Multi-Vendor Modular Cells Advance Interoperability in Factory Automation

Leading automation suppliers and standards organizations have announced new initiatives to enable plug-and-play modular automation cells across multiple vendors, aiming to advance interoperability in factory automation. At Hannover Messe 2026 and in recent consortium reports, collaborations involving OPC UA, IEC 61499, Margo, VDA 5050, and the Asset Administration Shell (AAS) are gaining traction as orchestration frameworks for modular cells with standardized interfaces.

Background

Efforts to achieve interoperability in modular automation aim to eliminate vendor lock-in and increase flexibility in assembling multi-vendor factory cells. Standards such as IEC 61499 (distributed control), OPC UA (data modeling), and VDA 5050 (mobile robot orchestration) have been developed to facilitate compatibility. Software-defined manufacturing (SDM) emphasizes open, modular hardware and virtualized control platforms, reducing reliance on proprietary stacks. Industry consortia and research partnerships are reinforcing consensus through common data models, interface specifications, and digital twin integration.

Details

Margo, introduced by the Linux Foundation in April 2024, specifies interoperability for edge applications, devices, and orchestration. Key contributors include Siemens, ABB, Schneider Electric, Rockwell Automation, Capgemini, and Microsoft^{1IOT Tales}. In January 2026, the MODUL4R project utilized IEC 61499 to establish plug-and-produce automation and modular simulation. The initiative improved cross-vendor communication and supported virtual commissioning in a Swiss smart factory^{2News & Press Releases — Modular}.

VDA 5050, a standard for orchestrating autonomous mobile robots (AMRs), expanded its footprint through SYNAOS' integration of MiR using a VDA 5050 adapter, demonstrated at LogiMAT 2025 in Stuttgart. The system enables centralized management of multi-vendor AMR fleets^{3MiR joins SYNAOS' Partner Ecosystem: Driving Interoperability in Mobile Robotics with VDA 5050 - TechnologieBox}.

At the 6th IFSA Winter Conference (February 2026), researchers presented modular, interoperable architectures for autonomous, digital-twin-enabled manufacturing, utilizing industrial dataspaces and aligning with frameworks such as Catena-X and ADE^{4Automation, Robotics}. The Industrial Digital Twin Association highlighted the Asset Administration Shell (AAS) as a digital twin model built on standardized submodels, including IEC 61360 and VDI 2770, to enable machine-readable interoperability across product lifecycles^{5Interoperability as a success factor: The}.

Implementations of software-defined manufacturing (SDM) are increasing. Siemens and CODESYS have released virtual programmable logic controllers (vPLCs), while the Open Process Automation Forum (OPAF) continues to advance the Open Process Automation Standard (OPAS) for end-to-end SDM infrastructure built on open standards^{6Automation Interoperability with Software-Defined Manufacturing | Automation World}.

Outlook

Manufacturers are preparing to pilot interoperability frameworks that combine standards such as OPC UA, IEC 61499, VDA 5050, AAS, and edge orchestration protocols like Margo. This convergence enables modular, software-defined automation cells integrated with digital-twin ecosystems and scalable orchestration. Ongoing challenges include integrating legacy systems, aligning enterprise and control infrastructure, and reconciling standard compliance with vendor-specific features.