Changes for Global Products and PLM

Abstract

In early 2007, the G7 countries of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK and the US accounted for about two-thirds of the world economy, and 10% of the world population. Since 1976, their leaders had met annually to discuss issues of concern. Thirty years later, the world still had many problems in need of solutions. They included:

• Global Warming, threatening the flooding of many cities and states

• More than a billion people living on $1 per day

• More than a billion people living without safe drinking water and electricity

• Billions of people living in slums

• Thousands of people dying each day of curable diseases and illness. For example, every day, 6000 children die from diarrhoea, usually caused by lack of clean water

• In 2007, according to the World Health Organisation, about 1 billion people are affected by Neglected Tropical Diseases such as schistosomiasis and trypanosomiasis

• In 2007, according to the World Health Organisation, road traffic crashes kill more than 1 million people each year. The annual global cost of road traffic crashes is estimated to be over $500 billion.