PTC Delivers Year of Success in Its Internet of Things Business



PTC Delivers Year of Success in Its Internet of Things Business


PTC has had an interesting journey of moving from ERP to PLM to IoT through batches of acquisitions over the course of several years. When it announced a series of acquisitions including ThingWorx and Kepware (at premium prices from the looks of things) I had to wonder what was up.

Executives assured me that it was a comprehensive corporate plan for growth that included bringing the disparate elements of the company into a cohesive whole. I saw some things last year that told me it was on the right track. Then came this press release trumpeting 2016 results. Yes, PTC had a good year. And, yes Virginia, there is money to be made in IoT.

PTC expanded its year-over-year IoT bookings in 2016, added new customers and partners to its IoT ecosystem, enhanced its IoT technology portfolio, garnered industry recognition and validation, and substantially grew its IoT academic programs.

PTC ignited its IoT strategy in 2013 with the acquisition of ThingWorx, and, since that time, has developed one of the most robust IoT offerings in the market.

“When we embarked on our IoT journey, we didn’t set out to be a casual participant in this space. Instead, from day one, we committed ourselves to becoming the leading IoT platform company for the industrial market,” said Jim Heppelmann, president and CEO, PTC. “2016 was a banner year for PTC, as we further proved that our vision and offerings resonate with buyers around the world. As we enter 2017, many of the world’s largest, most successful companies are eager to work with us on new IoT projects.”


IoT Bookings Growth

PTC’s IoT business grew in calendar 2016, with total year-over-year bookings growth of 115%, including the contributions from Kepware and Vuforia, and organic bookings growth of 53%. PTC’s IoT business concluded calendar 2016 with revenue of approximately $100 million.

Key Customer and Partner Success

PTC continued to add to its expansive IoT customer base in 2016, surpassing 1,200 companies. Realizing that a vast ecosystem is needed to win in the era of the IoT, PTC has established a network of more than 250 partners that promote the company’s strategy and embrace its technology.

Fundamental to PTC’s growth was the selection of the ThingWorx platform by customers and partners of all sizes and specialties, including:

  • GE Digital – PTC and GE Digital furthered their strategic relationship, with the aim to better optimize the combination of the ThingWorx and Predix platforms with a “ThingWorx for Predix” solution for the industrial space, as demonstrated at GE’s Minds Machines 2016.
  • 
Vodafone – Vodafone Group selected the ThingWorx platform in order to build additional Vodafone IoT applications that it can extend to its global footprint of operating companies.
  • Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) – PTC and HPE are collaborating to develop new IoT solutions for industrial use cases. PTC’s ThingWorx software and HPE’s Edgeline Converged Edge System and the HPE Aruba ClearPass network access and security policy software were demonstrated together at HPE Discover 2016.
  • 
VMware – VMware joined the PTC ThingWorx Ready partner program, with a goal of pairing the ThingWorx platform with its own IoT solutions to create new offerings.

Additionally, as part of its expanding partner network, PTC continued to focus on working with the world’s leading systems integrators and professional services companies, which can be a valuable channel for extending PTC’s ThingWorx platform to a wider network of customers. Approximately 100 systems integrators are now part of the PTC Partner Network, including Cognizant, Deloitte, Kalypso, INFOSYS, ITC Infotech, and Tech Mahindra. In 2016, systems integrators developed new IoT solutions based on ThingWorx, including solutions for smart manufacturing, fleet management, smart energy management, and connected care.

ThingWorx Technology Innovations

To maintain and expand the robust functionality of its core IoT technology, PTC announced several enhancements to the ThingWorx platform during 2016. Highlights include:

  • AR-Enhanced IoT – ThingWorx Studio (incorporating Vuforia technology) is the first enterprise augmented reality authoring tool of its kind, allowing companies to design, publish, and scale integrated AR and IoT experiences. Since mid-2016, 1,000 companies have piloted new augmented reality projects as part of the ThingWorx Studio Pilot Program.
  • 
Comprehensive Platform – PTC integrated its acquired Kepware industrial connectivity technology and ColdLight machine learning technology into the ThingWorx platform.
  • 
Flexible Cloud Options – PTC expanded cloud support for customers to now include leading device clouds.
  • Product Insights – ThingWorx Utilities offers tools to help companies provision and manage their connected assets, to remotely access and interact with those connected assets, and to model and trigger business process flows that integrate with enterprise IT and business systems.
  • Data Insights – PTC incorporated ThingWorx Analytics Builder as an interactive user interface, enabling users to create and manage advanced analytics models in ThingWorx-powered solutions.
  • IoT at the Edge – PTC introduced enhanced edge computing capabilities to ThingWorx, enabling more robust data collection and management from the site of a connected asset.

