by Gary Mintchell | Nov 12, 2025 | Cloud, Data Management, Edge, Operations Management
Industrial IT developers increasingly incorporate standard IT infrastructure. Rather than send platitudes about the mythical “IT/OT Convergence,” some actually just do it. Integration with Kubernetes exemplifies one such technology.
This news comes from edge orchestration developer ZEDEDA. The short list of benefits from edge orchestration solutions with Kubernetes.
- Simplifies edge operations by delivering consistent app management across distributed locations, minimizing expensive manual intervention at each site
- Automates large-scale edge infrastructure and application deployment—enforcing desired state for thousands of edge clusters, even with unreliable network connectivity
- Optimized AI processing close to operational data sources reduces expensive data backhaul to the cloud
ZEDEDA announced the first full-stack edge Kubernetes-as-a-Service solution that extends a cloud-native deployment experience to distributed edge environments. This new solution, ZEDEDA Edge Kubernetes App Flows, automates the edge application lifecycle—from packaging and configuration to delivery and observability—eliminating the need to manage cluster and application orchestration infrastructure. Edge Kubernetes App Flows supports the bare-metal and GPU compute required for edge AI applications, such as automated detection of manufacturing flaws and predictive maintenance.
Built on ZEDEDA’s proven edge platform, the new integrated Kubernetes solution extends the platform’s zero-trust architecture and offline resilience—keeping tens of thousands of devices and Kubernetes instances running continuously, even in demanding field environments with physical vulnerabilities and intermittent connectivity.
ZEDEDA Edge Kubernetes App Flows combines GitOps-based delivery with ZEDEDA’s zero-trust edge platform—letting organizations focus on applications, not infrastructure.
Key capabilities include:
- Application Definition and Marketplace: Deploys customizable application definitions consistently across distributed edge locations.
- Application Packaging and Distribution: Builds and distributes manifests tailored for edge requirements.
- GitOps-Based Continuous Delivery: Automates deployments through approved Git workflows for full auditability.
- Adaptive Observability: Monitors deployment and performance, even with intermittent connectivity and limited bandwidth.
ZEDEDA Edge Kubernetes App Flows is built on and integrates with all the leading security and scalability capabilities of ZEDEDA’s proven edge platform, including:
- Zero-Trust Security: Continuous validation of edge devices, applications, and communications.
- Offline Resilience: Graceful handling of intermittent connectivity and disconnected operations.
- Edge Scale: Support for tens of thousands of clusters and unattended edge devices.
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by Gary Mintchell | Oct 7, 2025 | Edge, Networking, News
The post before this one looked at a survey done on usage of private 5G and edge networks. This news looks at a test bed in Switzerland to allow startups and nonprofits to try out a network without incurring infrastructure costs. Like most test beds, the work strives to encourage innovation within an ecosystem. This one focusing on energy, mobility, health, and manufacturing.
Nokia, together with Datwyler IT Infra, Intel, and the Switzerland Innovation Park Biel/Bienne (SIPBB), unveiled a pioneering hub for startups and nonprofits to accelerate industrial digitalization through advanced private 5G and AI-powered edge solutions. This initiative will drive breakthrough innovations in efficiency, safety, and sustainability across key industries such as health, mobility, energy, and manufacturing.
At SIPBB, innovators will have access to a full-scale deployment environment offering private 5G connectivity. The infrastructure includes Nokia Digital Automation Cloud (DAC) private wireless networks, MX Industrial Edge (MXIE), and future-ready applications such as Nokia MX Workmate, the industry’s first OT-compliant Gen AI solution for connected workers. These technologies, alongside Intel Xeon Scalable processors and edge AI capabilities, such as visual positioning and object detection, provide a real-world testbed open to nonprofit research and startup collaboration without the usual cost or deployment challenges.
The new trial site enables several industrial use cases, including predictive maintenance powered by real-time analytics to minimize downtime and material waste, push-to-talk and video communication tools to keep teams connected without on-site travel, and AI-enhanced safety monitoring to improve situational awareness and worker safety. Energy-efficient automation ensures consistent productivity with reduced environmental impact. Additionally, the site features natural human-machine interaction through Gen AI-driven digital assistants, allowing workers to communicate with machines using intuitive, conversational language.
