Why Software-Defined Automation Matters

Industrial automation is evolving quickly. From software-defined automation and AI to cloud-based engineering and cybersecurity, organisations are looking for practical ways to modernise without starting from scratch. During this year’s ROKLive in Adelaide, we sat down with Stephen Clohessy from Rockwell Automation to talk about what’s driving this shift, why autonomy is becoming a bigger focus, and how manufacturers, System Integrators and OEMs can prepare for what’s next.
 

1. Can you introduce yourself and tell us what you do?
 

SC: I’m Stephen Clohessy, Asia Pacific Business Manager for Design and Control at Rockwell Automation. That means I look after our Logix platform, our networking portfolio, as well as our PlantPAx® distributed control system for the Asia Pacific region.
 

2. For people who don’t know, what does software-defined automation mean?

SC: Software-defined automation is Rockwell’s approach to decoupling software from hardware. What that means is our customers can design once and deploy anywhere. From a Logix perspective, we’ve always been a multi-discipline control platform, and software-defined automation allows us to expand on those disciplines and bring modern engineering principles into the Logix platform.
 

3. Why is autonomy such a big focus in industrial operations right now?
 

SC: There are several industry shifts we’re seeing across the entire automation landscape, from design, control and development. We’re also seeing a lot of changes in other industries, where we believe our customers can gain value by bringing those technologies into the industrial automation space.

The world is moving very fast. We need to produce more, and there’s a lot of competitive pressure. Our customers need to move fast to adopt new technologies and keep pace with the world around them. I think that’s why we’re seeing such a focus on autonomy.
 

4. What’s one myth about autonomous operations that you’d like to bust?

SC: I think there’s a lot of talk around autonomous operations displacing the human worker.

When we look at history, we’ve seen a lot of similar shifts, and every time there’s been a major change like this, it’s also created new opportunities where people can add value. While some displacement happens, new opportunities are created as well. People are very adaptable, and I believe we’ll continue to shift and provide value in different ways.
 

5. What’s the quickest win companies see when they start adopting software-defined automation?

SC: From a Logix perspective, you can actually collapse the Logix control surface directly into an industrial PC (IPC) environment. So, if you’re already using an industrial computer out in the field alongside a Rockwell control system, you can bring those two together and lower your overall total cost of ownership.
 

6. Can you tell us about the new Logix Edge platform?

SC: Absolutely. This is our new Logix Edge unit. It’s the third Logix platform alongside our existing CompactLogix® and ControlLogix® platforms, so we’re very excited about it. It opens up a wide range of opportunities, both for Rockwell and for our customers. 

There are three key things I’d highlight...

The first is new, industry-specific form factors. This first unit is just 100 mm by 100 mm, which allows it to fit into applications where space is a constraint.

The second is that we can run additional workloads on the unit. At launch, Logix Edge will support FactoryTalk® Optix, which opens up a lot of new architecture possibilities. Looking ahead, we’ll also be enabling additional Rockwell workloads, such as AI and machine learning technologies, as well as software solutions from our Encompass™ Partners to run alongside the Logix core.

The third thing I want to highlight is that we’re bringing new and expanded design and development principles from traditional IT programming environments into industrial automation. We’re talking about continuous integration, continuous deployment, automated testing and emulation. We’re also enabling customers to run OCI containers on the unit, so they can build their own solutions and run their own technology directly alongside the Logix control platform.
 

7. How can existing systems evolve without needing a full redesign?

SC: I think the really neat thing we’re doing from a Logix software-defined automation perspective is that we’re leveraging our existing tools. We’re still using Studio 5000® Logix Designer®, so customers can take their existing applications and move them across to run on the Logix Edge controller.

We’re also making simple, easy-to-use workflows that allow customers to interact with the containers and workloads running on Logix Edge. At the same time, we’re providing an SDK through the Edge framework so customers can develop their own workloads and connect them directly to the control platform.
 

8. What organisational mindset shift is needed to move towards autonomous operations?
 

SC: I think any organisation with an open, growth mindset will find it easier to adopt new technology. It’s really about looking at the value these changes can bring. If you start with a value-first approach, it becomes much easier to work towards the outcomes you’re trying to achieve from an autonomy perspective.
 

9. How should System Integrators and OEMs be preparing now to stay competitive?

SC: We’re seeing a lot of change happening around AI, and it’s allowing us to reduce many of the repetitive, high-effort engineering tasks. Within our Design Studio™ environment, we’ve just released our Plan and Build Agents. They allow engineers to upload design artefacts such as P&IDs, images, control narratives and existing PLC code.

From there, they can ask questions about those assets, compare existing applications and build a plan. If, for example, I want to duplicate an existing production line, the AI can help create that plan and then generate code based on the assets I’ve already provided.
 

10. What’s something happening globally that organisations across Australia and New Zealand should be paying more attention to?
 

SC: There’s a lot of movement happening in the cybersecurity space, both here in the South Pacific and globally. We’ve seen a lot of activity in Europe around the Cyber Resilience Act and the Machinery Regulation, which comes into effect next year.

At Rockwell, we’ve been focusing on designing and developing our products with a security-first approach. I think organisations across Australia and New Zealand should be paying attention to that, particularly around IEC 62443, and looking at how they can apply those cybersecurity principles within their own operations.