Widespread Industry Recognition

The ThingWorx technology enhancements throughout 2016 further elevated the positions of PTC and ThingWorx in the market, leading to third-party acknowledgement and validation. In its Forrester Wave report on IoT platforms, Forrester Research identified PTC as having the most complete IoT platform offering on the market. Research firms IoT Analytics and Experton Group identified PTC as the IoT platform provider market leader. To top it off, PTC was named Internet of Things Enablement Company of the Year by Compass Intelligence and Industrial IoT Company of the Year by the IoT Breakthrough organization.

Record Participation in Universities and Academic Settings

PTC has established a broad, IoT-focused academic program for students of all grades and levels, developed and implemented by the PTC Academic Program. Since the inception of the PTC IoT Academic Program, over 1,000 universities worldwide have registered. Many leading academic institutions, including 14 of the top 15 engineering colleges in the USA, have adopted the ThingWorx platform in the classroom. On average, a new university joined the PTC IoT Academic Program each day in 2016.

Also in 2016, PTC significantly increased the level of developer participation by delivering what is currently the highest rated IoT course on Udemy, the global online teaching and learning marketplace. The “Fundamentals of IoT Development with ThingWorx” course saw its student enrollment number eclipse 4,200 in just five months, while maintaining a 4.5/5 rating from those who have participated. Excerpts from student reviews of the course include: “This is one of the best online courses that I have ever seen,” and “This course is just what I needed to truly understand what IoT is about.”

“In 2016, PTC proved that it is more than just a force to be reckoned with in the IoT space. PTC solidified itself as one of the leading IoT companies, with an impressive combination of technology offerings through ThingWorx, considerable growth potential, and an expanding ecosystem of reputable customers and partners,” said Dan Shey, Managing Director and Vice President, ABI Research.

MESA International Announces Smart Manufacturing Conference 2017 Dates

MESA International Announces Smart Manufacturing Conference 2017 Dates

MESA International

MESA International has found a willing home for its annual North American conference once again aligning with the IndustryWeek Manufacturing & Technology (M&T) Conference & Expo. Both events will be held at the Huntington Convention Center in Cleveland, Ohio, USA, May 8 – 10, 2017.  Registration for the global MESA community is now open.

I remember when one of the early leaders of the Smart Manufacturing Leadership Coalition was worried that it would lose its branding for Smart Manufacturing. Lately I’ve held conversations with marketing directors in the industry who use the SM term in a more or less generic way. So that leader was correct—Smart Manufacturing has become a phrase in alignment with other global phrases such as Industrie 4.0.

Saying that, the theme of the MESA North American Conference is “The Real Value of Smart Manufacturing” and will focus on highlighting the quantified business value realized by practitioners who have implemented “Smart” solutions.  The MESA event will have one dedicated track of speakers and a pre-conference networking and problem-solving workout within the IndustryWeek M&T schedule-of-events. MESA will also have a booth in the M&T Expo, International and Americas Board-of-Directors meetings, committee and Working Group collaboration and networking opportunities for the global MESA community.  Event information is available here.

Commenting on the event, Stephanie Mikelbrencis, Chair of MESA’s Americas Board, said, “The business leaders who read IndustryWeek want to know how to demystify Smart Manufacturing.  I encourage them to join us in Cleveland to learn and to interact with others on the same journey to improved operations and business performance.”

The three-day IndustryWeek M&T Show brings together over 1,200+ senior manufacturers, 100+ exhibitors and 50+ conference sessions across eight tracks in manufacturing operations and design engineering. Conference content focuses on the key elements of advanced manufacturing: technology integration, leadership, operational excellence, design/engineering, talent development and supply chain.

