Company Announcement - The much anticipated Schneider Electric Software Customer Conference was held this year at the upmarket Royal Elephant Hotel in Centurion, Gauteng, and focused on the implementation of software solutions, whilst addressing the disconnect between software potential and realising its purpose. With the correct implementation, uptake and use, the company says, software will help manage variability and add flexibility in production, whilst translating into economic value and other benefits.After the welcome and opening from Eric Léger, country president at Schneider Electric Southern Africa, Daniel Silke, one of the country’s leading political analysts, as well as being a futurist and author, took to the stage to deliver the keynote address.

Following on from Silke’s passionate and insightful address, Yong The, ‎global strategic alliance manager at Schneider Electric in Australia, presented on operational excellence.  Two separate breakout streams followed, during which the topics covered included Schneider Electric’s digitisation journey, software implementation best practices and change management, industrial energy management and utilities optimisation, a practical guide to ROI and justification for MES, and energy management through digital services, supply and demand optimisation.

Schneider Electric also used the conference as a platform to launch its “Customer FIRST” programme for Vijeo Citect, Vijeo Historian and Ampla. It will be commercially available from the start of January 2016 and replaces the SCADA & MES Software Global Support programme, in order to provide a common framework for support and services throughout the Schneider Electric Software business.  

Speaking of the event, Quintin McCutcheon, Software Business Lead for southern Africa at Schneider Electric, said: “The Schneider Electric software conference is, without a doubt, the industry's top thought-leadership event, where delegates learn more about solving some of the most complex implementation challenges through our game-changing products, solutions, and services.”