Why this matters now

The days of automation systems being completely isolated from the outside world are long gone. While some assets may remain air-gapped, most critical OT systems increasingly require connectivity to external systems to remain competitive.

The rise of AI has only accelerated this shift, as organizations look for safe ways to move contextualized production data into analytics and AI software without compromising control integrity or cybersecurity.

In a recent article in Industrial Ethernet magazine, Emerson’s Alan Mathason shares insights from his extensive experience in the automation industry to help readers make sense of this evolution:

“Factories are becoming more connected than ever as organizations find themselves competing in an increasingly complex marketplace. Carefully designed hardware and software product sets are evolving to enable edge connectivity and AI acceleration, providing insights and efficiencies previously only dreamed of.”

But just throwing any new technology solution at this challenge is not the answer. The most effective teams making the transition to more connected systems and AI-enablement are carefully selecting their hardware platforms for scalability, ease of use, and security – and as a result, most are landing on Emerson’s next generation industrial PCs (IPCs), seamlessly integrated with the PACEdge™ software platform.

Takeaway: AI-driven operations require connectivity, but only when it is implemented in a way that preserves OT integrity.

TL;DR

• OT systems are increasingly required to connect with external IT and AI systems.
• Air-gapped architectures no longer support competitive operations.
• Edge platforms provide safe, scalable IT/OT connectivity.
• Industrial PCs and edge software simplify deployment and management.
• Secure edge architectures prepare operations for AI-enabled optimization.

Bridging the IT/OT gap

One of the core challenges manufacturers face today is the divide between OT systems on the plant floor and IT systems at the plant and enterprise level. While one-off integrations are increasingly common, delivering secure, scalable connectivity remains difficult for many organizations.

At the same time, OT teams must turn massive volumes of operational data into actionable insight—without disrupting control systems, introducing cybersecurity exposure, or relying on complex custom software stacks.

This is where edge software offers a major advantage. Alan explains,

“Many organizations are exploring or implementing edge software to manage critical competencies like Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) compliance and navigating the complex IT/OT interface. With edge software tools in place, industrial assets can take advantage of real-world data, as well as the information from the many seemingly unrelated assets surrounding an industrial process. That enhanced data can provide the kind of insight that previously would have required a senior plant manager with decades of experience at a particular site or niche application— a key benefit in an era of workforce shortages and lean teams.”

PACEdge accomplishes these goals by acting as a unified industrial edge computing and IIoT application platform to integrate data collection, processing, analytics, visualization, and secure data exchange—all in a single, cohesive environment. It seamlessly integrates with Emerson’s IPCs to make implementation and management as simple as possible for OT teams, empowering them to roll out solutions with little or no IT involvement.

Takeaway: Edge software reduces IT/OT complexity while putting actionable insight directly into the hands of OT teams.

Delivering value

In the coming years, the capabilities delivered by industrial edge platforms will become a critical differentiator for manufacturers operating in an increasingly competitive global marketplace.

When coupled with AI, edge platforms enable productivity gains that were previously out of reach. As Mathason notes,

“The next few years of AI evolution are likely to create a seismic shift in industry. Industrial AI is rapidly growing in power, and when it is coupled with effective edge technologies, it allows many advances in productivity.”

This ability to move data seamlessly from the field, through the edge, and into the cloud underpins Emerson’s enterprise operations platform and unified data fabric. With secure access to contextualized data across the enterprise, organizations can scale successful local initiatives into global operational improvements.

Takeaway: Edge platforms translate local operational insight into enterprise-wide performance gains.