GE Digital is a subsidiary of the American multinational conglomerate corporation General Electric. Headquartered in San Ramon, California, United States, the company provides software and IIoT services to industrial companies. GE Digital's primary focus is to provide industrial software and services in four key verticals:
Manufacturing applications serving discrete and process industries, as well as water utilities and economy-scale digital transformation projects
On July 1, 2019 Patrick Byrne joined GE as Chief Executive Officer of GE's Digital business. Mr. Byrne reports to GE Chairman and Chief Executive Officer H. Lawrence Culp Jr., and is responsible for leading GE's digital strategy. On June 3, 2020, Mr. Byrne's role was expanded to include VP Lean Transformation for GE.
History
1980-2010: Automation Software
1980: GE introduces the first Ethernet-enabled protection relay, a device that detects faults in systems.
1986: GE and Fanuc combine to create GE Fanuc Automation Corporation, which manufactures programmable logic controllers—one of the fundamental buildings blocks of what's come to be known as the Industrial Internet of Things.
1995: GE Fanuc launch first HMI/SCADA on a 32-bit system.
1996: Saturn Corp implement CIMPLICITY MMI, MES and SCADA solution.
1999: CIMPLICITY Saturn's implementation mention in Bill Gates book “Business @ the Speed of Thought: Succeeding in the Digital Economy”.
2001: GE Measurement and Control is established. It creates many types of sensors, instruments, and control systems for aerospace, the oil and gas industry, and power generation.
2002: GE Fanuc Automation Completes Acquisition of Intellution.
2003: GE Fanuc Automation Completes Acquisition of Mountain Systems.
2011 – 2015: Internal industrial software development
2011: GE establishes a software Center of Excellence focused on developing industrial software.
2013: GE develops Predix, its platform for IIoT applications, designed to help GE businesses transform their operations.
2015 – 2017: Launch of Predix
2016: GE launches Predix to the market, making its suite of applications available to industrial customers and partners globally. GE Digital also announced its acquisition of ServiceMax, to extend Predix and analytics across field service processes. This acquisition closed in January 2017.
2017: GE announced its intended sale of a majority stake of ServiceMax
2018: Plans for standalone business
2018: GE announces plans to establish a new, $1.2 billion independent company focused on building a comprehensive Industrial Internet of Things software portfolio comprising GE Digital, GE Power Digital and GE Grid Solutions.
2019-2020: Refining Focus
2019: GE announces that the APM teams and customer accounts previously part of BHGE will also become part of the ‘NewCo’ announced in 2018.
Following the GE Q3 October earnings call, it was announced that GE will retain its digital business. GE CEO Larry Culp stated: “I'd like to take a moment here to mention GE Digital. This business remains within the GE family, a growing and important P&L in its own right within corporate, which will serve customers in Power, Grid, Oil & Gas and select manufacturing industries.” Following the announcement, GE Digital CEO Pat Byrne reiterated in an Oct. 31 to customers that GE Digital's primary focus is to provide industrial software and services to four key markets: Electric Utilities and Telecommunications, Power generation ; Oil & Gas industry and related adjacent markets; and Select manufacturing applications and digital transformation projects.
Notable Projects & Collaborations
Digital Twin Blueprints
In March 2020, GE Digital announced the GE Digital Core Digital Twin Blueprint library had exceeded 300 types of industrial assets, used to manage 8000 customer assets remotely via its Industrial Managed Services center.
In October 2017, GE announced a wide-ranging software and professional services agreement with the New York State Power Authority to advance NYPA's goal to be the world's first fully digital utility. NYPA intends to work with GE to explore the digitalization of every aspect of its operations, from its 16 generating facilities and 1,400 miles of electricity transmission network, to the more than 1,000 public buildings it monitors throughout the state.
2012, Chery Jaguar Land Rover Automotive Co., Ltd. is a 50:50 independent joint venture formed between Chinese auto manufacturer Chery Automobile Co., Ltd. and UK auto manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover. With a factory in Changshu, China, CJLR produces 130,000 high-end luxury vehicles per year. The company uses GE Digital's Proficy MES in their engine manufacturing facility in Changshu, connecting more than 100,000 integration points on a real time basis across 500 machines on the shop floor.
On April 5, 2020, the Prime Minister of India asked citizens to turn off their lights for nine minutes in a show of solidarity in the fight against COVID-19. With meticulous planning by India's Power System Operation Corporation, national and state agencies, and supported by the GE Digital Grid Software team and Advanced Energy Management System solutions, the nation's power grid withstood a 31- gigawatt drop and recovery.
Shanghai Automobile Gear Works (SAGW)
China's SAGW is a subsidiary of state-owned SAIC Motor Corporation. The company manufactures, markets, and exports automotive transmissions and key components for passenger and commercial vehicles. With 7000 employees across 5 heating treatment lines, SAGW produces more than 3.8 million units annually. SAGW has transformed their manufacturing processes by using GE Digital's Proficy Plant Applications to create a "Process Digital Twin", improving equipment utilization by 20% and reducing inspection costs by 40%. The availability of real-time data has led to a 30% reduction in inventory and an 80% reduction in required storage space.
WACKER
WACKER Chemical Corporation is a global manufacturer of highly developed speciality chemicals. In Charleston, Tennessee, WACKER produces up to 20,000 tons of polycristaline silicon each year, a critical component for the solar photovoltaic and wider electronics sector. By law, critical assets, such as the pressure vessels WACKER uses in their manufacturing process, must be maintained every two years. WACKER's use of APM from GE Digital extends pressure vessel scheduled maintenance from every two years to a maximum of every 10 years, saving millions of dollars annually.
