The pitch from the PR person included “open orchestration for distributed edge” and an interview with long-time acquaintance Jason Shepherd, VP of Ecosystem at ZEDEDA. Ok, that hit many key words and opened up a number of questions.
The news in short:
- Deployed for over a year by leaders in manufacturing, oil and gas, energy and retail—trusted by enterprises like Rockwell Automation, Invenergy, BOBST and Agora
- Delivers the ultimate flexibility to customers by supporting any combination of Docker containers, Kubernetes clusters and virtual machines (VMs) for legacy applications, deployed on any edge computing node while connecting to any cloud
- Uniquely extends operational best practices for uptime, security and simplicity to the field
- Purpose-built for edge/OT by leveraging EVE-OS from the Linux Foundation’s LF Edge, insuring against lock-in and facilitating interoperability across an open ecosystem
- Protects valuable edge computing resources deployed outside of data centers using its unrivaled and state of the art Zero Trust security architecture
ZEDEDA announced a cloud-native solution that delivers visibility, control, and security for edge computing deployments. Companies can now have full-stack remote management and observability for any distributed edge computing hardware and edge application while connecting to any cloud or on-premises system.
“The explosion of edge data requires more processing closer to the source, and existing solutions simply do not meet the unique needs for orchestrating apps and hardware outside of physically-secure data centers,” said ZEDEDA’s CEO and founder Said Ouissal. “Our solution enables customers to operationalize secure distributed edge computing at scale and is based on a truly open foundation and backed by the world’s leading open edge ecosystem.”
ZEDEDA simplifies distributed edge operations by enabling customers to deploy and manage compute nodes anywhere with no IT expertise required on site. An unparalleled out-of-the-box experience includes a built-in app marketplace for on-demand deployment of custom innovations and featured offerings from leading ISVs. By activating functions such as data ingestion, AI/ML, networking and security, customers can instantly unlock the value of edge data to make real-time decisions, maximize operational efficiency and drive new business outcomes.
The ability to deploy this level of security at the distributed edge is what sets ZEDEDA’s solution apart. As Gartner Research Vice President Bob Gill writes in Gartner’s 2021 Strategic Roadmap for Edge Computing: “One thing that stands out when developing a POC for an edge implementation is that creating a single system for a trial can be straightforward, but implementing such a system at scale, including enterprise-grade security, orchestration, life cycle management and governance, is a daunting task.”
“Edge computing is key to the future of industrial automation, and ZEDEDA provides an unmatched scalable and secure universal orchestration solution,” said John Zepecki, Vice President, Software and Control at Rockwell Automation. “Their solution unlocks the digital future of the IoT edge across Rockwell’s ecosystem of software and hardware partners.”
“We are shaping the future of the packaging world where every phase in the production process is connected, digitized and automated,” said Serge Morisod, Head of IoT Lab at BOBST. “ZEDEDA provides a cloud-based solution, orchestrating the software lifecycle of our IoT devices deployed worldwide. This enables frequent and secure updates of new advanced software, which are required for our customers who operate, more than ever, in an agile business.”
Open Ecosystem Accelerates Time to Value
ZEDEDA’s open edge ecosystem offers the developer community and enterprises a choice of market-leading solutions and services delivered by industry experts. Participating companies include Accenture, Advantech, Dianomic, Google, HPE, Inductive Automation, Lanner, Microsoft, PTC, SAS, Supermicro and SUSE.
“HPE Edgeline systems are deployed at far-edge locations, and the users value simplified management of platforms and applications,” said Bharath Ramesh, Head of Global Product Management, Converged Edge and IoT Systems, HPE. “ZEDEDA provides a remote orchestration foundation that addresses this need for our customers.”
“We’re seeing customers commence Kubernetes projects with thousands to tens of thousands of nodes, and this requires a foundation that provides visibility,” said Sheng Liang, President of Engineering and Innovation at SUSE. “ZEDEDA provides a secure foundation for us to extend our supported Kubernetes offer outside of data centers.”
“ZEDEDA’s support for both VMs and containers is valuable for customers,” said Abby Eon, General Manager of PTC Kepware. “This enables deployment of Windows-based ThingWorx Kepware Server alongside containerized applications like Azure IoT Edge on the same device.”
Zero Trust Security Architecture Protects Edge Computing Software and Hardware
Deploying valuable resources outside of secure data centers calls for increased safety measures, so ZEDEDA employs a Zero Trust security model with considerations down to the hardware level. Operating under the principle of “never trust, always verify,” ZEDEDA’s solution authenticates and approves requests at every point, not just the perimeter.
Additional Customer and Partner Perspectives on ZEDEDA’s Solution
“Our edge computing platform is leveraging ZEDEDA’s unique approach to orchestrating our partner apps,” said Agora President and CEO Sujit Kumar. “Our customers can easily deploy edge AI and IoT solutions to meet regulatory requirements, increase production efficiency, and improve worker safety.”
“Video surveillance integrators typically lack remote orchestration and management of customer infrastructure because IT tools are too complex and cost-prohibitive,” said Tom Larson, Director of Safety and Security at MBX. “ZEDEDA makes simplified deployment and remote management of existing video management software a reality, while future-proofing for new innovations.”
“Deploying predictive maintenance apps through ZEDEDA’s IoT edge orchestration solution has provided new insights into our wind turbines and is expected to both improve uptime and reduce O&M costs,” said Matthew Conwell, Director, Operations Engineering at Invenergy.
“Our customers and community are deploying Industry 4.0 edge applications for continuous monitoring, predictive maintenance, OEE, and safety using our leading IIoT open-source platform FogLAMP,” said Tom Arthur, CEO of Dianomic. “ZEDEDA enables them to securely manage edge operating environments at scale combined with FogLAMP’s tight integration with existing ISA95 operational systems (e.g., OSIsoft, Rockwell, Emerson, ABB, Siemens, AVEVA, SAP, Oracle) and clouds (Google, AWS and Microsoft).”
Flexible Purchasing Models
ZEDEDA’s distributed edge orchestration solution is sold and consumed as a service with a subscription-based enterprise license, including 24/7 support. The “pay-as-you-go” model enables customers with the flexibility to start small and scale as their edge computing needs evolve. White-label models are also available for OEMs and SIs. For pricing, contact ZEDEDA.
