--- title: The blind spot of digitalization description: test Test image: https://vion.swiss/hubfs/20944389.jpg --- [Skip to content](https://vion.swiss/en-de/vion-blog/der-blinde-fleck-der-digitalisierung#main-content) [Request a demo](https://vion.swiss/kontaktformular?hsLang=en-de) [![](https://vion.swiss/hs-fs/hubfs/Bildschirmfoto%202025-09-18%20um%2023.45.29.png?width=72&height=182&name=Bildschirmfoto%202025-09-18%20um%2023.45.29.png)](https://vion.swiss/home?hsLang=en-de) - [Home](https://vion.swiss/en-de/home?hsLang=en-de) - [Industries](https://vion.swiss/en-de/branchen?hsLang=en-de) - [Partners](https://vion.swiss/en-de/partner?hsLang=en-de) - [About us](https://vion.swiss/en-de/unternehmen?hsLang=en-de) - [Insights](https://vion.swiss/en-de/vion-blog) - [Contact](https://vion.swiss/en-de/kontakt?hsLang=en-de) - [English - Germany](https://vion.swiss/en-de/vion-blog/der-blinde-fleck-der-digitalisierung) - [Deutsch](https://vion.swiss/vion-blog/der-blinde-fleck-der-digitalisierung) En Dec 18, 2025 # The blind spot of digitalization [Benjamin Friedrich](https://vion.swiss/en-de/vion-blog/author/benjamin-friedrich) ![](https://vion.swiss/hubfs/20944389.jpg) We live in the **age of sensors**: temperature, electricity, pressure, vibration - everything is measured, everywhere. But while **data streams are growing**, the **impact** remains **low**. Industry has learned to observe, not to act. Around **70 - 80 % of all recorded data** remains unused. It is collected, visualized and disappears into the nirvana of dashboards. If a **transformer station overheats** or a **cooling system** runs **inefficiently**, a warning appears on the screen. But **alerts are not a reaction**. According to **Gartner**, over **60% of all alerts** in industrial control centers are ignored: too many, too unclear, too late. Between alarm and action lies the difference between **stability and standstill**. The future of industrial control systems therefore lies not in **more data**, but in **the ability to make decisions**. Systems must not only see, they must **react. Comprehensibly, reliably, in real time**. --- ### **Who is already acting** --- #### **ABB Ability** ABB Ability is ABB's **industrial IoT platform**, which is used worldwide in energy, manufacturing and infrastructure companies. In Germany, for example, grid operator **Hamburg Energie** uses an ABB Ability-based solution to **automatically compensate for** voltage fluctuations from decentralized PV feed-ins . Sensors in substations report temperature and current data in real time to the platform, which then**shifts loads or curtails feed-ins** **without human intervention** . In Finland and the Netherlands, ABB Ability is being used in **smart grid pilot projectsto autonomously stabilize** medium-voltage grids . The edge component **ABB Ability Edge Industrial Gateway** connects low and medium-voltage devices to the cloud, while the **ABB Ability Genix** analysis suite evaluates machine states and grid parameters. In a test network in **Helsinki**, the **response time** to critical overloads was reduced from several minutes to **less than 10 seconds**. Energy loss was reduced by **12%**. This combination of **edge responsiveness** and **cloud analytics** shows how energy infrastructure is evolving **from monitoring to autonomous action**. --- #### **Schneider Electric EcoStruxure™** EcoStruxure™ is Schneider's **multi-layered IoT architecture** that **connects building, energy and manufacturing systems**. This is particularly tangible **in the retail sector**: EcoStruxure controls the entire **refrigeration and lighting technology** in over **1,000 Carrefour stores**. Sensors report energy consumption in real time, while **control algorithms** dynamically adjust the load distribution, for example by **starting up** refrigeration units **at different times to** avoid peak loads. The result: **up to 15 % less energy consumption** and **25 % less maintenance** because faults can be detected early. The platform is also used in **data centers** and **office buildings**: At the **Boston Scientific headquarters**, it ensures the automatic coordination of air conditioning, ventilation and lighting. A **digital twin** simulates the building's performance and makes recommendations, which has**reduced CO₂ emissions by 120 tons per year**. EcoStruxure thus exemplifies the **combination of real-time monitoring, predictive control and energy efficiency** at company level. --- #### **OpenRemote (Open Source)** OpenRemote is used in several European cities as an **open IoT platform for urban infrastructure**. In **Amsterdam** and **Rotterdam**, the system controls **street lighting, water pumps and air quality sensors** in a decentralized manner. The framework runs on local **edge servers in city districts** and **independently** regulates parameters such as light intensity or pump cycles as soon as sensor