR of 16.8%. This growth is attributed to the increasing need for scalable solutions in IT and cloud-based infrastructure​(Market Reports)​(Grand View Research).
3. Contributions to Open Source Projects:
   • Open-source projects on platforms like GitHub have seen significant growth, with a 161% increase in contributions over recent years. There are now over 570,000 open-source projects on GitHub​(Worldmetrics).

These numbers confirm the ongoing expansion of the open-source ecosystem, with major impacts across industries such as healthcare, IT, and cloud services.

PLM and Open Source: A Historical Context

Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) and product data management, and supply chain management software has historically been closed and proprietary, with solutions from Siemens, Dassault Systèmes, and PTC dominating the market. However, the open-source movement touched the PLM industry in the early 2000s.

As I was saying at the opening part of my article, the most notable example of FOSS software for product’s lifecycle was Aras, which pioneered a new approach by offering its Aras Innovator platform as an “enterprise open-source” solution. Aras allowed a free download of its core product and supported open source development of solutions using this core.

Aras Enterprise Open Source is explained in the following article An Enterprise Open Source Model: Why it Works. Aras model was a great success back in its time and unlocked the growth of Aras Innovator implemented by many enterprise companies. With the time passing more, many of the ideas of Aras Enterprise Open Source model are now available via SaaS – free trial, free upgrades, availability via subscription, community, and some others. With the future development of SaaS and other business models, can we see a place for FOSS PLM or any other variants of free open source or any variation of open models for PLM.

A few other open source products were created in the past two decades, but I haven’t seen a significant traction of these projects. In my view, none have gained wide adoption or disrupted the market. At the same time, open source ERP, Document Management, and Content Management System products exist and I can see customers using them.

Five Problems PLM Faces Today

While speaking about open source PLM opportunity (or any technical or business opportunity), it always good to start with the analysis of the problems (or how people sometimes call it “why”). I recommend you a book by Simon Sinek – Start with Why.

From my perspective, despite many advancements PLM vendors did in the past two decades, modern PLM systems face several pressing challenges. Here is my top 5 problems in PLM software today.

1. Complexity of User Experience: Most PLM systems are cumbersome and unintuitive, requiring significant training and expertise. Although, many PLM vendors acknowledged the importance of UI/UX in PLM development, it is still a big issue for large enterprise PLM.
2. Lack of Flexibility: Many systems are rigid and lack the ability to adapt to specific business workflows or scale as organizations grow.
3. Outdated Data Management: The core data management architecture behind all top four PLM systems is using SQL database architecture. It limits those systems in scalability, performance, and future enhancements.
4. Integration Challenges: PLM tools are complex to integrate with other enterprise systems like ERP, MES, and CRM, leading to data silos and inefficiencies of business processes.
5. High Total Cost of Ownership (TCO): Traditional PLM systems require expensive licenses, maintenance, and customization, driving up costs. Although, most of these systems are actively moving to SaaS and subscriptions, 34% of people in CIMdata PLM survey in 2023 indicated that PLM is too expensive.

Can Open Source Solve These Problems for PLM?

Would it be reasonable to think that open source PLM has the potential to address many of these issues? Here are some thoughts about it.

• Complexity of User Experience: With community-driven development, user feedback can rapidly shape the user interface (UI/UX) to be more intuitive and aligned with customer needs.
• Lack of Flexibility: Open source platforms can be customized by users, making it easier to tailor workflows and features to specific organizational needs.
• Outdated Data Management: A modern open-source PLM system could leverage the latest technologies—such as graph databases or cloud-native architectures—offering a more scalable and interconnected approach to data management.
• Poor Integration: Open-source platforms typically emphasize interoperability, with open APIs and integration frameworks that allow smoother connections to other systems.
• High TCO: While open-source software doesn’t eliminate all costs (support, hosting, and customization can still be expensive), it often reduces licensing fees and allows companies to only pay for the services they need.

While the general promise of open source to fix the problems, the big question is related to some fundamentals of open source such as a the number of people available and interested to do this work in the market. Let’s talk about it now.

The FOSS (Free and Open Source Software) model itself offers several advantages:

• Cost Efficiency: Reduces licensing fees and allows companies to invest more in tailoring the solution.
• Community and Collaboration: A global community can contribute improvements, reducing the burden on any one organization.
• Transparency: Open code allows users to fully understand and improve the software.

That said, the FOSS model might not be applicable for PLM market, which can be too small or not offer a critical mass of people and resources that needed to make FOSS model to work.

Can FOSS Be Applied to PLM?

Open-source PLM systems could be developed using the following key elements and approach:

• Flexible, Scalable Data Management: The core of any successful PLM system is the ability to manage complex product data at scale. Open-source platforms would need a modular, cloud-native data platform with an open API to support this.
• Collaborative Development: An active community of developers, vendors, and users would be crucial in ensuring that the platform evolves and scales with market needs.
• Business Model: Like other enterprise open source models (e.g., MongoDB, Elastic), companies could build commercial services (e.g., hosting, premium features) around an open-source core.

However, developing a successful open-source PLM requires substantial resources and collaboration among companies, which has been a barrier in the past.

Here are some thoughts about possible ways to make FOSS PLM to succeed:

• A robust, flexible data management platform: Leveraging modern, cloud-native, and scalable data architectures such as graph databases, machine learning, and other data management technologies.
• Open API: Enabling smooth integration with other enterprise systems (ERP, MES, CRM, etc.).
• Community-Driven Collaboration: Encouraging contributions from a wide array of users, developers, and companies. The contribution of enterprise manufacturing companies to develop a new foundation that can be used by everyone can be really critical.
• Enterprise Support: Offering commercial services on top of the open-source platform to ensure reliability and scalability for large businesses.

Will We See FOSS PLM in the Next 5 Years?

In my view, the future of FOSS PLM is still uncertain. The last decade has seen increased investor interest in PLM solutions, with major exits like Arena, Aras, Upchain, and Onshape after long life cycles. While these examples demonstrate the growing importance of PLM, none have embraced the FOSS model, except of Aras Enterprise PLM.

I think, the PLM market is ripe for disruption, and FOSS could play a role. Much like how Aras sparked interest in “open” PLM back in 2007, a modern, truly open-source project might emerge that pushes the industry forward. However, it remains to be seen whether the resources, collaboration, and business model needed to support such a project will come together in the next few years. As it stands, the jury is still out.

What is My Conclusion?

The open-source model holds great promise for solving some of PLM’s most pressing issues, particularly around flexibility, integration, and cost. However, the challenge remains whether the industry can rally around a truly open platform with the necessary technical and community support to make it viable. While we may not see a full-scale FOSS PLM solution in the next five years, the groundwork is being laid, and much like Aras ignited interest in the mid-2000s, we may see another pivotal movement toward open-source PLM in coming years. Manufacturing industry is transforming and only 17% of companies in PLM survey made by CIMdata indicated that they cannot live without PLM systems available today. Which leaves a huge space for newcomers, new technologies, and business ideas. The future, as always, remains intriguing. In the next few weeks, I will be blogging about how PLM industry can solve top 5 PLM problems I outlined earlier in this article. Just my thoughts…

Best, Oleg

Disclaimer: I’m the co-founder and CEO of OpenBOM, a digital-thread platform providing cloud-native PDM, PLM, and ERP capabilities. With extensive experience in federated CAD-PDM and PLM architecture, I’m advocates for agile, open product models and cloud technologies in manufacturing. My opinion can be unintentionally biased.