Real-Time Data: Unified Environment Enables Multi-purpose Digital Twins·

Welcome to 2022 and our first editorial of the year! We hope you enjoyed the holidays with family and friends and found time to relax and reflect—welcoming the new year with optimism. As FDT Group closed out 2021, we said our goodbyes to Glenn Schulz and wished him well in retirement, reflecting on challenges, successes, and the bright journey ahead as we passed the baton to our new managing director Steve Biegacki. We are thrilled to have Steve’s expertise and leadership skills to guide the FDT mission forward—transitioning FDT’s (3.0) next-generation IIoT ecosystem (server and dtm), from "product" form to "integrated" marketplace solutions. FDT’s +20-year competency in embedded industrial systems, higher-level engineering applications, and devices for configuration and lifecycle management has been modernized. It’s here and available today, offering new OT/operational and IT/business benefits while seamlessly bridging today’s applications with tomorrow’s smart factory needs.

FDT’s new embedded Server environment and web based DTM are modernizing engineering applications/systems, allowing device intelligence to permeate freely throughout a sensor to cloud architected application with both OPC UA and FDT client access, including mobility. The unified server (inclusive of an OPC UA server and web server) environment maintains the core FDT strengths for integration, engineering, and configuration, but now benefits both the IT and OT workforce with a service-oriented data hub architecture. FDT is recognized globally as the de-facto integration standard in part due to its large installed base of devices and systems in control system architectures. Its environment is trusted by the vendor and end-user communities due to its transparent, holistic, and easy-to-use nature, allowing seamless control of a unified application topology no matter what networking protocols are used. By using the FDT (3.0) United Environment (UE) server, the automation industry can realize—open, sensor to cloud data interoperability and access that erases dependences based on the operating system, vendor, network (PA or FA), or other propriety solution.

Take a moment to think about the needs of the industry focused on true open automation solutions. What are your open automation business models needs for new era systems and devices, bridging today and tomorrow automation requirements? If you haven’t thought about including FDT3 in your design, or installation, be sure to click on this resource link and learn more about FDT3 and its inherent, embedded benefits for scaling next-generation automation solutions. Whether you are in the process or discrete industry, a vendor or end-user, FDT empowers the business and operational workforce with a unified environment offering data-driven business models enabling IIoT and Industry 4.0 applications.

-Lee Lane, Chairman of the FDT Board of Directors