Schneider Electric, the global leader in energy management and automation, today announced the launch of EcoStruxure™ Foxboro Software Defined Automation (SDA)—the industry’s first open, software-defined Distributed Control System (DCS).
The breakthrough solution combines the proven reliability of Foxboro with the agility of software-defined automation, enabling hybrid and process industry operators to modernize faster, reduce operational risk, and prepare their operations for the future without compromise.
Redefining the Role of DCS in Modern Industry
For decades, Foxboro DCS has been the operational “brain” of complex industrial environments, delivering reliable real-time control. However, today’s industrial landscape demands greater flexibility, faster innovation cycles, and lower upgrade costs.
EcoStruxure™ Foxboro SDA addresses these challenges by decoupling hardware from software, allowing customers to modernize at their own pace while protecting existing investments. The result is greater agility, simplified compliance, and improved cost efficiency—without sacrificing reliability or performance.
The Business Case for Open Automation
The importance of open industrial systems is underscored by recent global research conducted by Schneider Electric in collaboration with Omdia, which found that closed systems cost mid-sized industrial companies an average of 7.5% of annual revenue due to downtime, inefficiencies, and compliance retrofits.
Leadership Perspective
Commenting on the launch, Hany Fouda, Senior Vice President of Process Automation at Schneider Electric, said the introduction of EcoStruxure™ Foxboro SDA represents a defining moment for the industrial automation sector.
By embracing openness and a software-defined architecture, the solution enables customers to modernize without disruption—unlocking future-ready capabilities while safeguarding long-term investments and accelerating digital transformation.
Designed Around Real Customer Challenges
Developed in response to customer needs—including aging infrastructure, rising operational costs, and increasing pressure to “do more with less”—Foxboro SDA simplifies workflows, accelerates insight generation, and supports sustainable performance improvements across the plant lifecycle.
Key Capabilities and Benefits
EcoStruxure™ Foxboro SDA delivers a range of advanced features, including:
Open, Software-Defined Architecture: Decouples software from hardware to enable vendor independence, interoperability, and flexible system design
Cybersecure and Future-Ready: Built on secure-by-design principles and compliant with IEC 62443-3-3, supporting IT/OT convergence, AI/ML integration, and Industry 4.0 readiness
Simplified Operations and Lower Costs: Reduces CapEx and OpEx, minimizes downtime, avoids obsolescence, and enables predictive maintenance
Built for Digital Continuity
As the industry’s first software-defined DCS, Foxboro SDA is powered by EcoStruxure Automation Expert and provides a validated architecture for distributed control systems. It ensures digital continuity by maintaining connected, consistent data across all stages of the plant lifecycle—from design and engineering to operations and maintenance.
This enables automated workflows, improved product quality, and seamless integration with analytics platforms to support smarter, real-time business decisions.
Industry Validation
Craig Resnick, Vice President at ARC Advisory Group, described the launch as a major milestone in process automation, noting that the decoupling of control logic from hardware gives manufacturers the agility to scale, adapt, and simplify operations while reducing maintenance costs and protecting legacy investments.
A Strategic Enabler for Digital Transformation
With built-in cybersecurity, open standards, and a future-ready upgrade path, EcoStruxure™ Foxboro SDA empowers manufacturers to modernize on their own terms. More than a control system, it is a strategic platform engineered for agility, powered by data, and designed to support the next generation of industrial automation.