values fluctuate. The platform combines **open standards** (e.g. MQTT, BACnet, Modbus) with a **graphical control engine** that enables municipal utilities to define their own automation systems. In Rotterdam, for example, **rainwater management**has been **digitized**: Filling levels of storage basins are recorded, and the system **automatically** opens or closes **valves** during heavy rainfall to prevent flooding. The result: **25% fewer maintenance calls** and **faster drainage** in critical phases. OpenRemote shows how municipal infrastructure can be designed to**be smart, efficient and retrofitted**without proprietary systems. --- #### **Siemens MindSphere + Industrial Edge** Siemens combines **cloud analytics** and **local responsiveness**with **MindSphere** and **Industrial Edge** . A particularly tangible example is the **BMW plant in Regensburg**, where several hundred machines run via Industrial Edge nodes that **record production data in real time and detect anomalies**. If a welding station overheats, for example, the system intervenes locally, **lowers parameters** and simultaneously reports the intervention to the cloud for documentation. **Downtimes** have been **reduced by 30%** and **the line's energy consumption by 10%**. Another project is underway at the **Enel Group in Italy**, where Siemens is networking **medium-voltage systems** with Edge controllers and MindSphere **in order to plan maintenance in advance**. This hybrid architecture - **Edge for real-time, Cloud for evaluation** - creates a **system that is capable of learning and acting**, which not only collects data but also **translates it directly into action**. --- #### **Honeywell Forge** Honeywell Forge is a **cloud-based IoT platform** that is used in **large industrial plants, airports and production environments.** This is particularly tangible in the example of **Toronto Pearson Airport**, where Forge monitors all **HVAC systems, lighting, escalators and energy distribution**. **AI-supported analyses** detect anomalies at an early stage before faults occur. The platform **automatically suggests optimizations** and can independently adjust processes, such as air circulation in departure areas when passenger flows fluctuate. The result: **20 % less energy consumption** and **30 % faster troubleshooting**. In industry, Forge is used by **Phillips 66**and others in refineries **to permanently monitor plant conditions**; sensor and process data are fed into **predictive models** that **automatically plan maintenance work**. Honeywell Forge impressively demonstrates how **critical infrastructures** become**more resilient through data-driven action and with a clearly measurable return on efficiency**. --- #### **Hitachi Lumada** Lumada is Hitachi's **digital innovation platform** and is used in industry and infrastructure in **Japan, Europe and the USA.** In Japan, Hitachi is working with **Tohoku Electric Power Company** on a project in which **sensor and operating data from substations is analyzed** and automatically translated into **load management measures**. This allows **grid fluctuations to be balanced out in real time**. In the city of **Yokohama**, Lumada is being used in the **Smart City programto coordinate energy flows from solar systems, batteries and consumers**. There, the platform brings together local energy markets, **prioritizes self-consumption** and optimizes grid loads. Energy demand from the main grid has fallen by **up to 18%**. In industry, Hitachi uses Lumada in its own production facilities: At **Hitachi Metals, production data, material flows and maintenance cycles** are **linked centrally** - downtimes fell by **30%**. Lumada thus stands for a system that **forms new decision-making intelligence**from **data and experience - open, scalable and based on partnership**. --- These examples make it clear: The industry is moving in **stages**. Every system shows progress, but no system solves the entire transition from **observation to action** in a consistent, auditable and manufacturer-independent manner. Many of the major providers - **ABB, Schneider, Siemens, Honeywell** - offer productized platforms, but they are mostly used as part of **larger projects**. The architecture is modular, but not lightweight. Smaller customers need **integrators** to activate or customize functions. Systems such as **OpenRemote** and **Hitachi Lumada**, on the other hand, are more open, partly **open source** or API-based, but are technically demanding and can hardly be used independently by operators without IT teams. This is where the **gap**becomes apparent : the industry has productized tools, but **no product logic:** platforms for specialists, no products for operators. This is exactly where **VION**comes in as a **fully-fledged but intuitive platform** . It combines the **depth of industrial systems** with **the simplicity of an end product**. Decisions where they are neededwithout **a project career, without a specialist department**. --- Many of the platforms mentioned originate from the world of large industrial projects: comprehensive, powerful, but often costly to introduce. Nevertheless, a **trend is emerging**: providers are opening up their systems, creating **modular entry points** and lowering the hurdles for smaller operators. Nevertheless, the market remains **strongly integration-driven**, as most solutions are designed for **corporate groups and complex networks.