A series in collaboration with KEM:
Why it’s worth switching to open, Linux-based platforms now
This is the second part of the series on “Future-Proof Automation,” which I am co-authoring with Michael Corban, editor-in-chief of KEM Konstruktion/Automation.
This second part focuses on the use of Linux platforms for existing hardware environments—that is, brownfield systems.
Click here to read the German article in KEM.
Author Ulrich Sendler
Combining the tried-and-true with the future – how open, Linux-based automation platforms can be used to modernize machines and systems in a future-proof way
In industry, tried-and-true solutions are almost always the most important source of revenue: the machine, the hardware—not the software. That is likely why the most important question in industrial digitalization is how digital technology can be integrated into products and production without jeopardizing day-to-day operations. A look at the mechanical and plant engineering sector shows that Linux-based platforms are proving to be productive much faster than anticipated in pilot projects. Even if this is not yet widely known.
Proprietary OT as a barrier to innovation
Mechanical and plant engineering is considered one of the most conservative sectors of the economy. Hardware that has been in use for decades, has proven itself, and is beloved by customers should only be changed if it is proven that the change will be successful. That is a mindset common in this field. But with that mindset, none of today’s market leaders would have achieved their market success.
Without innovation, there is no industry. The problem with digital transformation runs deeper: innovations are usually sought in the hardware. For decades, the software used to control and regulate the hardware was supplied as “embedded software” and was typically not billed separately at all.
In the process, Operational Technology (OT) has evolved that is highly focused on the purpose of controlling and regulating hardware operations. With this OT, which is decoupled from the general development of IT, it took a long time for anyone to realize that apps like those on a cell phone could also be the right solution on the shop floor. The software on the machine came from the manufacturer. The idea that the operator, supplier, or automation provider might contribute software for operation or for monitoring and analyzing operations was generally unwelcome and not really supported.
IoT in plant operations
But that is exactly what the Internet of Things means in the industrial sector: analyzing, evaluating, and monitoring hardware during operation—in order to draw the right conclusions.
For several years now, there has been a whole range of open, Linux-based platforms whose providers are more or less indifferent to which apps run on which hardware. But is that even possible? Does it work with hardware whose software wasn’t designed for such a purpose? Apparently, it works even much better than the bold pioneers among mechanical and plant engineers could have ever imagined.
With real-time Linux, proprietary software is no longer necessary in the factory. (Image courtesy of 123rf)
Two examples illustrate this very clearly. One of them proves that there are once again true “hidden champions” in industry across the German-speaking world. You could call them the hidden champions of industrial digitalization. This is because they build, launch, and support products that hold leading positions in the global market, largely due to their software strengths—all without receiving any coverage on radio, television, or in the press.
Both are typical SMEs—small and medium-sized enterprises. A pump manufacturer from Hesse and a provider of robotics controllers from Sweden. Hopefully, word will soon spread about just how much they are already committed to open digitalization. The pump manufacturer uses the Linux-based FLECS platform from the small provider FLECS Technologies in Kempten. Cognibotics currently runs on the platforms of Bosch Rexroth and Keba. (All three, along with a number of other providers, are featured in the Smart Automation market overview.)
HP, this time standing for Herborner Pumpentechnik
Tim Dueding, Deputy Head of Development at Herborner Pumpentechnik (Photo: Herborner Pumpentechnik)
Herborner Pumpentechnik GmbH & Co. KG is headquartered in Herborn, Hesse, and celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2024. Its product range includes pumps for swimming pools, ships, wastewater treatment, and industrial applications. The manufacturer is the global market leader in ship wastewater pumps, and in Central Europe, the Herborn-based company is far ahead of the competition in swimming pool pumps for both public and recreational pools, with a market share of around 80 percent.
The manufacturer has left the competition in the dust for swimming pool pumps in three key areas:
- The pump components made of gray cast iron feature a 100% coating—partially patented—that completely prevents corrosion buildup even in modern stainless steel swimming pools.
- Operating continuously 24 hours a day, every day of the year—even during the pandemic, the pumps had to keep running because the structural integrity of the pools cannot tolerate any downtime—the Herborn pumps are characterized by maximum energy efficiency.
- Special integrated pre-filters in the pumps remove hair, dirt, and, in outdoor settings, leaves from the pool water, ensuring high water purity and trouble-free operation.
As deputy head of development, Tim Dueding focuses primarily on the digitalization of pumps and says, “As a company dedicated solely to mechanical engineering, we believe it will be difficult to meet market demands in the future. That’s why we’re heavily involved in software development, and I’m responsible for the software in our swimming pool pumps.”
