aPriori FAQs

aPriori is the leading Manufacturing Insights Platform. It delivers strategic insights so manufacturers know how to design a product and where to manufacture it to optimize cash flow, accelerate revenue growth and improve margins. Our unique, collaborative software combines Product Cost Management, Design for Manufacturing and Sustainability, and Supplier Collaboration capabilities. The technology includes more than 450 manufacturing process simulations and 87 regional economic models. As a result, manufacturers yield insights that accelerate time to market by 20%, while achieving hundreds of millions of dollars in cost savings and a decreased CO2 footprint. aPriori’s Manufacturing Insights Platform connects Design Engineers, Cost Experts, and Sourcing/Procurement teams. The proof is in the pudding. No one tells our story better than satisfied customers.

aPriori is suited for everyone involved in any aspect of the product development process. Design engineers will gain useful information early in the design process, identifying manufacturability issues that will reduce the need for redesigns in later stages. Sourcing and procurement can pinpoint which parts are truly overpriced, and have sufficient detailed cost and manufacturing information to negotiate better. They also can explore supplier options faster and with greater ease. Cost engineers can generate detailed cost estimates faster, right from the CAD model, and in bulk. It allows them to generate more estimates than ever thought possible to provide Sourcing teams with the data they need to maximize their cost reduction efforts and reduce their risk. Manufacturing operations will be able to better manage the product lifecycle as well as timelines, bringing products to market faster and at a higher value. Collectively, aPriori delivers a level of communication and collaboration that puts its customers head and shoulders above the competition. Explore the option that best fits your needs and objectives.

All phases of the product development lifecycle are connected to better collaborate and leverage each stage’s digital information. aPriori integrates with your PLM and CAD systems to automatically analyze components and provide timely feedback regarding cost estimates and potential DFM issues of the analyzed parts or assemblies. Read more about how aPriori addresses them.

aPriori sets up a blueprint for success throughout your process - from concept to delivery. aPriori solutions provide increased productivity, reduced costs, faster time to market, and higher profit margins. All facets of the product lifecycle become more efficient and cost-effective. Collaboration and communication are enhanced. Access to suppliers with availability and a good price point are at your fingertips. Manufacturers can turn out a higher value product without compromising quality, profitability, or time to market. See for yourself why aPriori consistently receives five star ratings and reviews.

aPriori is fully committed to ongoing training and support. We offer both live training options as well as recorded training modules to ensure you maximize the power of our solution. Learn more about aPriori Academy.

Traditionally, product lifecycles for specific industries have lasted for several years. In today’s consumer driven market, product makers need to stay competitive. aPriori digital solutions shorten the cycle by months – even years – since design, cost, supply, and production issues are identified and remediated upfront. Implementing digital automation technologies such as aPriori can have a significant impact on the length of your product development lifecycle. Watch a short video to see why successful manufacturing companies are embracing and benefitting from digital transformation.

aPriori makes integration and onboarding easy. All processes can be fully adopted across the organization via secured cloud access, anywhere and anytime, increasing agility through an automated digital workflow. Onboard your team seamlessly with this informative video guide.

Data access and systems interoperability are fundamental to the digital thread. But spreadsheets and custom systems contain siloed data that cannot be integrated automatically into business systems. Manually adding spreadsheets or other data risks introducing old, incorrect information into a system that cannot be traced or audited for accuracy. These manual inputs break the digital thread and compromise the value of using a single source of information throughout the product lifecycle. Read more on how the digital thread brings design, production, and manufacturing together.

Organizations that connect departments and operations digitally are able to use data to make decisions rapidly, reducing time to market and ensuring greater profitability. The manufacturing intelligence obtained from using aPriori’s solutions provides a single, reliable source of information that stakeholders can use to make informed decisions. This will enable your team to work faster and more efficiently. Watch this video clip to see how you can utilize aPriori to collaborate across departments throughout the product’s lifecycle.

Countless ways. Here are a few examples: For designers and cost engineers, design for manufacturing (DFM) and design to cost (DTC) issues can be identified in earlier stages, allowing for timely responses and less costly adjustments. Cost outliers can be prioritized and corrective action taken more expediently. Sourcing will be looped into cost targets, leveraging that information to make more informed buying decisions (and even as a negotiating tool with suppliers). For the enterprise, greater collaboration, increased productivity, and enhanced product value ensure return on investment for stakeholders, provide product speed to market, and increase revenue share. Learn how aPriori will help you collaborate across teams for greater productivity. Discover how.