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by Gary Mintchell | Oct 7, 2025 | Edge, Networking
Conflicting reports have come my way regarding how private wireless, especially 5G, have penetrated manufacturing sites and how useful they have been coordinating with edge devices. Nokia have release the results of a study completed with GlobalData. The study reveals surge of ROI and AI-enabled use cases with on-premise edge and private wireless.
In brief
- 87% of enterprises adopting private wireless and on-premise edge saw ROI in one year.
- 81% of enterprises found setup costs lower than other options and 86% reported reduced ongoing costs.
- 94% of industrial enterprises deployed edge with private wireless that support AI-driven applications in 70% of the cases.
- 94% of industries reduced carbon emissions—41% by over 20%—and 89% reported energy savings.
The report draws on insights from 115 industrial enterprises across manufacturing, energy, logistics, mining, and transportation in Australia, Germany, Japan, United Kingdom and United States.
David de Lancellotti, Vice President of Enterprise Campus Edge Sales at Nokia, says: “Nokia and Global Data’s latest research helps leaders build strong business cases for digitalization by showing how private wireless and on-premise edge not only reduce costs but also accelerate scalable transformation with measurable improvements in worker safety, productivity, security and environmental impact.”
AI’s potential in industrial settings hinges on access to high-quality, real-time data; 94% of industrial enterprises have deployed on-premise edge technology alongside private wireless. This combination enables secure, low-latency connectivity in complex environments and pervasive sensor coverage, even in hard-to-reach areas, supporting AI-driven use cases like predictive maintenance, real-time monitoring, and digital twins in 70% of surveyed enterprises.
BASF, a leading chemical company, deployed Nokia private wireless at its Antwerp facility to advance its digitalization strategy and enable reliable, high-performance connectivity across its six-square-kilometer premises. The private network supports AI- and sensor-driven use cases like real-time monitoring and predictive maintenance, enhances automation and efficiency, improves worker safety, and reduces environmental impact.
Steven Werbrouck, Expert Network Connectivity at BASF, says: Private 5G has been a game changer for BASF Antwerp. We’re unlocking automation, strengthening occupational safety, accelerating innovation, and meeting ROI targets in just two years. We have become a front-runner for the wider group with learnings that will deliver value at multiple BASF group locations.”
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by Gary Mintchell | May 15, 2025 | Edge
Apparently it’s still all happening at the Edge (apologies to Paul Simon’s Zoo). This concept has always somewhat puzzled me given that I began implementing computers on the factory floor in the mid-80s to collect, sort, and publish manufacturing data. I guess just more sophisticated compute and superior networking plus a lot of marketing.
At any rate, it is happening at the edge. I was introduced to ZEDEDA (I still hate the all-caps thing introduced by marketers in order to shout out their name) five or six years ago by someone I knew from Dell. The company’s products and services do meet the criteria of better compute and superior connectivity. This news came last week.
ZEDEDA, the leader in edge management and orchestration, announced that A.P. Moller – Maersk (Maersk) has selected ZEDEDA as a key technology provider enabling its next-generation IoT connectivity platform, One Wireless. The ZEDEDA edge computing platform enables Maersk to orchestrate the OneWireless solution across its fleet, improving operational efficiency.
“With our next-generation connectivity platform, we will be able to offer our customers notable benefits, including real-time cargo tracking, enhanced supply chain visibility, and improved operational efficiency. This platform is designed to support thousands of IoT devices, ensuring optimal performance for reefer tracking and fleet IoT,” says Kjeld Dittmann, Head of Vessel & Cargo Connectivity at Maersk.
I wonder how all this is faring right now given the world-wide shipping uncertainty due to Trump’s tariffs.
ZEDEDA’s edge computing platform allows Maersk to address inherent challenges in the maritime industry such as deploying any application on any edge device in remote locations, with intermittent connectivity, and lack of a skilled IT workforce on-board. With ZEDEDA, Maersk can deploy and manage any future on-board applications over the air from a central controller.
