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German Edge Cloud (GEC) and Scheer PAS on November 3 announced a strategic partnership aimed at accelerating the digitalization of production processes. Two owner-managed companies that are both among the pioneers of digital transformation.

This makes clearer what had already been foreshadowed at a press conference at the Friedhelm Loh Group booth during Hannover Messe 2022: The industry is being offered new solutions for production that are worlds apart from the monolithic solutions of the past. With Scheer PAS, GEC has found a suitable partner for this.

German Edge Cloud (GEC) is part of the Friedhelm Loh Group and specializes in edge and cloud solutions, especially for industry-related applications and store floor apps for digitalized production. Its production and IIoT specialists accompany smart factories from the first digitalization steps to the realization of agile digital production management. Scheer PAS offers a software platform that simplifies and accelerates the development and integration of digital production applications and the automation of manufacturing processes.

Prof. Dr. Friedhelm Loh during the Hannover Fair 2022 (Photo Sendler)

Both companies base their offerings on modern container technology and web services. The joint solution itself consists of web services that are billed according to usage time. And they serve their customers to become digital faster through customization, supplementation and in-house development.

Prof. Dr. Friedhelm Loh, owner and CEO of the Friedhelm Loh Group, says: “What counts for the industry today is speed and flexibility in digitalization – especially against the backdrop of current and upcoming economic and social challenges. Driving this process forward is a key objective of the strategic partnership between German Edge Cloud and Scheer PAS.”

Prof. Dr. August-Wilhelm Scheer (photo Scheer), founder and owner of Scheer Holding, agrees: “We are very pleased to have found an innovation-driven partner for Scheer PAS in the industry. GEC and the Friedhelm Loh Group have extensive know-how and practical experience in industrial automation. Scheer can bring expertise in application development, integration and process automation. Together, we can simplify access to value creation through IIoT for the manufacturing industry. Small and medium-sized companies in particular will benefit from this.”

Next generation IIoT applications

The first results of the cooperation are part of the ONCITE Digital Production System (DPS) of the German Edge Cloud. Scheer PAS was integrated into the system as a low-code and integration platform.

The combination of application and platform in one solution enables manufacturing companies to reliably network their production, combined with modern data management and flexible manufacturing processes. Benefits include higher production transparency, improved overall equipment efficiency (OEE) and faster responses to unforeseen disruptions.

Thanks to low-code functionality, production staff outside the IT department are now able to develop production-specific applications and automate production processes. The Scheer PAS platform is based on the concept of a “Composable Enterprise” with a modular architecture as the foundation for software applications and business processes.

New application services can be adapted and rolled out on site during the production process without having to stop the production line (zero downtime). Another picture: using low-code editors, the industrial engineer can create and integrate custom apps, dashboards, and new data sources without external help. With a rigid, monolithic software architecture, the development and investment effort would be significantly higher.