Industrial organizations want operational data accessible across plants, business units, and cloud initiatives, yet many platforms struggle to scale without adding complexity, cybersecurity risk, and operational overhead. In a recent webinar, A Smarter, More Flexible Foundation for Scaling OT Data, Emerson’s Stefan Secker, Vice President of Software Development for the AspenTech Inmation OT Data Fabric at Emerson and co-founder of inmation, introduced the next generation of AspenTech Inmation and explained why it matters for senior Information Technology (IT) and Operational Technology (OT) leaders in manufacturing and production operations.

Why It Matters

For most enterprises, the real cost of fragmented data is not the storage bill. It is the maintenance load of point-to-point connections, the cybersecurity exposure of many open ports, and the delay every analytics, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and digital twin program inherits while waiting for clean, contextualized data. A purpose-built industrial data fabric centralizes connectivity and delivery in a single layer, scaling from one site to a global enterprise. The result is a more defensible architecture and a faster path from data to decision.

Key Takeaways

• The AspenTech Inmation OT Data Fabric is the modernized successor to the original AspenTech Inmation and part of the broader AspenTech Inmation Data Platform, which supports Emerson’s Enterprise Operations Platform vision.
• A new single binary “node” provides connectivity, storage, contextualization, scripting, and exposure in one executable, with optional functions that can be toggled at runtime.
• Nodes run on Windows, Linux containers, and ARM processors, supporting deployments from a Raspberry Pi-class edge device to a globally distributed cloud architecture.
• Nodes can be nested in essentially unlimited layers, with full bidirectional communication so writes can flow from enterprise systems down to control endpoints.
• The platform is open and vendor-neutral, exposing data to consumers such as Tableau, Power BI, Seeq, Databricks, Cognite, and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems, including SAP, in their native formats.
• The new release is designed to work alongside existing historians and Distributed Control Systems (DCS) rather than replace them, with availability planned for July 2026.

From Spaghetti Connections to a Unified Backbone

Stefan opened with the data architecture that most large enterprises still operate. Consumers across the business connect directly to sources such as DCS, historians, lab systems, and maintenance systems. Each consumer maintains its own point-to-point connection, and east-to-west communication between peer systems is rarely handled. The result is a tangle of custom integrations that is hard to maintain, license, and upgrade.

The AspenTech Inmation OT Data Fabric replaces that pattern with a single integration layer. It connects to the sources, applies cleansing, aggregation, and contextualization, then exposes the data to consumers in whatever format they require. JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) is the default, but the fabric can also expose data as an SAP intermediate document (iDoc) or another consumer-specific format, removing the need for middleware in between. Contextualization can follow International Society of Automation (ISA) 95 equipment models, ISA 88 batch models, or any other structure a consumer requires.

Inside the Node: One Binary, Many Roles

The architectural change underneath this release is the node. A node is a single binary that contains data connectivity for protocols such as the various OPC (open platform communications) flavors, Message Queuing Telemetry Transport (MQTT), Apache Kafka, Modbus, and Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) drivers. The same binary can act as an OPC server, a REST endpoint, a WebSocket interface, and an HTTP server, and it includes a scripting engine for real-time logic.

That same binary runs on Windows, on Linux containers distributed through Docker or Kubernetes, and on Arm processors. According to Stefan, the ARM option opens new edge scenarios on devices ranging from inexpensive Raspberry Pi boards to Emerson’s Programmable Automation Controller (PAC). All functions, including storage, can be enabled or disabled per node at runtime, making installation, monitoring, and centralized updates significantly easier than in the legacy version.

Hybrid Architecture and Real-World Scale

Because the node is a single binary with optional functions, the same product can scale from a single process on a small edge device to a globally distributed system. Nodes can be nested in an essentially unlimited number of layers, with connectivity, storage, contextualization, and exposure available at any level. Communication is bidirectional, so a Manufacturing Execution System (MES) instruction at the top can flow down through the fabric to issue a start-batch command to the correct endpoint in a DCS.

The legacy product was limited to roughly 10 million objects, often referred to as tags. The new fabric is designed for up to 100 million. One existing specialty chemicals deployment spans more than 500 plants and 9 million objects, supporting more than 40 use cases, illustrating how the same architecture can serve very different sites. Configuration is now handled through WebStudio, a browser-based interface that replaces the desktop tool from version one. The system runs on-premises, in a private or public cloud, or in a hybrid mix.

Business Value for IT and OT Leaders

For senior IT and OT leaders, Stefan framed the value in four ways. Lower total cost of ownership (TCO) comes from the single binary, the distributed architecture, and the ability to monitor, maintain, and update centrally. Faster time to value comes from the ability to start small at one site and add a parent node later, which was not possible in the legacy version. The platform enables AI, analytics, digital twins, and enterprise applications without redesigning the underlying data layer. And the secure-by-default approach, including encryption at rest and in transit and single-port Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) communication, reduces operational risk.

Emerson’s AspenTech website reinforces these points, describing the fabric as compliant by design, consolidating data below the enterprise firewall and channeling it through one secure port, with low TCO through microservice installations and high resiliency through an agile, consistent global infrastructure.

Take the Next Step

If your organization is evaluating how to scale operational data without scaling complexity, watch the webinar and review the product overview and supporting customer stories at AspenTech Inmation: The Industrial Data Fabric. It is a practical starting point for IT and OT leaders planning a unified, secure, and AI-ready industrial data foundation.