The OneWireless platform is a single, unified network designed to support multiple wireless technologies (NB-IoT, Cat-M, and LTE broadband) offering scalability, security, and flexibility, enabling Maersk customers to seamlessly integrate their IoT devices and services. The solution is designed for seamless interoperability between private and public networks, ensuring Maersk customers’ cargo is reliably monitored whether at sea, in port, or on land, thus enabling BYOIoT (Bring Your Own IoT) solutions based on standards for customers.
Roll-out of the solution has begun and deployment across all 450 vessels in scope is expected to be completed by Q1 2026.
by Gary Mintchell | Mar 28, 2025 | Cloud, Edge, Generative AI
The third of Siemens pre-Hannover news releases concerns Xcelerator Edge with Microsoft Azure IoT Operations.
- Siemens Industrial Edge works seamlessly with Microsoft Azure IoT Operations, making OT and IT data planes fully interoperable for manufacturing
- Edge and cloud data integration enables adaptive production through AI- and digital-twin-powered solutions
- Industrial customers benefit from improved machine performance, product quality and reduced machine maintenance
Siemens announces an extended collaboration with Microsoft in the context of Siemens Xcelerator, Siemens’ open digital business platform, to simplify the integration of information technology (IT) and operational technology (OT) for enterprise customers. By combining Siemens Industrial Edge with Microsoft Azure IoT Operations, customers will benefit from complementary solutions that enable a seamless flow of data from production lines to the edge and to the cloud. This edge-to-cloud data integration enables AI- and digital-twin-powered solutions to improve machine performance, product quality, and reduce machine maintenance.
A core component of the Azure adaptive cloud approach, Azure IoT Operations is designed to seamlessly integrate on-premises industrial edge solutions, like Siemens Industrial Edge, with the cloud, ensuring a continuous flow of data for smarter operations.
In this way, the powerful OT data plane provided by Siemens Industrial Edge works easily with Azure IoT Operations, to create an interoperable OT and IT data plane for manufacturing. The data layer from Siemens Industrial Edge effectively addresses mission-critical production applications such as virtualized control, low-latency closed-loop AI, executable digital twins, or production line-level analytics. It allows manufacturers to deploy responsive, reliable, flexible and secure applications to optimize their operations, reduce costs, and increase uptime and quality. By coupling with Azure IoT Operations, industrial producers can easily leverage this OT data in cloud-based, data-driven use cases to optimize production across sites and gain insights from advanced analytics.
by Gary Mintchell | Mar 17, 2025 | Edge
Here’s a partnership of two companies who like to “all caps” their names so that they jump out at you on the page. This news concerns extension of EdgeAI
ZEDEDA has unveiled expanded support for NVIDIA’s edge AI platform, introducing enhanced integration with NVIDIA Jetson systems, NGC catalog and the TAO toolkit.
This comprehensive integration provides enterprises with a complete workflow for deploying, securing and managing AI models at the edge, enabling faster innovation while ensuring operational reliability. The NGC catalog serves as NVIDIA’s repository for GPU-optimized AI models, while the TAO toolkit enables the adaptation of AI models for edge environments. ZEDEDA now seamlessly enables users to pull models from the NGC catalog, optimize those models via the TAO toolkit, and deploy and manage these via ZEDEDA’s secure edge computing platform.
Key innovations include:
- NVIDIA NGC Catalog Integration: Direct CLI integration enables seamless deployment of AI models from NGC Catalog to edge nodes, dramatically simplifying the model deployment workflow
- TAO Toolkit Optimization: Native support for NVIDIA’s TAO toolkit allows enterprises to optimize models specifically for edge deployment on Jetson systems, improving performance and efficiency
- Zero-Touch Edge Management: Automated deployment and management capabilities scale to tens of thousands of nodes, enabling rapid AI innovation without increasing operational overhead
- Advanced Observability: Built-in Grafana and Prometheus integration with extensible APIs provides comprehensive visibility into AI model performance and health at the edge
- Native Support for NVIDIA Jetson GPUs: ZEDEDA’s EVE OS provides native support for NVIDIA Jetson GPUs, including Orin NX and AGX, enabling seamless AI deployment. By utilizing ZEDEDA Marketplace models optimized with TensorRT and leveraging EVE OS for GPU acceleration, edge AI performance is significantly enhanced.
