With the live days of the SPS Connect now over, visitors are able to take a look at their main topics of interest. The talks and lectures held by leading experts worldwide are now available on-demand until 31 December, as is the opportunity to continue chat discussions.
The SPS Connect took place from 24 - 26 November 2020 and boasted an impressive program on all the main topics prevalent in the automation industry. A total of 120 program elements in 3 parallel streams and several roundtables attracted up to 1,300 live viewers for the most popular presentations.
This impressive range of expert knowledge is now available on the platform on-demand allowing visitors and other participants to dip into the content at their leisure until the end of December.
With the subject of digital twins as an integral part in the realization of Industry 4.0, Patrick Bruder, Business Development Manager Automation at Lenze SE held a talk entitled: “On the way to Industry 4.0 with the digital twin”. The talk included insights, especially designed for machine builders and end-users the standards that need to be followed as well as what concrete steps have to be taken to remain competitive.
SICK continued this theme with a talk “Virtual commissioning of sensors as digital twin components” providing an outlook on how sensors can be physically mapped using valid behavior models and how real sensor functions can be seamlessly used from the concept phase to virtual commissioning,
Microsoft Deutschland talked to a wide audience on “How a distributed industrial cloud enhances future-proof production processes”; a relevant theme for all manufacturers moving from automated machinery to autonomous end-to-end manufacturing processes.
The highlights continued with the lecture on Sensor Solutions for Smart Factories by Sensata Technologies. The leading provider of innovative sensor-rich solutions held a session on solutions in  smart sensing with a focus on digital, wireless, sensor fusion, CANopen, IO-Link & functional safety.
In a session by Beckhoff Automation GmbH & Co. KG “Traditional and next-generation automation technologies: PC-based control – from on-premises through to the cloud” was addressed, which included insights on the history of PC-based control technology at Beckhoff Automation plus the milestones on the path to its success. Participants also learned about the advantages of PC-based control technology and how it can continue to be developed by incorporating new cloud-based communication mechanisms and infrastructures.
Bosch Rexroth AG hosted a well-received roundtable discussion on ctrlX AUTOMATION entitled: “ctrlX AUTOMATION – Two Steps Ahead” highlighting the changes faced in the production world. The talk centered on the new level of agility needed to keep pace with the global speed of innovation. The solution discussed is designed to surmount the classic boundaries between machine control, IT world and the Internet of Things.
The topic of “Safety meets Security - why cyber security is a key requirement for functional safety” was certainly in safe hands with a talk by Phoenix Contact, which included details on the importance of a common strategy against cyber-attacks.
Schneider Electric held a talk on the Future of Automation with IEC 61499 - EcoStruxure Automation Expert and answered questions such as how to save time and costs through hardware independent programming, ensuring faster time-to-market through event-based programming and an easier connection to IT systems through high IT proximity in design.
Networking and presentations on demand until the end of the year
The virtual platform will remain active until the end of the year, allowing participants to continue to exchange information via chats and to view all these highlight presentations and much more during this period.
Next year, SPS will return to Nuremberg in the regular format from
23 - 25 November 2021.