2017 HMI Software, Hardware Report: 5 high-level findings

Respondents to the Control Engineering 2017 HMI Software and Hardware study unveiled five key findings regarding what end users expect and how they purchase or specify HMI software and hardware.

By Amanda Pelliccione, Research Director June 1, 2017

Respondents to the Control Engineering 2017 HMI Software and Hardware study unveiled five key findings regarding what end users expect and how they purchase or specify human-machine interface (HMI) software and hardware:

  1. Justifications: The top situations in which end users purchase new HMI software and/or hardware are an automation upgrade (28%), a new installation (20%), and an operations/engineering upgrade (11%).
  2. Annual spend: Over the past 12 months, the average respondent’s company was estimated to have been spent $127,000 on HMI software and hardware; and an average of $123,000 is expected to be spent in the next year on these products.
  3. Operating systems: Microsoft Windows 7 (60%) and Microsoft Windows 10 (37%) are the most commonly used operating systems by respondents’ HMI software.
  4. Cybersecurity: Sixty-one percent of respondents reported that their companies restrict access to HMIs in an effort to protect these devices; 57% have increased password protection procedures.
  5. Mobility: One-third of respondents’ use human factors or ergonometric considerations in regard to their HMI, and 25% use a mobile industrial HMI device.

Access the full 2017 HMI Software and Hardware Report to view additional findings.