ABB accelerates industrial

ABB accelerates industrial^IT programme

Thousands of products are now certified to new standard

Keyords: ABB, Production management

ABB has accelerated the certification of its offerings under the "Industrial^IT"label. Some 3,000 products have been certified as part of ABB's programme to simplify the integration and operation of its entire range of products for its utility and industry customers. At year-end 2001, ABB had certified 1,000 products, surpassing its target of 800 products.

"ABB's technologies are rapidly evolving under a single information framework that is transforming our entire product line into an integrated system of compatible 'building blocks'€", said ABB president and CEO Jörgen Centerman. "With Industrial^IT, our customers can build tailor-made solutions for their businesses, helping them improve their performance."

Industrial^IT is ABB's information framework based on open industry standards. It links ABB's automation and power technology products so they are easier to configure, install, operate and maintain in real time. The goal is to allow customers to integrate industrial systems and information technology by managing information about plant, assets, operations and business systems.

"Industrial^IT-enabled" products from ABB or its partners come equipped with software containing detailed information about the product– such as instruction manuals, drawings, remote control faceplates and configuration tools.

As each certified Industrial^IT product is installed (for example,a sensor, robot, motor, transformer, etc.), the software can be copied, pasted and arranged into a customer's monitoring and control system. A simple mouse click opens up the full array of information needed to configure, troubleshoot or optimize a given component.

ABB has also announced the first external, non-ABB product to be Industrial^ITcertified, a suite of maintenance management applications that form part of IFS applications from Swedish software producer IFS AB.

For more information contact: Bob Kingman, ABB, Howard Road, St Neots, Cambs PE19 3EU, UK. Tel: +44 (0) 1480 488207; Fax: +44 (0) 1480 218361; www: bob.kingman@gb.abb.com