** There is room for **new approaches**here : lightweight platforms that **do not require a large-scale project** but can still intervene deeply in the control system. **VION** operates in precisely this field - a **decision-making level** that combines**industrial scalewith the flexibility of a product.** One gateway, one connection, one interface. **Decisions where they are needed. Without months of rollout, without an IT department.** --- ### **From vision to action** The challenge is not to replace existing systems, but to makethem **retrofittable and capable of making decisions.** This is where the next development leap lies: 1. **Sets of rules instead of scripts:** logics that adapt to operating states. 2. **Edge intelligence:** systems react locally, even without a cloud connection. 3. **Auditability:** every reaction is documented and traceable. 4. **Interoperability:** manufacturer-independent integration of existing sensors. Examples from the energy sector show the potential: grid operators in Scandinavia are automating **transformer stations using sets of rules** that control voltage, temperature and load shedding locally. This reduces the response time to grid fluctuations from minutes to seconds. In **Switzerland**, a supplier uses smart control modules to **activate battery buffers in real time without human intervention** as soon as the grid becomes unstable. The technological direction is clear: humans remain the decision-makers, but systems take over **thinking in milliseconds**. **Industry 4.0** was the dream of networked machines. **Industry 5.0** is the reality of networked decisions. --- ### **Conclusion** *The blind spot of digitalization is not a **lack of sensor technology**, but a **lack of reaction**. The future of industrial infrastructure is where **systems act, not just report**.* *In this landscape, **VION** is positioning itself as a new **decision-making level for operators of critical infrastructure**. The platform combines **sensor technology, rules and audit capability** into a single unit: locally responsive, centrally traceable.* *Unlike traditional IoT solutions, VION does not provide monitoring, but **operational reliability and decisions in milliseconds, documented in the audit log.*** *This makes everyday industrial life controllable **not through more data, but through greater clarity** .* ##### Spread the word - [Share this blog post on Twitter](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=I+found+this+interesting+blog+post&url=https://vion.swiss/en-de/vion-blog/der-blinde-fleck-der-digitalisierung) - [Share this blog post on Facebook](http://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=https://vion.swiss/en-de/vion-blog/der-blinde-fleck-der-digitalisierung) - [Share this blog post on LinkedIn](http://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https://vion.swiss/en-de/vion-blog/der-blinde-fleck-der-digitalisierung) ![](https://vion.swiss/hubfs/Bilder%20ohne%20Wasserzeichen/ecocoach_BP-2.jpg) ##### [Benjamin Friedrich](https://vion.swiss/en-de/vion-blog/author/benjamin-friedrich) Benjamin Friedrich ist Geschäftsführer von VION. Er entwickelt Strategien für digitale Infrastruktur, Energieeffizienz und Automatisierung. Sein Fokus liegt auf Plattformlogik und der Frage, wie Technologie die Wettbewerbsfähigkeit und Entwicklung europäischer Märkte stärkt. - [Share this blog post on LinkedIn](https://linkedin.com/in/subkommunikation) Kontakt ## Genug gelesen? Lassen Sie uns sprechen! ![ecocoach_BP-1](https://vion.swiss/hubfs/Bilder%20ohne%20Wasserzeichen/ecocoach_BP-1.jpg) - [Home](https://vion.swiss/en-de/home) - [Industries](https://vion.swiss/en-de/branchen) - [Partners](https://vion.swiss/en-de/partner) - [About us](https://vion.swiss/en-de/unternehmen) - [Insights](https://vion.swiss/en-de/vion-blog) - [Contact](https://vion.swiss/en-de/kontakt) VION is a brand of ecocoach AG  © 2025. All rights reserved Ready to get more out of your infrastructure? [Request a demo](https://vion.swiss/kontaktformular?hsLang=en-de) More insights. More ideas. Follow us for updates on smart infrastructure and connected systems. ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "BlogPosting", "headline": "The blind spot of digitalization", "image": [ "https://146866766.fs1.hubspotusercontent-eu1.net/hubfs/146866766/20944389.jpg" ], "description": "

