Inforbix is not a big company. It’s, by any measure, a small technology start-up. Autodesk acquires small companies all the time. So why does Inforbix matter?
Start with Oleg Shilovitsky, Inforbix’s CEO. He is what many people call a “thought leader” in PLM. He writes the PLM Think Tank and Beyond PLM blogs, and expresses his thoughts on PLM regularly, and publicly. He’s quite respected by people who know what they’re doing.
But, beyond Oleg’s presense, it’s the Inforbix software that’s interesting. It’s a software as a service (SaaS) application that helps users find, reuse, and share product data. If most PLM systems work like traditional databases, Inforbix works more like Google.
The Inforbix software will be incorporated into Autodesk’s PLM 360 cloud-based application. No big surprise there: When PLM 360 came out, it took Oleg and team a couple of hours (at most) to integrate Inforbix. Here’s a video showing what the combination can do:
Now, about this acquisition: I think was more a matter of “when” than “if.” It’s a natural fit for Autodesk. And Inforbix gains greatly by being part of a company with a large customer reach.
Ultimately, this acquisition is a reflection that Autodesk is dead serious about their PLM 360 product. And, for users of PLM 360, it’s nothing but a win.
