Digital transformation company Schneider Electric has expanded its partnerships with three major tech companies in order to ease the convergence between IT and OT.
The partnership extensions with AVEVA, Lenovo and Stratus will help to build integrated industrial edge computing systems by bringing together system integrators with tech providers, with three programmes devised as a result.
The company has developed new reference designs in collaboration with industrial software developer AVEVA, with technology embedded from the manufacturer Lenovo and IT firm Stratus. These include a learning path for system integrators as well as a collaborative online community for learning and sharing opportunities.
"The smart factory is becoming smarter. Our expanded partnerships and new industrial edge programs empower system integrators to leverage their domain expertise and become IT/OT convergence specialists and meet these needs for their customers," said Schneider Electric’s SVP for industrial automation Philippe Rambach.
"We know that smart manufacturing is driving an unprecedented wave of IT technologies into industrial spaces. As companies leverage AI, robotic processing automation, and more, they will require edge computing solutions to reduce latency and enable resiliency, while ensuring privacy and security, and addressing important data and bandwidth requirements."
The developments feed into Schneider’s strategy to provide the technology and digital transformation capabilities to promote concepts such as 'Industry 4.0’. This is powered through technologies like AI and IoT, but also edge computing.
The company sees local edge data centres as key elements of the IT infrastructure that would allow factories and other facilities to embrace true automation. Accelerating the capacity for edge computing would, in turn, accelerate the scope for digital transformation.
The industrial edge reference designs, developed with AVEVA, are available through the company's Local Edge Configurator and can be customised to specifications. These new designs can allow companies to preconfigure technology platforms and devices before shipment, increasing deployment speed and reducing costs, the company claims.
The professional development path for system integrators, meanwhile, aims to address the new requirements of industrial edge computing, with professionals given guidance to establish their role as consultants with regards to both IT and OT.
The 14-session learning programme includes digital training scheme for Schnieder Electric’s EcoStruxure technologies, focussing on how to use the reference designs and technology providers to deliver full IT/OT convergence for customers.
The Industrial Edge Exchange Community, finally, will allow system integrators to easily identify and engage with edge-certified tech providers. The programme also features a tool that pairs alliance system integrators with Schneider Electric’s channel partners.