The beauty of digitizing your system is that it serves as a blueprint for success throughout the entire manufacturing process. It provides a more robust and comprehensive model that covers the breadth of manufacturing parts, assemblies, players, verticals, and uses. All phases of the product development lifecycle are connected to better leverage each stage’s digital information. As a result, work and ultimately, credibility, are quantified through increased productivity, reduced costs, faster product introduction to the market, and higher profit margins. aPriori’s solution illustrates increased efficiencies, more cost-effective supplier and design options, and more efficient communication and collaboration, leading to measurable productivity and revenue boosts. Learn more, read "10 Ways to Add Value with aPriori."

Of course! We have many satisfied, long-term customers with case studies ranging from industrial equipment, aerospace and defense, high tech and electronics, auto and transportation, and the consumer goods industries. Additionally, whether you are in design, sourcing, cost engineering, quoting, or production, rest assured there is a use case to further illustrate our capabilities and how you can benefit from aPriori’s solution. Download our customer success stories to find out how you can benefit from aPriori.

aPriori Sustainability Insights enables manufacturers to measure, reduce, and report on their products’ carbon footprint during product design and production. aPriori calculates CO₂ equivalent greenhouse gas emissions (CO₂e) for a given design's raw material extraction, processing, and manufacturing process. By adding CO2e emissions data analysis to its capabilities, aPriori provides the only manufacturing intelligence platform to optimize products for cost, manufacturability, and sustainability. aPriori Sustainability Insights is available via the cloud and on-premise. 

LCA covers from cradle to grave of a product and assesses CO₂e emissions, water and air pollution, transportation, in-use, and end-of-life in terms of environmental impact. In other words, LCAs measure CO₂e emissions of a product’s life cycle once the product is designed and produced. But LCAs don’t provide the rapid sustainability analysis that product development teams require during the early design stage. aPriori focuses on the material, manufacturing process, and factory location (cradle-to-gate). This is typically the area when product developers and manufacturers can influence the most.

It is essential that we provide our customers with the most current information to make informed decisions that affect everything from design through manufacturing. Moreover, world events and market fluctuations can have a profound effect on your manufacturing decisions and budgets. Updates are available quarterly. You can be confident that you are accessing real-time, validated data on material costs. See how aPriori can help you understand your material costs.

Future planning, particularly regarding cost changes, is a smart move. We’ve factored it into our solution through the digital factory feature. Watch this video to see how you can get ahead of costs.

We understand that keeping costs in line to ensure profitability is paramount. Our Regional Data Libraries provide up-to-date information on supplier pricing in 87 geographic areas throughout the world. Delve deeper into the power of our RDLs.

aPriori appreciates customers’ concerns regarding supplier upcharges, particularly during volatile times. It underscores why manufacturers need a digital solution that can mitigate supply chain issues such as upcharges. Our software helps you design new products with a readily available and interchangeable bill of materials (BOM) as well as optimize manufacturing and assembly – providing supplier alternatives and more supply chain flexibility. Conversely, suppliers can utilize our quoting software to factor in items which influence their profit margin and costs. Check out our Quoting for Suppliers video demo.

Our Regional Data Libraries are a great starting point to work around current supply chain issues. If your regular suppliers are experiencing higher fuel prices and extra storage fees as a result of the supply chain, the Regional Data Libraries can provide more affordable options not impacted by the supply chain. Our software leverages the component’s geometry to determine what is required in order to manufacture it and interprets the implications as such in terms of times and costs. Discover more about how our RDLs can help you find cost-effective suppliers.

Cost drivers such as design features, sourcing decisions, and manufacturing processes impact manufacturers’ ability to deliver products to market. It’s imperative for manufacturers to reduce costs wherever possible. However, not all costs are obvious. aPriori's aP Design is the most effective cost-control tool in highlighting cost outliers. Download our aP Design datasheet to learn more.