Mike Yost, MESA President, added, “This is our 3rd year formally co-locating our NA Conference with IndustryWeek because it’s our opportunity to connect a company’s drive for continuous improvement to the IT-based solutions that can empower them.  If your ‘Manufacturing-IT Strategy’ and the expected business value aren’t clear to everyone in your organization, you need to get your teams to this event.”

About MESA
MESA (Manufacturing Enterprise Solutions Association) International is a global, not-for-profit community of manufacturers, producers, industry leaders and solution providers who are focused on improving Operations Management capabilities through the effective application of Information Technologies, IT-based solutions and best practices.  Goals:

  • Enable members to connect, contribute, cultivate understanding, and exchange strategies to drive operations excellence.
  • Collect, share, and publish best practices and guidance to drive greater productivity and the overall profitability of the manufacturing enterprise.
  • Educate the marketplace on manufacturing operations best practices through the MESA Global Education Program.

 

Dell IoT Think Tank At Hannover Sees Bright Future

Dell IoT Think Tank At Hannover Sees Bright Future

Gary at Dell IoT Hannover         On Tuesday April 26 of the Hannover Fair, Dell and Intel gathered thought leaders from about ten partners into a “Think Tank.” We met in a conference room in the middle of the FairGrounds and discussed the Internet of Things for a solid two hours. It was my privilege to moderate the session.

Present IoT situation is robust

Was IoT relevant to each company or organization repimage002resented? As each person introduced himself and his company, it was clear that every company was deep into understanding what IoT meant for their business and for their customers. Or, as I stated, “I guess we can’t generate any debate on whether IoT is relevant, so we can move on to co26090873593_05918f2a06_znsidering why anyone cares about IoT in manufacturing business.”

You can tell by some of the pictures that even though most of us were wearing conservative dark jackets each was passionate about the impact of IoT in our business. As we discussed the business drivers, we began with how connectivity enables this entire area. New database technologies were discussed.

The consensus of opinions focused on how IoT is a disruptive element in today’s manufacturing climate. Several noted that we can now build new models of doing business. The people in the room were each in their own domain working on models that disrupt what they’ve been doing and pointing tow26090872753_0f5f5c54a0_zard new benefits for customers.

Organizational IT Challenges remain

But all is not sanguine in IoT land. Customers are confused about what the Internet of Things is. There are so many names and it comes in so many flavors that customers are beyond trying to figure it out on their own. Members of the panel agreed that it is incumbent upon them and their companies to be able to articulate the Internet of Things clearly and coherently to the market.

The problem of bringing the IT group and the OT group together into some form of meaningful collaboration, and even resp26668278906_78380425b6_zect, has been discussed for probably 20 years. Yet, this predominantly European group identified IT/OT convergence and the need for collaboration as a key challenge facing IoT implementation. This group of technology suppliers and integrators acknowledged that in26090873683_2784b0e557_z many of their customer’s sites, their meetings often are the first that bring the two groups together in the same room discussing a common problem.  More of the same is needed.

Customers and suppliers face the challenge of identifying opportunities where IoT will be a benefit to operations and business. This will require collaboration among many partners and groups.

The challenge “elephant in the room” was security. The topic was brought up gingerly, and no solutions were proposed other than security measures already in place. In other words, we probably need to continue to work on this topic.

Not unlike implementing other manufacturing IT projects, panelists noted the need for customers to rationalize their operations and understand architectures before beginning a comprehensive IoT strategy.

IoT in the future

What about the future of IoT and manufacturing? Some threw out ideas such as wearables and augmented reality (AR). I’ve been enchanted with the Silicon Valley use of bots—from Siri and Cortana to notifications. Panelists jumped all over the idea of bots. This technology is seen as the hot thing for the near-term future.

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Dr. Valentijn De Leeuw, Vice President and analyst  at the ARC Advisory Group, brought up an initiative in the European Union—Alliance for Internet of Things Innovation.

