Speaking at the Innovation Summit World Tour 2022, Schneider Electric's annual flagship series of customer and partner events, senior 
company executives highlighted that traditional approaches to industrial development were not designed to meet the challenges posed by climate change, the current energy crisis, market and supply chain volatility, and deep socio-economic tensions.
Schneider Electric's Industrial Automation business unveiled several new offerings that focus on promoting greater engineering effectiveness and meeting the challenges of worker shortages. These new offerings help to empower the modern industrial workforce to work more effectively, reduce commissioning time, prolong the lifetime and efficiency of machines, and reduce energy useage..
Furthering software-centric automation
EcoStruxure Automation Expert 22.1, the latest release of the software-centric industrial automation system, further integrates with AVEVA System Platform, which helps to enable users to design graphics with its Operations Management Interface and access AVEVA's asset library based on the latest situational awareness standards. Designing AVEVA graphics and control applications in the same environment helps to reduce engineering efforts by up to an estimated 50 percent and minimize training time and quality issues.
The new version of EcoStruxure Automation Expert now integrates the Modicon M262d to provide a more cost-effective controller for discrete manufacturing with greater computing power, and now combines with EcoStruxure Machine Expert Twin to drive additional engineering and operational efficiencies and enhanced continuity across the physical and digital worlds.
EcoStruxure Automation Expert's HMI can now be deployed to Linux System PCs, offering users a wider range of hardware and form factors according to their use-case and budget. As EcoStruxure Automation Expert's SoftdPAC controller already supports Linux, users can now configure control applications and HMIs with greater ease on the same hardware.
Greater insight and integration for power and process automation
EcoStruxure Power and Process further leverages AVEVA Unified Operations Center, the industrial collaboration interface that connects operational, information and engineering technologies, to help to provide enterprise-wide visibility, reduce energy consumption and unplanned downtime, and increase profitability.
EcoStruxure Power and Process now integrates with ETAP energy management software solutions that design, operate and automate power systems. This combination of technologies further enhances simulation capabilities, as process changes can be run digitally to better pinpoint potential efficiencies without making physical changes and provides recovery benefits so that protocols for black-outs or unstable conditions can be programmed into systems.
Simplicity and productivity with a new cobot in the Lexium range
Schneider Electric's new cobot in the Lexium range is part of an advanced robotic system that helps workers perform heavy, repetitive and complex tasks. The cobot is designed to be easier to implement into existing industrial environments and helps to improve workforce empowerment and safety. It can more accurately perform highly technical tasks, lift objects of up to 18kg, and work side-by-side with people on production lines. Users can more intuitively program and operate the cobot through an Android app.
Delivering a more resilient, sustainable electric world
With sustainability at its core, and to celebrate and champion initiatives around the world, Schneider also announced its Schneider Electric Sustainability Impact Awards, designed to recognize the critical role customers and suppliers play in delivering a more resilient and sustainable world. Understanding that successful partners and suppliers will set the precedent for others to follow in their footsteps, the program hopes to deliver significant impact through considered sustainable and efficient practices. Nominations are now open, and the deadline for submissions is November 25.