We live in the age of sensors: temperature, electricity, pressure, vibration - everything is measured, everywhere. But while data streams are growing, the impact remains low. Industry has learned to observe, not to act. Around 70 - 80 % of all recorded data remains unused. It is collected, visualized and disappears into the nirvana of dashboards.

If a transformer station overheats or a cooling system runs inefficiently, a warning appears on the screen. But alerts are not a reaction. According to Gartner, over 60% of all alerts in industrial control centers are ignored: too many, too unclear, too late. Between alarm and action lies the difference between stability and standstill.

The future of industrial control systems therefore lies not in more data, but in the ability to make decisions. Systems must not only see, they must react. Comprehensibly, reliably, in real time.

Who is already acting

ABB Ability

ABB Ability is ABB's industrial IoT platform, which is used worldwide in energy, manufacturing and infrastructure companies. In Germany, for example, grid operator Hamburg Energie uses an ABB Ability-based solution to automatically compensate for voltage fluctuations from decentralized PV feed-ins . Sensors in substations report temperature and current data in real time to the platform, which thenshifts loads or curtails feed-ins without human intervention . In Finland and the Netherlands, ABB Ability is being used in smart grid pilot projectsto autonomously stabilize medium-voltage grids .
The edge component ABB Ability Edge Industrial Gateway connects low and medium-voltage devices to the cloud, while the ABB Ability Genix analysis suite evaluates machine states and grid parameters.
In a test network in Helsinki, the response time to critical overloads was reduced from several minutes to less than 10 seconds. Energy loss was reduced by 12%.
This combination of edge responsiveness and cloud analytics shows how energy infrastructure is evolving from monitoring to autonomous action.

Schneider Electric EcoStruxure™

EcoStruxure™ is Schneider's multi-layered IoT architecture that connects building, energy and manufacturing systems. This is particularly tangible in the retail sector: EcoStruxure controls the entire refrigeration and lighting technology in over 1,000 Carrefour stores. Sensors report energy consumption in real time, while control algorithms dynamically adjust the load distribution, for example by starting up refrigeration units at different times to avoid peak loads.
The result: up to 15 % less energy consumption and 25 % less maintenance because faults can be detected early.
The platform is also used in data centers and office buildings: At the Boston Scientific headquarters, it ensures the automatic coordination of air conditioning, ventilation and lighting. A digital twin simulates the building's performance and makes recommendations, which hasreduced CO₂ emissions by 120 tons per year.
EcoStruxure thus exemplifies the combination of real-time monitoring, predictive control and energy efficiency at company level.

OpenRemote (Open Source)

OpenRemote is used in several European cities as an open IoT platform for urban infrastructure. In Amsterdam and Rotterdam, the system controls street lighting, water pumps and air quality sensors in a decentralized manner. The framework runs on local edge servers in city districts and independently regulates parameters such as light intensity or pump cycles as soon as sensor values fluctuate.
The platform combines open standards (e.g. MQTT, BACnet, Modbus) with a graphical control engine that enables municipal utilities to define their own automation systems.
In Rotterdam, for example, rainwater managementhas been digitized: Filling levels of storage basins are recorded, and the system automatically opens or closes valves during heavy rainfall to prevent flooding.
The result: 25% fewer maintenance calls and faster drainage in critical phases.
OpenRemote shows how municipal infrastructure can be designed tobe smart, efficient and retrofittedwithout proprietary systems.

Siemens MindSphere + Industrial Edge

Siemens combines cloud analytics and local responsivenesswith MindSphere and Industrial Edge . A particularly tangible example is the BMW plant in Regensburg, where several hundred machines run via Industrial Edge nodes that record production data in real time and detect anomalies. If a welding station overheats, for example, the system intervenes locally, lowers parameters and simultaneously reports the intervention to the cloud for documentation. Downtimes have been reduced by 30% and the line's energy consumption by 10%.
Another project is underway at the Enel Group in Italy, where Siemens is networking medium-voltage systems with Edge controllers and MindSphere in order to plan maintenance in advance.
This hybrid architecture - Edge for real-time, Cloud for evaluation - creates a system that is capable of learning and acting, which not only collects data but also translates it directly into action.

