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By Bill Lydon, Editor Embedding intelligence in devices at the network “edge”, where sensing and control is performed, is fundamental for the successful implementation of Industry 4.0 and Industrial Internet. This article discusses the role of IEC-61131 in helping organizations move forward with IIoT

By Glen Whitley, Georgia Department of Economic Development Protecting digital information has never been more of a priority for governments, businesses, families and individuals. This article discusses the arms race between those who are seeking to illegally access cyber information and those attempting to safeguard it

By Bill Lydon, Editor A discussion with CEO Jerry Chase and Director of Products Dave McCarthy about the company’s Internet of Things (IoT) offering DataV and related services.

By Bill Lydon, Editor ODVA believes EtherNet/IP is ideally positioned for the fourth industrial revolution and the world of integrated cyber physical systems. This article summarizes ODVA's initiatives for the process industries, Industry 4.0 and field device configuration/integration.

By Peter Thorne, Director, Cambashi New connectivity enables new data flows. New data flows trigger new ways of working. The changes that happened in production years (and in some cases, decades) ago can now happen in product development, driven by the new connectivity of Industry 4 and Internet of Things initiatives. This article explores Industry 4.0 and Internet of Things (IoT) from the point of view of the design engineering process.

By Bill Lydon, Editor There are a number of worldwide initiatives to improve manufacturing flexibility, productivity and efficiency with high levels of integration. Manufacturing and automation professionals should study these initiatives and strongly consider their future automation investment strategies.

By Bill Lydon, Editor Over the years there have been only a handful of truly disruptive industrial automation and control technological shifts that significantly impacted manufacturing productivity and efficiency. With the latest technologies that are enabling IoT, we may be on the cusp of another shift.

By Bill Lydon, Editor This article expresses my thoughts on major automation and control trends for 2016 and beyond. Key topics include IoT, automation architecture, cloud, analytics, integration, robots and more.

By Bill Lydon, Editor Over the years, automation users have complained about being locked into an industrial automation vendor’s system architecture. ExxonMobil has had enough of proprietary, closed systems and they are leading the charge to build the next generation, multi-vendor automation system.

By Bill Lydon, Editor "Industrial Automation Absorbed by IT," may be the future headline if the industrial automation community does not make a commitment to multivendor, open-interoperability, and Internet of Things (IoT) technology. If this comes to pass it may not be the optimal solution for industrial automation effectiveness.

By Bill Lydon, Editor Efficiently achieving the vision of Industry 4.0, Industrial IoT and Smart Manufacturing will require the use of COTS (Commercial Off-The-Shelf) technologies that are open architecture. In every industry there has been resistance to open systems until a majority of customers demand them from suppliers. The industrial automation industry still has a long way to go.

By Bill Lydon, Editor The AWS IoT is service-oriented platform that leverages a plug-n-play Internet and cloud infrastructure to monitor and control devices while using big data to optimize. Developments like this are part of the shift in technology that is likely to change industrial automation systems by adding more value at lower cost.

By Bill Lydon, Editor The adoption of disruptive technologies can make or break your business. The effects can be positive or negative. Adopting what appears to be a disruptive technology that does not go mainstream or adopting it too early can break or significantly hurt a business. Automation professionals are in a unique position to understand, evaluate, and make recommendations to management about the adoption of new technology.

By Bill Lydon, Editor In an article titled 'Is it time for a new automation architecture?' I posed a question that stemmed from a number of discussions with users who believe our industry is stagnant. Many users voiced their opinions in an open discussion forum. They are frustrated with debates about which existing, outdated architectures are better. Many believe it’s time for a NEW architecture.

By Bill Lydon, Editor The Daikin Industries Intelligent Equipment platform translates the IoT buzzwords into a real-world IoT application. The platform provides predictive and preventative maintenance HVAC information that helps facility managers maintain equipment before it loses efficiency or impacts occupant comfort.

By Bill Lydon, Editor ThyssenKrupp is using Industry 4.0 as a way to achieve their 10 year digital enterprise goal. The implementation strategy is the seamless integration of ERP, MES, automation, and control systems to achieve smart production and satisfy customer requirements.

By Bill Lydon, Editor This is an update to previous automation and control trends articles and expresses my thoughts for 2015 and beyond. These opinions are based on a wide range of inputs from users, suppliers and industry consultants, and from attending more than 20 industry forums, conferences and trade shows last year.

By Bill Lydon, Editor Cyber-attacks are on the rise. Do manufacturing companies need to experience major disasters before they take cyber security seriously? We have talked and written much about cyber security, but little action has been taken. The good news is there is an ever expanding range of cyber security protection solutions for those motivated to protect themselves.

By Bill Lydon, Editor According to a recent survey, automation users want and deserve more from an automation controller. Albert Rooyakkers, CTO of Bedrock Automation, explains why they went back to the drawing board to design and develop this new, innovative automation controller.

By Bill Lydon, Editor The Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) in many respects is the progression of distributed computing. The fundamental components of an automation (or other) system are sensors; they are the “eyes, ears, and fingers” of any system. If the concepts of IIoT are to succeed, we need more effective, powerful sensors.