Endress+Hauser is a founding member of new digital production alliance

The goal of the Open Industry 4.0 Alliance is a standardized and open ecosystem for the digitalization of industrial production facilities.

As a global leader in measurement instrumentation for process engineering, Endress+Hauser is an active player in digital innovation. The company is taking a new leadership role as a co-founder of the Open Industry 4.0 Alliance, a new group that aims to boost digital transformation in European industry.

The alliance was announced this week at Hannover Messe 2019. The other founding members are Beckhoff, Hilscher, ifm, KUKA, Multivac, and SAP.

Industrial Internet of Things

These companies are working on an open ecosystem for digital transformation of industrial facilities. Their specialties include mechanical engineering, automation, and software. The goal is to overcome proprietary solutions and give a decisive boost to digital manufacturing and the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT). The alliance is committing itself to creating a standardized, open ecosystem for operating highly automated factories and process plants, while integrating logistics and services.

The Open Industry 4.0 Alliance has an open architecture that meets all of the process industry’s requirements. Based on strict standards, this architecture will ensure transparency across all business processes and guarantee that the systems have integrity. It will allow process-plant operators to leverage the potential of digitization.

The new alliance is open to all European companies in principle. Organizations that have already signed up include Balluff, Gebhardt, Pepperl+Fuchs, Schmidtsche, Schak, Samson, and WIKA. With a focus on implementation and benefits, the Open Industry 4.0 Alliance’s first order of business will be to realize an Open Industry 4.0 Framework, which it will base on I/O Link, OPC UA, RAMI, and other existing standards for the entire route, from objects in the workshop to services.

Customers of these companies will be able to select from a modular system of compatible, scalable solution and service components. One key example is Endress+Hauser’s own Netilion IIoT ecosystem, an innovative digital service. In addition, connection to the SAP software portfolio will allow integration of a company’s business processes and collaboration with partners across company boundaries, and the open architecture will enable simple connection of further system landscapes.

In co-founding this alliance, Endress+Hauser assures its status as an industry leader.

For more information, contact Endress+Hauser.

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