From the article: "...the function of machines is still fundamentally mechanical. Often machines are designed on two tracks-one the province of the mechanical engineer, and the other of the electrical. So you have a mechanical design and an electrical design. Somewhere the twain must meet."

Mechanical Engineering magazine published an article in 2007 titled "Harnessing the Job" about the linkup of 2D electrical schematics (e.g. created using Routed Systems Designer) and 3D digital models of harnesses. It contains a good overview of the relationship between the two and how important it is to maintain the integrity of the data.

Remember if you're on maintenance with PTC it's quite likely you're already entitled to RSD Lite - it is available as part of many Pro/ENGINEER license packs. PTC has just released version 9.0 of Routed Systems Designer containing many desirable features. Also, Wildfire 5.0 contains the massively overhauled Cabling application, which introduced a new interface that makes the 3D side of harnesses much easier to create and modify.