Broadcom Teams with Audi to Deliver Next-Generation IT-Based Factory Automation Powered by VMware Cloud Software

Broadcom Inc. announced that Audi’s Edge Cloud 4 Production (EC4P) initiative, powered by VMware Cloud software, is now live with the first virtual programmable logic controller (vPLC) at the Boellinger Hoefe plant in Germany where Audi manufactures the electric Audi e-tron GT car. As part of the EC4P initiative, the VMware Cloud Foundation® (VCF) private cloud platform helps Audi centralize the management and maintenance of dedicated industrial PC devices located on the factory floor, simplify security patching and risk management, and reduce environmental impact through the use of less hardware and fewer manual operations.

With EC4P, Audi is delivering smart manufacturing by bringing software-defined factory automation to the shop floor and bridging the gap between IT and OT.

«The use of virtual programmable logic controllers in the body shop is an important productivity leap in our 360factory strategy for efficient and data-driven manufacturing, » said Audi Board Member for Production Gerd Walker. «We want to bring the local cloud for production to all plants and leverage advances in digital control systems in the process.»