ABB Introduces Automation Extended: Enabling Industrial Innovation with Continuity
February 4, 2026
ABB’s New Automation Extended: Enabling the Flexibility, Scalability & Efficiency Needed for the Next Era of Industrial Operations
- The Automation Extended program helps industries modernize distributed control systems without disruption by building on ABB’s proven platforms and safeguarding existing investments
- A modern, open and modular automation ecosystem enables advanced analytics, AI and IoT integration, allowing technologies to be adopted at customers’ pace without operational risk
- A separation-of-concerns architecture protects the core control while enabling new digital capabilities to be deployed at scale – without touching mission-critical operations
ABB has introduced its Automation Extended program, a strategic evolution of its distributed control systems (DCS), designed to help industries modernize without disruption. Building on ABB’s long-standing expertise with the world’s largest DCS installed base and vision in process automation, Automation Extended outlines how future automation capabilities can be introduced progressively – preserving system integrity while enabling the flexibility, scalability and efficiency needed for the next era of industrial operations.
Industrial operations today face volatile markets, cyber security challenges, regulatory pressures and a rapidly changing workforce. ABB’s Automation Extended addresses these realities by enabling innovation with agility and pace without disruption to production, supporting advanced analytics and IoT integration, and simplifying operations for diverse skill levels.
Automation Extended will positively impact the evolution of ABB technologies currently active in the cement industry including the ABB Ability-based Knowledge Manager and Expert Optimizer, Advanced Process Control (APC), Asset Performance Management (APM) and Condition Monitoring. Their technology expert team for the industry aims to deliver further customer resilience and growth in safety, productivity and sustainability through its enhanced automation suite. It comes as automation in the cement industry is on a journey towards more autonomous operations and this development forms the basis for more advanced decision support for operators, including with AI capabilities.
(1/3) Control room environment – industrial site. Image ABB
(2/3) Automation Extended helps industries modernize distributed control systems without disruption. Image ABB
(3/3) Modern, open and modular automation ecosystem enables advanced analytics, AI and IoT integration. Image ABB
Across industries, operators can continue to rely on trusted ABB systems such as ABB Ability System 800xA, ABB Ability Symphony Plus and ABB Freelance, while introducing new technologies progressively and without operational interruption. This approach provides a structured, low risk path to modernization, preserving continuity while enabling innovation.
In industries we serve – many operating large and complex infrastructures that deliver essential resources – our customers rely on modernization without disruption. Automation Extended delivers exactly that: bringing future-ready capabilities into the systems they know and trust, with security and interoperability at the core.
Peter Terwiesch, President, ABB’s Automation business area
The Automation Extended program is implemented through a modern, open and modular environment designed for interoperability, scalability and seamless integration across industrial domains. Based on separation of concerns principles, the automation ecosystem includes two distinct yet securely interconnected environments:
- The control environment, a software‑defined domain that ensures robust, reliable and deterministic control for critical processes.
- The digital environment, securely connected to the control layer, enabling advanced applications, edge intelligence and real‑time analytics. This space leverages artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning for decision support without disturbing proven control structures.
A single, unified and comprehensive automation service approach for ecosystem lifecycle management and optimization is applied for the management and maintenance of these diverse technological environments.
By integrating new technologies such as an Open Platform Communications Unified Architecture (OPC UA) backbone and a Cloud-Native Architecture for managing both environments – leveraging containerization, orchestration and modular services – the ecosystem enables a broad spectrum of enhancements. These range from proactively detecting and correcting process anomalies to optimizing maintenance strategies through continuous condition monitoring of critical assets, and elevating engineering with efficient modular approaches ready for deployment across diverse hardware platforms. This architecture delivers scalability and agility while ensuring robust performance.
Access to Automation Extended will be enabled through the next releases of ABB Ability System 800xA, ABB Ability Symphony Plus and ABB Freelance process automation systems.
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