GE has announced plans to enter the cloud services market with Predix Cloud. Designed specifically for industrial data and analytics, this platform-as-a-service (PaaS) can capture and analyze the volume, velocity and variety of machine data within a highly secure, industrial-strength cloud environment.
Predix Cloud will enable developers to create, deploy and manage applications and services for industry. With US$4 billion in software revenues in 2014 and projected software revenues of $6 billion in 2015, GE continues to grow its investment in software.
“Cloud computing has enabled incredible innovation across the consumer world,” said Jeffrey Immelt, CEO of GE. “A more digital hospital means better, faster healthcare. A more digital manufacturing plant means more products are made faster. A more digital oil company means better asset management and more productivity at every well.”
By combining GE’s domain expertise in information technology and operational technology, GE’s Predix Cloud will deliver advanced tools like asset connectivity, machine data support and industrial-grade security and compliance.
"Like GE, Pitney Bowes is in the midst of its own physical and digital transformation," said Roger Pilc, chief innovation officer, Pitney Bowes. "With our APM (asset performance management) apps running on Predix Cloud, we're able to extract and analyze data from our assets faster than ever, and use that insight to drive real business outcomes for Pitney Bowes and its clients, including lower operational costs, greater productivity and output and higher service levels."
The Industrial Internet is generating data twice as quickly as any other sector. With investment in infrastructure expected to top $60 trillion over the next 15 years, the number of devices connected to the Internet will continue to swell. Built for Predix, the cloud platform for the Industrial Internet, Predix Cloud is designed to provide a highly secure infrastructure for this next phase of growth, which will generate a new level of insight, APM capabilities and innovation in the developer community.
The success of the Industrial Internet depends on a collaborative ecosystem of partners. GE’s Predix Cloud will also run on other cloud fabrics if required by a customer. Predix Cloud uses Pivotal's Cloud Foundry to help with application development, deployment and operations.
GE businesses will begin migrating their software and analytics to the Predix Cloud in 4Q 2015, and the service will be commercially available to customers and other industrial businesses for managing data and applications on Predix Cloud in 2016.
What makes the Predix Cloud different:
Image: Cloud network/GE