ROCKWELL AUTOMATION ENTERS NEW MARKET

Rockwell Automation, in association with Cisco, has entered into a new market with the supply of a line of managed switches integrated with Cisco technology. This enables Rockwell Automation to provide complete networking products from I/O to enterprise.

According to Clive Barwise, Integrated Architecture Field Business Leader, Rockwell Automation, there is a definite disparity in the manufacturing environment between the production/control and IT departments regarding the use Ethernet/IP.

“Essentially Rockwell Automation is the expert in the control space and Cisco is the expert in the IT and Ethernet space. By collaborating in this arena, both companies can use their industry know-how to help both factories’ control and IT staff successfully merge these two areas and get advice on the use of Ethernet.”

The modular managed co-branded switch line is the first of its kind. It uses the current Cisco Catalyst switch architecture and feature set, along with powerful configuration tools. This helps to provide secure integration with the enterprise network. The line also features easy setup and comprehensive diagnostics from within the Rockwell Automation Integrated Architecture.
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According to Barwise, the collaboration also enables IT and manufacturing to bring their best practices together to improve efficiencies and efficiencies, agility and competitive advantage for manufacturers. “It assists manufacturers in realising the benefits of a completely integrated network architecture that unites production intelligence with the rest of the enterprise, reliability and quality across the organisation, as well as the deployment and maintenance of security.