Welcome to 2025! We are glad to have you back for another twelve issues of PROFINEWS this year. However, you might be asking yourself… Why the top eight articles of 2024? Well, if you read PROFINEWS regularly you may notice that every issue contains eight articles. So why not 8?!
8. PI: Standards for Interoperability, Scaling and Innovation
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We are well positioned for all of these tasks and are optimistic about the future. The next step is to present the diverse portfolio of extensive PI technologies in an even more understandable way. We look at new trends at trade fairs, digital and social channels and discover new target groups.
7. Flexibility, interoperability or efficiency? Get it all with MTP!
Flexible production plants, interoperability, and efficiency do not need to be contradictory. With the Module Type Package (MTP) technology, all these goals can be achieved at the same time. Sounds like a dream? In summer 2023, NAMUR, ZVEI, and PI joined their forces to make this dream reality. Since the writing of this article, V2 of MTP has been tirelessly worked on and brought to fruition.
6. Three PROFINET Application Profiles Gaining Momentum – Part 2
The second in a three part series, this part focused on PROFIenergy. Part 1 of the series focused on PROFIsafe, and Part 3 of the series focused on PROFIdrive.
5. omlox Continues its Ascent and Opens First Test Lab
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For the first time, omlox enables the technology- and manufacturer-independent provision of location tracking information in production environments. Various different localization technologies, such as ultra-wideband wireless (UWB), 5G, RFID, QR codes and GPS, can be used together and with standardized interfaces in an omlox system.
3. IO-Link: A Key to the Future of Automation
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To also create a visible quality feature on the IO-Link gateway/master side, the IO-Link community launched the ACL (Approved Component List) in Spring 2024, which can be viewed at any time on the IO-Link.com website.
4. Stepping Up Industrial Network Security: PROFINET Security Update
By embracing security updates, PROFINET is not just adding new features but is also refining existing processes to meet the current and future demands of industrial cybersecurity. These updates signify an important evolution in the protocol’s capabilities, providing a more secure foundation for the critical systems that underpin today’s industrial operations. These features address the growing need for compliance with stringent security standards like IEC 62443 and the EU Cyber Resilience Act.
2. 2023 Node Count Sets New Records
In its annual survey of newly installed nodes, PI reported outstanding growth figures for its technologies. PROFINET, PROFIsafe, and IO-Link in particular showed impressive increases. Despite challenging market conditions, the other PI technologies also maintained their high growth rates.
1. New Products
And the Number 1 article every single issue, month in and month out is the New Products article. This is of little surprise. At the end of the day it’s the ecosystem of thousands of available products that make PI technologies successful. A factory isn’t built with a handful of devices: it is built using a wide variety of best-of-breed products from more than one supplier.