Dr. Aßmann, what is behind 'Nexeed'?

Dr. Stefan Aßmann: Nexeed is Bosch's Industry 4.0 software and service portfolio. Our aim is to support users in networking their entire value stream - from procurement and production through to delivery to the end customer. The portfolio is designed to enable companies of different sizes and from different sectors to get started with connected manufacturing and logistics in line with their needs: from starter kits and retrofit solutions to complete packages. In other words: We are therefore not offering a platform-based IoT operating system for developers, but solutions that have already been developed to completion and are based on open standards.

Which unit is in charge of this?

The portfolio runs under the umbrella of the 'Bosch Connected Industry' unit founded at the beginning of the year, where we bundle software activities relating to manufacturing and logistics topics. The team consists of around 500 associates, including software specialists, mathematicians, mechanical engineers, electrical engineers and logistics experts.

How do you make your solutions available?

Access to our solutions can be customized according to the user's needs and IT environment - whether via the cloud, on-premise or as 'software as a service'. When it comes to the cloud, the solutions run on our own 'Bosch IoT Cloud' as well as on clouds from other providers.

The software can be downloaded and tested as a package. This is particularly beneficial for SMEs that do not want to start with a large Industry 4.0 solution right away. Instead, they can start with small building blocks and expand the system on a modular basis as required.

Dr. Stefan Aßmann: "Where applications using OPC UA reach their limits in terms of costing, PPMP offers a lean alternative."

© Bosch

Nexeed relies on the PPMP standard, among others. Why do we need a new standard at all? How does it differ from others, such as OPC UA?

The Production Performance Management Protocol - PPMP for short - is an open industry standard for exchanging data in networked industry. PPMP can be used to transmit information from various sources - from machine status to power consumption - coupled with contextual information such as part or type number as a complete package to the higher-level software.

In contrast to other common formats, such as OPC UA, PPMP is lean and specially designed for simple communication between end devices and IT solutions. PPMP only specifies the content of the data and can be transmitted via established, lightweight communication standards such as http/REST, AMQP or MQTT.

If the machine uses PPMP, production-relevant information reaches the higher-level software without cost-intensive integration projects and without slowing down the process. This is precisely why PPMP is also ideal for older machines, which are often overwhelmed by more complex protocols. This means that expensive modernization measures or even new purchases can be avoided.

And what about OPC UA?

We support OPC UA and do not see PPMP as a competitor. Where it makes sense and taking into account the cost-benefit calculation in terms of hardware, implementation and operation, OPC UA should continue to be the preferred choice.

What does 'open source' mean in the case of PPMP?

As part of the Unide project, PPMP is available free of charge via the Eclipse open source community and can be used by anyone and developed further according to specific requirements. If required, developers can test a new component in isolation from ongoing operations, for example via a mobile app provided by Unide. Hardware that is sometimes very expensive and often not immediately available, such as a large machine tool, does not have to be available for testing.

However, as with all open source initiatives, only together can we further develop the protocol in such a way that it offers added value to everyone involved in the long term. The more hardware and software from different manufacturers supports the protocol, the easier it will be to implement new components in existing systems and processes that already communicate with PPMP. Companies can thus work on solutions at sender and receiver level completely independently of each other.

Interdisciplinary and cross-company projects such as the Eclipse testbed and the PPMP testbed have been set up to test the collaboration of different components and their possibilities.

To what extent has PPMP proven itself in practice?

PPMP already enables simple data exchange in various use cases within the Bosch plants and also at other companies. At SEG Automotive in the Hildesheim plant, for example, it ensures smooth communication between production stations from different manufacturers, various processes within the lines - such as packaging, pressing, precision welding and balancing - and the higher-level software. The transferred machine and production data is available to the user via the 'Nexeed Production Performance Manager'.