Why the “As-a-Service” Model is Changing Automation Technology Purchases

If you’re not familiar yet with the as-a-service business model, what it essentially means is that rather than purchasing a particular product outright, and maintaining and upgrading it yourself, instead you pay a monthly or annual fee for access to that technology. And in that case, the provider handles all the maintenance and upgrades to ensure you’re running the most up-to-date version of that technology. Now, you’re probably well aware of the software-as-a-service model, which is often referred to as SaaS. You may very well already be using it in your plant for one or more of the software applications used to run your production operations. I say this because nearly every provider of production software, from SCADA to MES to ERP, offer a cloud-based as-a-service version of their software.