Nextnine, a leading provider of top-down operational technology (OT) security management solutions for connected industrial control system (ICS) environments, and SecurityMatters, a provider of industrial cyber resilience network monitoring solutions, jointly announced an OEM partnership between the two companies.  As part of this OEM partnership, Nextnine has integrated the SilentDefense technology from SecurityMatters into its ICS Shield solution.

IFS and The Marsden Group have signed a strategic partnership to jointly pursue opportunities in the oil and gas industry.

The combination of the IFS IoT Business Connector and The Marsden Group’s platform for IoT data discovery, machine learning, and advanced analytics, oil and gas companies are able to monitor, capture, and analyze relevant IoT data, enabling timely action and optimized decision making in critical areas, such as maintenance and supply chain management.

Cisco and IBM announced new solutions for VersaStack, converged infrastructure jointly developed by the two companies.  VersaStack reportedly helps organizations reduce complexity and automate processes to accelerate the delivery of applications.  The additional technologies incorporated in the announcement extend VersaStack to include hybrid cloud capabilities and also take advantage of the latest software defined storage technologies to address cloud-scale applications.

This broad set of solutions allows IT organizations to:

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., a world leader in serving science, announced that it has acquired Core Informatics, which provides a leading cloud-based platform supporting scientific data management. Core’s offerings will significantly enhance Thermo Fisher’s existing informatics solutions and complement its cloud platform, which supports the company’s genetic analysis, qPCR and proteomics systems.

Extreme Networks, Inc. announced it has entered into an asset purchase agreement with Avaya Inc. to acquire its networking business.  Under the terms of the agreement, the assets of Avaya's networking business unit will be sold to Extreme for approximately $100 million, in accordance with the terms and conditions of the asset purchase agreement.

IBM and Salesforce announced a global strategic partnership to deliver joint solutions designed to leverage artificial intelligence and enable companies to make smarter decisions, faster than ever before.  With the partnership, IBM Watson, the leading AI platform for business, and Salesforce Einstein, AI that powers a world leading CRM, will seamlessly connect to enable an entirely new level of intelligent customer engagement across sales, service, marketing, commerce, and more.

IBM and Maersk announced a new collaboration to use blockchain technology to help transform the global, cross-border supply chain.

HIMA Paul Hildebrandt GmbH has signed a global framework agreement with Mannheim-based automation equipment manufacturer Pepperl+Fuchs GmbH.  It comprises the jointly developed H-system termination boards and associated modules from Pepperl+Fuchs, which are connected through pre-assembled system cables to the connector boards of the HIMax family.  The agreement also governs uniform formal and legal aspects for all companies in the HIMA group, including warranty, liability, obsolescence management and uniform commercial c

Schneider Electric, a global specialist in energy management and automation, and ENGIE, a global specialist in energy transition, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to explore and deploy new digital solutions for operational efficiency of renewable assets (wind and solar PV), leveraging Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA), Historian, and related application software by Schneider Electric’s Wonderware brand.

HARMAN, a premier connected technologies company for the automotive, consumer, and enterprise markets, and Intel Corporation announced HARMAN Quick Predict, an end-to-end industrial Internet of Things (IoT) solution that provides early detection of problems with rotating equipment in industrial settings.  HARMAN's leading engineering services team developed Quick Predict based on a vibration analytical algorithm developed by Intel.