Initially announced on November 2020, Schneider Electric is excited to launch the world’s first universal automation offer, based on the IEC61499 standard for interoperability and portability, in Singapore. Today’s demands for greater manufacturing flexibility and productivity means that the industry needs IT solutions that can help them implement automated systems.
However, businesses often find themselves at a roadblock when trying to automate hardware across different vendors as they often need to use the proprietary software for each vendor, which can result in increased cost and development time. Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure Automation Expert allows users to work around that restriction by leveraging on the IEC 61499 standard, creating a truly universal automation system.
A report from the ARC Advisory Group (ARC) finds that, “a standardized automation system layer would be immensely valuable in economic terms.” For example, end-users across industry spend $20-30 billion each year to service the installed base. A substantial part of that spending could be avoided through a standardized automation layer, saving valuable engineering time by eliminating vendor lock-in and opening the door to automation innovation.