“The Alliance for Internet of Things Innovation (AIOTI) was initiated by the European Commission in order to develop and support the dialogue and interaction among the Internet of Things (IoT) various players in Europe. The overall goal of the AlOTI is the creation of a dynamic European IoT ecosystem to unleash the potentials of the IoT. This ecosystem is going to build on the work of the IoT Research Cluster (IERC) and spill over innovation across industries and business sectors of IoT transforming ideas into solutions and business models. The Alliance will also assist the European Commission in the preparation of future IoT research as well as innovation and standardisation policies.”

The US government, by the way, under the Obama administration has begun a few organizations working on digital manufacturing and smart manufacturing. I haven’t seen an equivalent of this one. Please point one to me if you know it.

Dell / Partner Ecosystem

Dell holds these think tanks in a number of areas to foster networking and collaboration among its various partners. I’m sure some companies do something similar behind closed doors. Dell records theirs for public consumption, also.

From the Dell point of view one of the main take aways identified was the need to collaborate across a partner ecosystem of vendors and service providers to address customers’ appetite for more efficient and higher quality solutions. Customer centricity and customization of solutions was another point that received general agreement. The group also identified data utilization, edge analytics, standardization and workforce changes as opportunities for collaboration within the full ecosystem of IoT solutions partners.

The future is alre26695060105_c4f620f204_zady here.  As this market continues to evolve, staying on top of collaboration opportunities for advancements in IIoT, smart manufacturing and industry 4.0 and collaboration is key. The group agreed that better analytics will provide greater visibility to new revenue streams.

One last comment of mine regarding edge analytics. There was often an unstated assumption about the value Dell brings to the table with its IoT solutions. Not only is the IoT Gateway an adaptation of its PC technology, but Dell also brings such extras as embedded analytics and applications not to mention bringing to larger partners its global service and support network.

Participants include representatives from: · Azeti · Dell · Intel · Knapp · Kepware Microsoft · MPDV Mikrolab · OSIsoft · Relayr · SAP · The Manufacturing Connection, Gary Mintchell (MODERATOR)

Several of the participants recorded interviews. I’ve linked to several here.

Here are summaries:

Ole Borgbjerg, Kepware, “IT and OT have different roles and agendas, get inside that and talk to both, we are getting more IT experience, we are company working on factory floor, but need to take benefit of devices on the edge. It will take some time to take off. curious but holding back but will take off.”

Oliver Niedung, Microsoft, “We operate in all areas of the integration, hybrid solutions, devices/software, cloud subsystems. Dell is a valued partner.”

Joseph Brunner, Relayr, “There exists a skills gap. We need to make abusiness case (save money or make money). We need hardware providers to unleash data, middleware company like us to mix and send up to business. It’s an infrastructure sale, and a strategic decision changing the way companies do business.”

Tim Kaufman, SAP, “Importance is in getting end-to-end data. There are configuration issues, we need more plug-and-play. Potential exists in the horizontal supply chain including track and trace.”

Dirk Sommerfeld, Azeti, “Need to bring many different companies together for project. We found out that many companies are working on IoT from many different directions.”

ARC Industry Forum – Digital Tech in Manufacturing and Production

ARC Industry Forum – Digital Tech in Manufacturing and Production

ARCbanner-300x250We are closing in on February and time to start thinking about the ARC Industry Forum in Orlando. I went to my first one in 1998 and have my airline and hotel reservations for this edition.

Given the demise of general industry trade shows, there are precious few opportunities to see a large cross section of the automation and control industry. This is one.

I have 2 or 3 appointments set. If you are there, ping me. Maybe we can do a “meet up” in the lounge before everyone splits for dinner or something.  Or stop me to chat during the week. ARC has once again planned an afternoon of press conferences for its sponsors. I’ll arrive in time to listen if you are presenting.

The 20th Annual ARC Industry Forum has the theme, “Industry in Transition: Navigating the New Age of Innovation”.

The conference is February 8-11, 2016 at the Renaissance Sea World in Orlando, Florida.

ARC says, “New information technologies such as Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), Smart Manufacturing, Industrie 4.0, Digitization, and Connected Enterprise are ushering in a new age of innovation. These concepts are clearly moving past the hype, where real solutions are emerging backed by strong business cases. Expect to see innovations in smarter products, new service and operating models, new production techniques, and new approaches to design and sourcing. Join us to learn how this industrial transformation will unfold and what other companies are doing today to embrace innovation and improve their business performance.”

