Optare Group is the UK’s leading manufacturer of medium sized buses. The company, with an established reputation for excellence, is highly successful with an award winning product range. It operates a seamless ‘one-stop-shop’ approach from design to production and aftermarket support.

Optare Group’s Unitec division handles aftermarket parts and technical product support.  Through this division Optare provides a rapid response to the service and maintenance support issues of its client base of coach and bus operators. In 2003 Optare identified that it could improve the service levels offered to its customer base particularly improving parts identification and supporting technical maintenance information.  Unitec believed that it could improve the cost and efficiency of delivering an enhanced service level through a web-based solution. 

Epitomy identified Optare’s need to:

• Combine both its own OEM component data and that of third party suppliers
• Offer both a web-based order and transaction capability to its clients
• Integrate these processes with the company's ERP system
• Ensure that the web interface supported Optare's brand

Epitomy created a models datum within the PDM to accommodate both Optare’s OEM data and that third party component suppliers. The EPC solution also uniquely provided a ‘My Vehicle’ search option - just one click presents the full parts specification for each individual vehicle.

The cost, efficiency and service benefits for Optare have been:

• A significant reduction in order errors and consequent parts returns
• Reduced search time and improved productivity through the creation of a single parts and technical information database
• A consistent source of up-to-date and accurate technical information driving client self help and reducing repair times
• An Optare (Unitec) branded user interface professionally representing the brand to its aftermarket
  

More recently, Optare has invested in Lattice3D incorporating the Lattice XVL publishing technology into Optare's aftermarket solution.  This enables the use of highly compressed yet high fidelity 3D directly in downstream applications like web publishing, information sharing and design verification for products. The XVL technology allows for an excellent 3D visualization capability which, combined with compression technology, allows easy CAD file transfer and sharing. Optare is able to use its own digital photos, scanned images and coral draw images within this solution. Optare’s aftermarket solution now offers 3D visualization of graphics and technical illustrations to end users so enhancing the experience and improving the success of part order accuracy.