ABB introduces Automation Extended program

ABB introduced its Automation Extended program on Feb. 2, which is an evolution of its distributed control systems (DCS) for helping industries modernize without disruptions. Building on ABB’s longstanding DCS expertise, the program shows how future automation capabilities can be introduced progressively, preserve system integrity, and enable the flexibility, scalability and efficiency needed by future operations.

Automation Extended is reported to address challenges, such as volatile markets, cybersecurity, regulatory pressures and rapidly changing workforces, by enabling agile, paced innovation without disrupting production. It supports analytics and IoT integration, and simplies operations for diverse skill levels. Consequently, users can continue to rely on the company’s systems, such as ABB Ability System 800xA, ABB Ability Symphony Plus and ABB Freelance, while introducing new technologies progressively and without operational interruption. This approach provides a structured, low-risk path to modernization, and preserves continuity while enabling innovation.

“Many industries we serve operate complex infrastructures that deliver essential resources, so our customers rely on modernization without disruption,” says Peter Terwiesch, president of ABB’s Automation division. “Automation Extended brings future-ready capabilities into the systems they know and trust, with security and interoperability.”

Automation Extended is implemented through an open and modular environment designed for interoperability, scalability and seamless integration across industrial domains. Based on separation-of-concerns principles, the automation ecosystem includes two distinct, securely interconnected settings:

• Control environment is a software‑defined domain that ensures robust, reliable and deterministic control for critical processes.
• Digital environment is securely connected to the control layer, enabling advanced applications, edge intelligence and real‑time analytics. This space leverages artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) for decision support without disturbing proven control structures.

ABB adds that one unified, comprehensive automation service for ecosystem lifecycle management and optimization manages and maintains these two environments. Access to Automation Extended will be enabled through the next releases of ABB Ability System 800xA, ABB Ability Symphony Plus and ABB Freelance process automation systems.

This ecosystem enables varied improvements by integrating new technologies for managing both environments, such as an Open Platform Communications Unified Architecture (OPC UA) backbone and a cloud-native architecture, which uses containerization, orchestration and modular services. These range from proactively detecting and correcting process anomalies to optimizing maintenance strategies through continuous condition monitoring of critical assets, and elevating engineering with efficient modular approaches ready for deployment across diverse hardware platforms. This architecture delivers scalability and agility while ensuring robust performance.