Monday, October 24, 2005

Rockwell Automation announces new software architecture Last week Rockwell Vice President Kevin Roach briefed the Automation World editorial staff about a new architecture designed to integrate all the disparate applications revolving around the MES space. I had picked up a little of the conversation about the fragmented nature of MES at the MESA International conference a few weeks ago in Orlando. Rockwell unveiled ambitious plans to provide an integrated suite of applications designed to tie the control layer with the enterprise layers of a manufacturing enterprise. This vision sounds very much like the roadmap laid out for me several years ago by then Rockwell Software President Rich Ryan for the control layer called Logix. The company has mostly succeeded with that work, so I have hopes that it can succeed with this one. If not, I know that others will be also trying to get this integration thing going--including Siemens, GE Fanuc and Invensys Wonderware with its ArchestrA platform. If these companies can succeed in this integration work around XML and other such Web Services (and I think that they will to varying degrees), then it will be very good news for their manufacturing customers. 1:41:35 PM    comment []

Market Growth For Collaborative Production Management products The ARC Advisory Group has completed a study predicting that the market for Collaborative Production Management for Process industries will grow at a compound annual rate of nearly 12 percent annually for the next five years. Senior Analyst Tom Fisk states, "Contributing to growth is increased demand from developing regions that are constructing new plants and purchasing best-in-class solutions to achieve world-class manufacturing capabilities and have their products well accepted around the world. As global competition increases, existing manufacturing facilities are under incredible pressure to improve their Return on Assets. To achieve higher levels of performance, these plants are adopting more CPM solutions that better link manufacturing operations with business objectives, that increases their flexibility and agility, and that synchronizes their supply chain operations." 5:59:19 AM    comment []