The company’s commitment to meeting this challenge is reflected, on the one hand, in a team of ten software developers—an absolute rarity for such a small medium-sized business.
On the other hand, it is evident in the way Herborner Pumpen has been paving the way toward the Internet of Things for several years now.
For ten years now, there has been an IoT device built in-house on Yocto-Linux called HP.Mind. It can be used to control the pumps. But that is the exception, because specialized system and control engineers are typically commissioned for swimming pools. The pumps are just one component there, and their control is part of the projects.
HerbornerXneo Swimming Pool Pump (Photo: Herborner Pumpentechnik)
Pump Intelligence on Linux
More important was what is now in use under the name HP.Intelligence: machine learning programs and dedicated algorithms developed in-house using the Python programming language, which are used to capture and analyze data from pump operations. The results are then made available for implementation via a cloud server. Tim Dueding: “We now know much more about the pumps and their lifecycle than we did before. To make this unique expertise available to a wider range of customers, we have been working with Flecs since 2025 on a project for broad implementation in swimming pools.”
This platform provides Linux in a standardized form as a stable layer on which any apps can run. From Herborner Pumpentechnik, these include, in the first phase, the HP.MQTT Bridge to transfer data from the pumps to the cloud; an HP.Modbus Bridge for communication with the pump control system; and an HP.Intelligence app for providing pump intelligence at the edge.
Tim Dueding is certain that it is the company’s early foray into the world of the IoT that will secure Herborner Pumpen’s future. A cast-iron centrifugal pump is being transformed into something that has never existed before.
The use of sensor technology in combination with modern software makes all the difference. Dueding: “The pump itself becomes a sensor, an intelligent system whose data is made available via the cloud.”
He very much hopes that pool operators will recognize the benefits of this market innovation as soon as possible. Because only if they participate and make their facility’s data available for analysis can data processing via HP.Intelligence also lead to added value for the end customer.
Control of complex robotics
A completely different application is the use of Linux platforms for robotics. The example of the Swedish company Cognibotics illustrates the advantages this offers for robot control.
In 2025, Cognibotics made its debut at automatica in Munich, appearing at two demo booths: at Bosch Rexroth with a demonstration of the Juliet&Romeo software on ctrlX OS, and at Keba with the same software on KemroX.
Juliet&Romeo is itself a highly modern programming framework featuring a generic high-level language for robotics. The result is apps that run as containers on Linux. Cognibotics, a spin-off from the Faculty of Engineering at Lund University, impresses its customers with its intelligent use of torque and clamping data for high-precision calibration of robotic arm movements.
Even though robots aren’t as old as circulation pumps—for Cognibotics, the advantage of Linux-based platforms is similar. The provider doesn’t have to supply a separate operating system for every robot manufacturer or develop a custom adaptation for an existing operating system. With the standardized platform from Bosch Rexroth, Keba, and possibly others in the future, the Swedish company can focus on its specialized expertise.
Cognibotics on ctrlX OS, Automatica 2025 (Photo: Sendler)
Before the Breakthrough of Linux-Based Software
Für die Unternehmen, deren Software-Teams Apps auf Linux-basierten Plattformen entwickeln und laufen lassen, ist also die Frage aus der Überschrift dieses Artikels längst beantwortet. Bewährtes und Zukunft lassen sich vermutlich mit nichts besser zukunftssicher modernisieren als durch die Nutzung von Open Source. In der Breite kommt diese Gewissheit aber aus guten Gründen nur langsam an.
Erstens ist das Gewohnte, in diesem Fall die alte eingebettete Software der OT, das Vertraute, das bremst. Schließlich sind selbst in den Softwareabteilungen häufig die Verantwortlichen schon seit Jahrzehnten aktiv. Sie sind nicht mit Container-Software, Python und Linux ausgebildet worden und vom Vorzug dieser neuen Technik oft nicht überzeugt.
Zweitens aber sind die Pioniere, zu denen auch die für diesen Beitrag erwähnten Unternehmen zählen, sich ihrer Vorreiterrolle sehr bewusst. Sie wissen, dass der Vorsprung, den sie mit ihren Pilotprojekten haben, Gold wert ist. Sie wollen oft nicht, dass ihre Wettbewerber diese Vorteile schnell verstehen und selbst zu nutzen beginnen.
Das sorgt dafür, dass über die Pilotprojekte noch sehr wenig veröffentlicht ist. Aber je mehr Unternehmen den Schritt aus Pilotprojekten in die produktive Nutzung machen, desto mehr dürfte in den nächsten Jahren darüber gesprochen werden und zu lesen sein. Noch ist es ein besonderer Vorteil, jetzt schon auf diesen Zug zu springen. In ein paar Jahren werden es vermutlich alle tun.