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64 PCB007 MAGAZINE I OCTOBER 2018 By offering third-party-enabled Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT)-based products and solutions, industrial au- tomation vendors have evolved to provide proprietary digi- tal platforms via the product-as-a-service (PaaS) business model. The trend of digitalization in end-user industries prompted automation vendors to invest in IIoT technologies across diverse applications, and they are now looking to integrate these technologies to complement conventional automation systems and give end users better control over the systems' functionality. person. He's a mechanical engineer. He just thinks differently," Mark Chassé added. "And we just talk about this stuff on the way home. It's exciting for me to be able to talk to somebody at home who understands what I'm doing." GreenSource's Competitive Advantage According to Stepinski, "This factory is de- signed for 10 years out. And 10 years out, we'll still be the only green factory in the U.S. We're years ahead of everybody in developing this technology." The implication is clear: If it takes the rest of the industry 10 years to retool and catch up, by that time, the staff at GreenSource will have 10 years of practical experience. The GreenSource staff will be masters of the process while ev- eryone else is still learning how to use their new equipment. And this thinking is trickling down. MacKinnon wrapped up our conversation, saying, "We just keep evolving. We have tons of opportunities to keep evolving our equip- ment and our processes. We want to be the leading PCB manufacturer. That's where I see us going." Jalbert's closing comments echoed Alex's sentiments. As a new hire, Jalbert noted, "It's great to have you all on-site and recognizing what we do here, especially on the environ- mental side. You go to these other companies and their recycling isn't quite there yet. I'm ex- cited to see the industry really grow into an en- vironmentally friendly atmosphere." It's not just the leap forward in equipment and design that makes GreenSource compet- itive, environmentally friendly, and—most of all—sustainable. It's the awareness at Green- Source, with their five-point plan for staff de- velopment, to develop their own young ex- perts as well. PCB007 "The advent of Industry 4.0 is disrupting the partner- ship ecosystem in industrial automation, with start-ups and independent software vendors (ISVs) partnering with automation vendors to develop digital capabilities and so- lutions," said Rohit Karthikeyan, Senior Research Analyst, Industrial Automation & Process Control at Frost & Sullivan. "Automation vendors will aim to standardize their portfo- lios through M&As and partnerships, and drive growth in their respective business segments. The consolidation of their IIoT portfolios will result in the upselling and cross- selling of automation solutions and create fresh revenue streams." Frost & Sullivan's recent analysis, Global Industrial Au- tomation Market Outlook, 2018, highlights the IIoT platform offerings of major automation companies and compares their products and services. It underlines the role of start- ups with niche capabilities in operational and information technologies in 2017. The analysis also details the market landscape of the key participants in process automation, hybrid automation, and discrete automation markets. (Source: Frost & Sullivan) Industrial Automation Vendors Consolidate Their Product Portfolios to Generate New Revenue Streams