Honeywell Forge

Honeywell Forge is a cloud-based IoT platform that is used in large industrial plants, airports and production environments. This is particularly tangible in the example of Toronto Pearson Airport, where Forge monitors all HVAC systems, lighting, escalators and energy distribution.
AI-supported analyses detect anomalies at an early stage before faults occur. The platform automatically suggests optimizations and can independently adjust processes, such as air circulation in departure areas when passenger flows fluctuate.
The result: 20 % less energy consumption and 30 % faster troubleshooting.
In industry, Forge is used by Phillips 66and others in refineries to permanently monitor plant conditions; sensor and process data are fed into predictive models that automatically plan maintenance work.
Honeywell Forge impressively demonstrates how critical infrastructures becomemore resilient through data-driven action and with a clearly measurable return on efficiency.

Hitachi Lumada

Lumada is Hitachi's digital innovation platform and is used in industry and infrastructure in Japan, Europe and the USA. In Japan, Hitachi is working with Tohoku Electric Power Company on a project in which sensor and operating data from substations is analyzed and automatically translated into load management measures. This allows grid fluctuations to be balanced out in real time.
In the city of Yokohama, Lumada is being used in the Smart City programto coordinate energy flows from solar systems, batteries and consumers. There, the platform brings together local energy markets, prioritizes self-consumption and optimizes grid loads. Energy demand from the main grid has fallen by up to 18%.
In industry, Hitachi uses Lumada in its own production facilities: At Hitachi Metals, production data, material flows and maintenance cycles are linked centrally - downtimes fell by 30%.
Lumada thus stands for a system that forms new decision-making intelligencefrom data and experience - open, scalable and based on partnership.

These examples make it clear: The industry is moving in stages. Every system shows progress, but no system solves the entire transition from observation to action in a consistent, auditable and manufacturer-independent manner.

Many of the major providers - ABB, Schneider, Siemens, Honeywell - offer productized platforms, but they are mostly used as part of larger projects. The architecture is modular, but not lightweight. Smaller customers need integrators to activate or customize functions. Systems such as OpenRemote and Hitachi Lumada, on the other hand, are more open, partly open source or API-based, but are technically demanding and can hardly be used independently by operators without IT teams.

This is where the gapbecomes apparent : the industry has productized tools, but no product logic: platforms for specialists, no products for operators.
This is exactly where VIONcomes in as a fully-fledged but intuitive platform . It combines the depth of industrial systems with the simplicity of an end product. Decisions where they are neededwithout a project career, without a specialist department.

Many of the platforms mentioned originate from the world of large industrial projects: comprehensive, powerful, but often costly to introduce. Nevertheless, a trend is emerging: providers are opening up their systems, creating modular entry points and lowering the hurdles for smaller operators. Nevertheless, the market remains strongly integration-driven, as most solutions are designed for corporate groups and complex networks.

There is room for new approacheshere : lightweight platforms that do not require a large-scale project but can still intervene deeply in the control system.
VION operates in precisely this field - a decision-making level that combinesindustrial scalewith the flexibility of a product. One gateway, one connection, one interface.
Decisions where they are needed. Without months of rollout, without an IT department.

From vision to action

The challenge is not to replace existing systems, but to makethem retrofittable and capable of making decisions. This is where the next development leap lies:

  1. Sets of rules instead of scripts: logics that adapt to operating states.

  2. Edge intelligence: systems react locally, even without a cloud connection.

  3. Auditability: every reaction is documented and traceable.

  4. Interoperability: manufacturer-independent integration of existing sensors.

Examples from the energy sector show the potential: grid operators in Scandinavia are automating transformer stations using sets of rules that control voltage, temperature and load shedding locally. This reduces the response time to grid fluctuations from minutes to seconds. In Switzerland, a supplier uses smart control modules to activate battery buffers in real time without human intervention as soon as the grid becomes unstable.

The technological direction is clear: humans remain the decision-makers, but systems take over thinking in milliseconds.
Industry 4.0 was the dream of networked machines. Industry 5.0 is the reality of networked decisions.

Conclusion

The blind spot of digitalization is not a lack of sensor technology, but a lack of reaction. The future of industrial infrastructure is where systems act, not just report.

In this landscape, VION is positioning itself as a new decision-making level for operators of critical infrastructure. The platform combines sensor technology, rules and audit capability into a single unit: locally responsive, centrally traceable.
Unlike traditional IoT solutions, VION does not provide monitoring, but operational reliability and decisions in milliseconds, documented in the audit log.

This makes everyday industrial life controllable not through more data, but through greater clarity .

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