ISA113 aims to support action-based integration and coordination across multi-vendor OT and IT workflow systems.
The International Society of Automation (ISA), a professional society for automation, is inviting participants to join the new ISA113 Standard Committee, an effort to develop a specification for integrating distributed workflow systems across multiple vendor platforms.
This is important to Control Engineering subscribers because system integration of automation and controls is often needed to ensure devices and systems operate as intended.
The ISA113 Standard Committee is being formed to address interoperability challenges among workflow systems used in industrial organizations. Many teams rely on custom integration projects to connect these systems. ISA113 is intended to create a standard that supports different workflow models, separates workflow logic from execution location, defines action-based integration for operational technology (OT)/IT workflows and enables coordination across multiple systems.
The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) published the official call for ISA113 committee members March 20, 2026. The call remains open for 30 days after publication. Individuals with relevant expertise who want to contribute may participate.
A key focus for the committee will be interoperability between orchestrated workflows and choreographed workflows. Orchestrated workflows, such as ISA-88-style hierarchical procedures and phases, are commonly used in industrial automation and batch control. Choreographed workflows, common in Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN), manufacturing execution systems (MES) and other business process systems, support distributed and event-driven coordination. As organizations adopt more digital tools, they increasingly use both approaches, increasing the need for better integration between them.
“The goal of initiating the ISA113 Standard Committee is to help bridge OT/IT workflow styles,” said Steve Ferguson, managing director of standards and technical activities at ISA. “This work has the potential to help organizations improve efficiency, reduce integration risk and support more scalable digital transformation initiatives. A vendor-neutral standard can also foster greater collaboration across suppliers, end users, integrators and software providers.”
ISA invites participation from end users, automation suppliers, software vendors, system integrators, consultants and others with expertise in workflow systems, industrial automation, MES, BPMN and standards development. Broad representation will help ensure the standard reflects different industry needs and is practical to use.
Those interested in contributing may respond during the 30-day ANSI call period.
Edited by Puja Mitra, WTWH Media, for Control Engineering, from a ISA news release.