Absolutely! Whether you are in design engineering, sourcing, cost estimating, or senior management, we have a solution tailored to your requirements. No matter where you are in the product lifecycle, you’ll have access to the same data and insights via aPriori, with the added bonus of embedded applications specific to your role. Find out which aPriori solution meets your role’s needs and objectives.

To truly impact product costs so it drives down the Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) by entire percentage points, manufacturers must look to deploy a product cost management methodology further upstream in the development process and across all departments and levels – not just inside manufacturing or cost engineering. Access our whitepaper to learn more.

Of course. We offer several cost-saving solutions, depending on your objectives. For instance, one of our solutions automatically analyzes your digital twin CAD models every time they are checked into your Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) system. Now you can ensure that every product is optimized for manufacturability and cost. Its fact-based, easy to analyze data ensures that you can be confident in your decision-making. Explore our host of solutions and consider requesting a demo.

While every enterprise is unique, there are similar cost-savings and methods for quantifying value with stakeholders. We have clients that have seen a 5-15 percent reduction in material costs. Others have saved 15-30 percent in research and development costs. Our manufacturing simulation software is data-driven and fact-based. Clear and compelling visuals support cost-savings value, enhanced time to market, and increased productivity. Quantifying return on investment has never been easier with aPriori’s products. Learn more on how to set and achieve cost targets to increase profitability.

aPriori’s Cost Model Workbench (CMWB) is an ideal solution for those who want more control over their digital factories, allowing them to build and edit their own digital factories or maintain existing digital factories. What are its benefits? Cost model workbench allows you to edit and configure digital factories from a standard aPriori cost model template close to your desired one. Depending on your chosen product tier, you also may have the option to find, copy and modify an existing aPriori cost model or develop one from scratch. NOTE: The latter requires extensive knowledge and experience to achieve. Again, depending on your product tier, you also can select your preferred cost model – directional or absolute, with the latter requiring more customized digital factory and cost model work. Learn more in our Digital Factory guide. Then download the cost model workbench data sheet.

We understand that you can’t afford any downtime when it comes to performance. We have three database locations throughout the world. Customers work from one database location within their geographic region to ensure optimal performance. aPriori's cloud solutions currently use default AWS Amazon Machine Images and Docker’s Image Security Protection. Download aPriori’s Cloud Security whitepaper.

In multiple ways. For one, sourcing and procurement can work more collaboratively with suppliers to uncover mutual cost savings, identifying cost drivers for more transparency and better negotiating outcomes. Suppliers can benefit by quoting quickly, while ensuring that parts meet quality, delivery, and target cost expectations as well as profitability and improved win rates. aPriori automatically detects potential manufacturability issues for a single part or for an entire bid package. But that’s not all. aPriori also analyzes cost variances across a range of manufacturing different routings, materials or regions of the world in a matter of minutes. Learn how data makes the difference in fact-based negotiations.

The short answer? In a matter of minutes – sometimes less! Start by loading your CAD file into our software. aPriori will simulate the manufacturing of a part, analyzing potential manufacturing issues and cost outliers. Cost a part in real-time or set to cost parts automatically. As a result, you’ll get recommendations on potential DFM issues or suggestions on renegotiating supplier prices emailed directly to you. Watch our video to learn more.

aPriori’s Regional Data Libraries provide cost comparisons. Determine the best option for your product.

By automatically preparing estimates from a CAD file, aPriori provides suppliers with the ability to quickly and accurately quote parts and assemblies – including large RFQs and bid packages -sometimes as fast as 30 seconds for a single part. As a result, your customers don’t have to worry about productions being slowed down while they wait for your quotes. What’s more, because our quoting tool is highly accurate, manufacturers can determine overall product cost more precisely and consistently, and quote with less risk. Peruse our Guide to Manufacturing Cost Estimation.

Unlike aPriori, the LCA data on finish mass misses most of the material CO₂e created for a product -- and does not identify opportunities to increase material utilizations to save carbon. Here’s how aPriori works: aPriori takes a bottom-up approach to calculating carbon emissions based on rough mass and energy used during the manufacturing process. The rough mass is used and determined by the manufacturing process, material regrind opportunities, and material utilization. aPriori calculates the amount of raw rough mass required to make the selected part. This approach provides more precise CO₂e analysis than the finished mass calculations that LCA tools provide.