Advantages of Using OPC Router for End Users

In all the different sectors of industry or infrastructure, there is a progressive integration between the production process and other systems (CMMS, ERPs, IoT platforms, batch or traceability management systems, …). However, at the time they were developed, none of these tools were designed to integrate with each other. In this scenario of difficult data exchange between all the systems involved in an industry or infrastructure, OPC Router appears.

OPC Router is the tool that allows the acquisition and exchange of information from multiple different systems in a bidirectional manner. But, what specific benefits does an end user have from using OPC Router instead of custom solutions? In this article, we summarize the most important points:

1. Covers existing needs

Without a doubt, the great value of OPC Router lies in the fact that it solves an existing need and that it is increasingly in demand.

The fusion of IT and OT, the communication of process with maintenance, the massive historization of data, the application of preventive and predictive actions, the calculation of advanced indicators or the deployment of data analysis tools necessarily need a constant flow of information between the different systems and process. OPC Router is the gateway that enables the integration of these initiatives, from the simplest to the most complex.

2. Know your system better

The fact that it is a solution with a visual interface allows you to easily understand what the tool is doing and what its results are.

In the same way, its learning curve is very fast, so that the end user who wishes to do so can make changes or entire projects by himself, gaining autonomy and speed in operations.

3. Standardize avoiding own developments

The fact of using a standard tool instead of a custom development has multiple advantages, one of the main ones is that it allows the end user not to be linked to the engineering that made the custom solution. This is highly recommended since a custom development is not designed to be scalable, modifiable or support changes in the OS, among many other possible problems that may appear.

OPC Router is a product with everything this entails, updates, support team, bug resolution, patch development, expansion of functionalities, … In this way, an end user can be much more secure when choosing a solution such as OPC Router instead of one or several own integrations.

4. Scalable

OPC Router has multiple plug-ins, so that all connections can be centralized in a single tool.

Unlike a custom development, the fact of using it for a type of data exchange does not limit it to future projects. Today it can be used for an OPC UA – MQTT communication and tomorrow add without any complication or risk another OPC DA – SAP ERP communication.

5. Availability of pilots or PoC

OPC Router can work at 100% of functionalities without installing any license. The only limitation is a Runtime time of 2 hours, being able to re-start the service as many times as desired. For example, without having to make any type of investment, you can check its operation, the possible architectures or if the system requirements are met.

Without having entered a deep technical level, it is easily observable that all these characteristics have beneficial repercussions in the day to day of a final client at all levels. In short, OPC Router is a powerful tool that guarantees and standardizes something as critical and necessary as communications between different systems.

If you want to know a little more about how OPC Router works, get to know it here