PTC, Siemens, Telit, and Hitachi Vantara are Leaders in ABI Research’s Smart Manufacturing Platforms Competitive Ranking

The new Smart Manufacturing Platforms Competitive Ranking by global technology intelligence firm ABI Research provides an in-depth and unbiased examination of the solutions offered by nine manufacturing platform providers delivering market insights on certain chosen technological criteria, including protocol adaptability and connectivity, edge intelligence, digital twins, and other transformative technologies such as AI, simulation, and low-code/no-code app development. These criteria and their subsegments were identified as the most vital for the evolution of smart manufacturing platforms in supporting manufacturers’ operations. The companies evaluated and ranked are:

Market Leaders: PTC, Siemens, Telit, Hitachi Vantara

Mainstream: ABB, Emerson, Software AG, GE Digital

Followers: Altizon

“As manufacturers integrate Information Technology (IT) and Operational Technology (OT), they rely on Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) platforms dedicated to smart manufacturing to manage their devices, connectivity, infrastructure, and data. These IIoT platforms also help manufacturers implement applications, derive insights, and deliver those insights to the correct stakeholders,” explains Ryan Martin, Research Director, Industrial and Manufacturing at ABI Research. “More than US$66 billion will be spent on these solutions annually by 2030.”

PTC scored first in the overall ranking and was closely followed by Siemens. PTC and Siemens are top innovators and lead the market in terms of platform adoption. All leaders – PTC, Siemens, Telit, and Hitachi Vantara – have notable strengths when it comes to digital twins, low-code app development, and connectivity/protocol adaptability. Telit, in particular, excels at protocol translation, supporting more than 320 drivers natively before partnerships. Hitachi Vantara is strong in edge intelligence and enterprise cloud integration with a customer base that puts it in the top three suppliers. ABB, GE, and Emerson have also endured major changes since the last assessment with all three companies relaunching or taking a different market focus than several years ago.

“Main trends for innovation include building out robust capabilities to support digital twins, low-code app development, edge and cloud integration, and to a lesser extent (but still relevant) augmented reality. However, the most important aspects are connectivity and protocol adaptability because without foundational data ingestion and management, none of the other applications or capabilities would exist,” Martin concludes.

These findings are from ABI Research’s Smart Manufacturing Platforms competitive ranking report. This report is part of the company’s Industrial & Manufacturing research service, which includes research, data, and ABI Insights. Competitive Ranking reports offer comprehensive analysis of implementation strategies and innovation, coupled with market share analysis, to offer unparalleled insight into a company’s performance and standing in comparison to its competitors.