Setting the Stage: A New Era of Industrial Automation
The industrial sector is on the cusp of a significant transformation driven by the demand for agile, resilient, and sustainable operations. However, proprietary architectures and vendor lock-in constrain traditional automation systems. Consequently, open platforms are emerging to break these barriers. As part of this evolution, Enterprise Automation (EA), in collaboration with Schneider Electric (SE) and Universal Automation (UAO), aims to redefine industrial automation by offering unprecedented flexibility and scalability with EcoStruxure Automation Expert.
What’s on the Horizon?
With Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure Automation Expert PLC programming platform, EA is ready to provide solutions that offer:
Unmatched Flexibility: The platform supports vendor interoperability, enabling seamless integration across multiple product lines. This decouples software from hardware in industrial systems.
Futureproofing: The platform ensures long-term viability and scalability by providing a framework for upgrading and modernizing existing automation systems. This helps industries stay ahead of technological advancements.
The PLC Upgrade Vision: Paving the Way for Efficiency and Innovation
At the core of this vision is EcoStruxure Automation Expert (EAE), a next-generation automation platform leveraging IEC 61499 standards and an open, software-centric approach to universal automation. Moreover, our engineers have been hands on in the development and use of the product.
– Decoupled Software and Hardware: EAE adopts a truly decoupled architecture, where software applications are hardware-agnostic. This allows for greater flexibility in selecting automation hardware and streamlining updates. This simplifies lifecycle management by eliminating dependence on vendor-specific hardware upgrades.
– IT/OT Convergence: EAE bridges IT (Information Technology) and OT (Operational Technology) systems, enabling unified data models and the seamless integration of systems from various vendors. This improves real-time decision-making and operational agility.
– Real-time Data Linkage: EAE’s open architecture enables real-time data exchange between enterprise-level IT systems and plant-floor OT systems, reducing engineering effort for IT/OT convergence.
– Operational Effectiveness: EAE’s hardware-agnostic framework allows industries to choose the best hardware for their specific needs, without being locked into a single vendor’s ecosystem. This flexibility promotes more innovative and cost-effective solutions.
– Futureproofing: EAE allows for the “wrap and reuse” of existing automation assets, maximizing current investments in legacy systems. It also provides a path for gradual migration to newer technologies, protecting long-term ROI.
– Accelerated Time to Market: EAE’s model-based engineering reduces engineering times by up to 60% through automated workflows, pre-configured libraries, and modular design.
– Compliance and Readiness: The platform is aligned with UniversalAutomation.Org standards, ensuring cross-vendor operability and setting a foundation for a universal automation ecosystem compliant with IEC 61499 and other international standards.
Partnerships: Expanding the Ecosystem
EA’s collaboration with Schneider Electric and UniversalAutomation.Org (UAO) goes beyond a strategic alliance. It is a commitment to fostering an open and interoperable automation ecosystem. By building on the IEC 61499 standard and open-source principles, we aim to deliver flexible and future-proof automation solutions.
Client Impact: Anticipating New Opportunities
Deployed in systems across the globe, EAE’s expected impact is profound. Moving towards EcoStruxure Automation Expert and Universal Automation could provide:
– Enhanced Security: The platform supports end-to-end encryption, secure communication protocols, and server-based software management, mitigating risks from evolving cybersecurity threats in critical infrastructure.
– Seamless IT/OT Integration: EAE’s architecture simplifies integrating enterprise IT applications, such as ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and MES (Manufacturing Execution Systems) with OT environments. This reduces technical debt and operational complexity.
– Accelerated Engineering: Using ready-made, pre-configured asset models in EAE’s object-oriented design environment drastically reduces engineering time, allowing engineers to focus on high-value tasks like optimization and innovation.
– Access to High-End Talent: As industrial automation increasingly relies on IT-centric tools and modern programming languages such as Python and JavaScript, the field will attract a new wave of tech-savvy engineers with expertise in data science and software development. This influx will further bridge the IT/OT skills gap.
A Balanced Focus: Managing Expectations
Although EAE is designed to be open to hardware that supports IEC 61499 runtime, managing expectations is essential. Openness is one of the platform’s key strengths, but broader vendor adoption may take time. Nevertheless, the platform’s benefits—enhanced security, IT/OT convergence, faster engineering, and access to top talent—are compelling reasons for early adoption.
The Bigger Picture: Integration and Innovation
EcoStruxure Automation Expert is designed as a standalone PLC programming solution that coexists with legacy systems such as FactoryTalk, Ignition, Ovation, AVEVA System Platform (Wonderware), and any other SCADA systems. The platform meets modern demands while ensuring backward compatibility and interoperability with existing infrastructure. This flexibility is essential for industries looking to modernize without disrupting operations.
Conclusion: A Vision for the Future
Schneider Electric’s $10 billion investment in AVEVA signifies a long-term commitment to leading industrial digital transformation. EcoStruxure Automation Expert and UniversalAutomation.Org represent a transformative approach to industrial automation. By offering flexibility, openness, and futureproofing, these platforms are designed for industries looking to innovate while attracting tech-savvy talent. As EA, Schneider Electric, and UAO push forward, they will help shape the future of industrial automation, setting new standards for efficiency, security, and innovation.
