Demonstrated Success of Scalability for Multi-Vendor Ethernet-APL by BASF and Endress+Hauser
In a significant breakthrough for the industrial sector, recent multi-vendor tests of PROFINET over Ethernet-APL have confirmed the technology's robust performance, reliability, and seamless interoperability among devices from multiple manufacturers. This development validates its readiness for widespread industrial use and significant impact on IIoT-enabled manufacturing productivity.
Key details of the tests include:
- **Performance Metrics:** The tests showed that crucial metrics like total net load and redundancy switchover times met or even exceeded the required standards, confirming the network's ability to handle heavy loads and maintain redundancy for high availability.
- **Test Setup:** The scenario involved nearly 240 Endress+Hauser measuring devices (covering flow, pressure, temperature, and level sensors) and positioners by Samson, integrated through a ring topology of Ethernet-APL field switches by Pepperl+Fuchs, Phoenix Contact, and R. Stahl. Emerson supplied the DeltaV DCS control system with PROFINET System Redundancy (S2) and AMS Device Manager for system management.
- **Partner Companies:** Key contributors to the multi-vendor ecosystem included Endress+Hauser (instrumentation manufacturer), Pepperl+Fuchs, Phoenix Contact, and R. Stahl (field switches), Samson (positioners), and Emerson (control system and software). This collaboration confirmed interoperability across manufacturers in real customer-defined applications.
- **Impact on IIoT and Manufacturing Productivity:** By enabling multi-vendor devices to operate seamlessly on the same Ethernet-APL backbone using PROFINET, the technology supports enhanced digitalization and transparency in plant operations, faster, reliable data communication from field devices to control systems, improved process optimization and predictive maintenance enabled by high-quality data flow, and reduced complexity and cost in device integration. This translates to increased productivity, reliability, and efficiency in industrial automation environments leveraging IIoT architectures.
Harald Mueller, technical lead of Ethernet-APL and director technology at Endress+Hauser, made this statement, "The successful multi-vendor tests of PROFINET over Ethernet-APL demonstrate the technology's readiness for industrial use and its potential to revolutionize IIoT-enabled manufacturing productivity."
Gerd Niedermayer, senior expert, emerging automation technologies at BASF, stated that these tests will help optimize engineering, commissioning, and lifecycle in BASF plants, potentially saving capex and opex costs.
Endress+Hauser conducted load tests tailored to customer-specific requirements, and the scalability test was a success, proving the openness, future-proof nature, and readiness of the multi-vendor infrastructure for the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT).
These advancements in PROFINET over Ethernet-APL technology are expected to contribute significantly to the digitalization and optimisation of industrial processes, particularly within complex chemical processing scenarios.
In light of these successful multi-vendor tests, the performance of technology like PROFINET over Ethernet-APL in the industrial sector has been validated, demonstrating its potential to impact the financial aspects of industries by reducing complexity and cost in device integration, and increasing productivity, reliability, and efficiency. This revolutionary technology in the technology sector, with contributions from key partners in the finance sector such as Endress+Hauser, Pepperl+Fuchs, Phoenix Contact, R. Stahl, Samson, and Emerson, is expected to have a significant role in the digitalization and optimization of industries, particularly in complex chemical processing scenarios, ultimately boosting the financial and operational performance of various industries.
