Industrial Networking Product Research (March 2005)

Research was undertaken to gain a better understanding of Control Engineering subscribers’ applications and needs regarding industrial networks.

By Control Engineering Staff March 17, 2005

Research was undertaken to gain a better understanding of Control Engineering subscribers’ applications and needs regarding industrial networks. Industrial Networking Product Research

Executive Summary

• Among those specifying, recommending, and/or buying industrial network products, 86% do so for in-plant requirements and 39% buy for OEM needs.

• Sixty percent of those surveyed say engineering personnel are included on the cross-functional teams. Twenty-nine percent of those specifying, recommending, and/or buying industrial network products say cross-functional teams are not employed. This suggests control engineers are unilaterally making buying decisions in many cases.

• More than half of survey participants’ primary application is supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA).

• It will come as no surprise that network hardware (hubs, switches, routers, etc.) and software (configuration, programming, analysis, etc.) are the items most commonly connected to respondents’ networks today. I/O products and systems, as well as PLC hardware, round out the four most widely connected products at the moment. Looking 12 months down the road though, PLC hardware will be the most commonly connected product to respondents’ networks. Actually, compared to current connectivity, more people will be connecting every product category in the future. The one exception to this is I/O products and systems, for which connectivity will remain at the same level.

• Seventy-eight percent of respondents currently use the Ethernet TCP/IP protocol, while 75% use RS-232. Survey responses suggest these will continue to be the most popular protocols.

• The most important factors when selecting industrial network products are reliability and product quality. Technical assistance and responsiveness to problems are the manufacturer qualities of primary importance to respondents.

• Respondents’ average annual spending on industrial network products broke out as follows: I/O devices and connectors $71,450 Wire and cable $44,348 Network-enabled sensors $35,641 Network-enabled controllers $53,228 Networked-enabled final control elements $34,146 Network software $78,554 Network infrastructure $73,951

• More than one-third of respondents say their companies don’t track/expect industrial networks to have ROI. Of those who do, 34% is the average ROI expected. On average, respondents expect to save $60,300 from their companies’ investments in industrial network products. Thirteen months is the average timeframe given for industrial products to generate savings. Industrial Networking Product Research Executive Summary – continued

• More than half of those surveyed say their companies use third-party integrators or consultants for industrial network applications. Within this group, the average respondent spends $83,200 per year for such services.

• Rockwell Automation, Belden Wire & Cable, and Siemens top the list of industrial networking vendors purchased from in the past 12 months. The average number of industrial networking products purchased in the past 12 months was 934. This equates to average spending of $339,260 per person.

• Eighty-three percent of survey participants say the intelligence of industrial networks currently resides in controllers. As for the future, intelligence will reside in controllers and PCs to the same extent.

• Sixty-eight percent of Control Engineering subscribers responding do not receive IAN. Seventy-one percent do not receive Control Design.

Industrial Networking Product Research 2005