Industrial Automation and Wireless IoT - 5th Edition

The Installed Base of Wireless Devices in Industrial Automation Reached 56.5 Million in 2023

This study investigates the worldwide market for wireless IoT applications in industrial automation. The installed base of active wireless IoT devices in the industrial automation industry is forecasted to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 14.3% from 56.5 million units at the end of 2023 to 110.3 million units by 2028. Get up to date with the latest information about vendors, products and markets.

Highlights from the report:

• 360-degree overview of the IoT ecosystem in the industrial automation industry.
• Insights from 30 new executive interviews with market leading companies.
• Comprehensive overview of the value chain and key applications.
• In-depth analysis of market trends and key developments.
• Detailed profiles of 79 key players in this market.
• Updated market forecasts by technology, region and equipment category lasting until 2028.

Wireless technologies are integrated into a wide range of devices that can be used throughout an automation system, from the enterprise level all the way to the control and field levels. The devices can be broadly divided into two segments: automation equipment and network equipment. In the automation equipment segment, high-volume product categories featuring wireless communications capability include instrumentation such as industrial sensors, as well as wireless I/O and field devices that connect to sensors, actuators and machines. Important product categories within the network equipment segment are wireless access points, gateways, routers and switches.

The analyst estimates that annual shipments of wireless devices for industrial automation applications including both network and automation equipment reached 10.7 million units worldwide in 2023, accounting for approximately 9% of all new connected nodes. Growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12.3%, annual shipments are expected to reach 19.1 million in 2028. The installed base of wireless devices in industrial automation applications is forecasted to grow from an estimated 56.5 million connections at the end of 2023 to 110.3 million connected devices by 2028.

The adoption of wireless solutions in industrial environments is often a gradual process and an initial deployment typically comprises clusters of wireless devices connected to an existing wired network. Although wired networking solutions are still predominantly used for industrial communications between sensors, controllers and systems, wireless solutions are widely used as wire replacements in hard-to-reach or hazardous areas, on moving machine parts and on portable equipment. Standardised wireless technologies such as WiFi, IEEE 802.15.4 and Bluetooth have advanced to become the leading wireless technologies for industrial applications. Emerging technologies based on 5G broadens the addressable market for wireless communications as it allows for deployments where requirements related to bandwidth, latency or capacity cannot be fulfilled today.

Automation equipment such as wireless instrumentation is offered by many large automation vendors as part of complete systems for automation of industrial processes, but also by specialised providers. Emerson became the first company to market WirelessHART products in 2008 and has today an installed base of over 10 million wireless pressure transmitters worldwide. Major wireless instrumentation vendors further include Yokogawa and Honeywell, which both provide field devices based on the wireless technology ISA100.11a. Other major industrial automation vendors that provide wireless field devices include ABB, Endress+Hauser, Hitachi, OMRON, Pepperl+Fuchs, Schneider Electric and Siemens. Wireless I/O and field devices are also offered by a diverse range of players that are primarily active in the industrial communications and control markets. These include for example Advantech, Belden, Banner Engineering, Cisco, MultiTech, OleumTech, Phoenix Contact, Steute, Wago and Weidmüller.

Major providers of wired industrial network equipment also offer wireless solutions to enable customers to monitor and control devices wirelessly in parts of the plant that are normally not connected to the control room due to accessibility or wiring costs. These include Siemens, Cisco, Belden, Moxa and Phoenix Contact, which all offer industrial wireless devices such as routers, gateways and access points along their wired solutions. Additional providers of industrial WLAN devices include small to mid-size vendors such as Advantech, Ependion, Wago, HMS Networks, Red Lion Controls, Nexcom, INSYS Microelectronics, Lantronix, Welotec and Teltonika Networks.

Cellular and unlicensed proprietary radio solutions are typically used for data acquisition and backhaul communications in distributed automation applications. The largest providers of cellular IoT gateways and routers in the industrial space include Cisco, Semtech, Digi International, Moxa, GE Vernova, HMS Networks, Advantech, Robustel, InHand Networks and Teltonika Networks. Vendors of proprietary radio modems are GE Vernova, FreeWave Technologies, Banner Engineering and Schneider Electric.

The report answers the following questions:

• Which are the leading wireless IoT solution providers for industrial automation applications?
• What offerings are available from device vendors, platform vendors and service providers?
• Which trends and developments are shaping the industrial automation market?
• How will the market evolve in Europe, North America and Asia-Pacific?
• What are the recent merger and acquisition activities in this market?
• What are the key features of industrial software and IIoT platforms today?
• How will connectivity strategies in industrial automation evolve in the future?

Who should read this report?

Industrial Automation and Wireless IoT is the foremost source of information about the adoption of wireless connectivity in the industrial automation sector. Whether you are a solution provider, device vendor, industrial automation player, telecom operator, investor, consultant, or government agency, you will gain valuable insights from this in-depth research.