Questions they expect to address:

  • How will inexpensive, easy-to-install sensors change existing products and plants?
  • Will cyber security concerns impede disruptive innovation?
  • What kind of intelligence will machines have and what value will this bring?
  • What role will Wi-Fi and LTE play?
  • How do Big Data and predictive and prescriptive analytics enable operational change?
  • What is the opportunity in aftermarket services?
  • What software capabilities are needed to achieve transformational change?
  • Which industries are already changing?
  • What steps can organizations take to foster innovative thinking?

Forum’s Keynote Presentations

Michael Carroll, Vice President, Innovation & Operations Excellence, Georgia-Pacific

Michael joined Georgia-Pacific in 2010 to focus his technological and entrepreneurial talents on innovation and leadership. Prior to that he and a partner formed McTech Group, a company focused on innovative products for the building products and construction industry. In addition to his Executive Vice President responsibilities, Michael formed a Joint Venture designed to sell consumer “DIY” products to big box retailers like Wal-Mart, Home Depot, and Lowe’s. Previous positions include Director of Operations at Riverwood International, CEO of North and South American Operations at Shepherd, and Principal Change Agent at Mead Paper.

Sandy Vasser, Facilities I&E Manager, ExxonMobil Development

Sandy has been with Exxon or ExxonMobil for over 35 years and has been involved in a number of Upstream projects covering offshore facilities, onshore facilities, and cogeneration facilities. He currently manages a team of about 120 electrical and I&C professionals responsible for the design, installation, and commissioning of electrical generation and distribution systems, process control systems, and safety instrumented systems for all major ExxonMobil Upstream capital projects. This team is also responsible for developing, promoting and implementing strategies, practices, processes, and tools for successfully executing project automation and electrical activities.

Rob High, Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, Watson Solutions, IBM Software Group

Rob has overall responsibility to drive Watson Solutions technical strategy and thought leadership. He works collaboratively with the Watson engineering, research, and development teams across IBM. Prior to joining Watson Solutions, Rob was Chief Architect for the SOA Foundation and member of the IBM Academy of Technology. He championed an open industry architectural definition of the principles of business and IT alignment enabled by SOA and business process optimization, as well as ensuring IBM’s software and services portfolio is architecturally grounded to enable for efficient SOA-based solutions. Rob has 37 years of programming experience and has worked with distributed, object-oriented, component-based transaction monitors for the last 26 years.

Partnership Said To Fulfill Industry 4.0 Vision for Smart Manufacturing

Partnership Said To Fulfill Industry 4.0 Vision for Smart Manufacturing

Exor HMIHere is one of those press releases that attempts to use every current buzz word. Regardless, this business partnership shows how technology suppliers are partnering in order to move to the next level of manufacturing strategy.

EXOR International S.p.A. and NEXCOM International Co. announced a technology and business partnership to “enhance their worldwide presence in the automation and IT market by developing new HMI functions to fulfill the vision of Industry 4.0. Based on close cooperation between the two companies, NEXCOM has investing in EXOR International for 19.99% of the company.”

To achieve Industry 4.0‘s vision for smart manufacturing, NEXCOM has proposed PC-based IoT Automation Solutions consisting of intelligent controllers, IoT automation gateways, and big data collectors. Under the partnership, NEXCOM expands its product portfolio to EXOR’s virtualized human machine interface (HMI), a key element to Industry 4.0, offering all-around IoT Automation Solutions. Further, EXOR will extend its presence into the Asian market and grow JMobile platform to ensure global offering.

EXOR, with headquarters in Verona, Italy, is an international HMI supplier. EXOR HMI solutions span over industrial automation with an expertise in satisfying vertical markets and embedded design solutions.

NEXCOM, headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan, is a leading international manufacturer of IoT Automation Solutions that offers comprehensive industrial computing solutions.

The partnership will leverage the synergy of EXOR and NEXCOM to enlarge and improve the quality of global offerings to the market, strengthen production capability, and enhance post-sales service with general maintenance and repair centers in Europe and Asia.

Co-development of new products will meet global demand of “ready-to-use products” with a stronger platform and exceptional time to market. Global service will be provided 24/7 to the needs of the market and customers.

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