By: Oriel Soupen - Channel Marketing Manager at Schneider Electric South Africa

Leading System Integrators (SIs) across Africa are under increasing pressure to grow beyond completing one-off PLC, SCADA or hardware integration projects and deliver continuous performance, reliability and efficiency gains for end users. 

SIs must become partners who stay engaged long after commissioning to ensure factors such as predictable uptime and measurable efficiency gains. This is why Schneider Electric’s Alliance Partner Programme was designed to help position SIs to deliver lifecycle value. 

Traditionally, many SIs built their businesses on transactional project work, but this model is becoming increasingly limited as industries continue to digitalise. Today’s mines, water utilities, food manufacturers and infrastructure operators require connected systems, real‑time insights and proactive optimisation. This is where the Alliance Partner Programme is fundamentally rewriting the SI playbook, transitioning partners from hardware suppliers to trusted industrial technology advisors.

Structured access to competencies

This shift is underpinned by the understanding that recurring value requires recurring capability. Through the Alliance Partner Programme and the SI Energise model, SIs gain structured access to the competencies, digital platforms and expert support needed to build deep capability in IIoT, SCADA, MES, industrial software and cloud‑based optimisation.

Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure, a cloud-based, IoT-enabled building energy management platform, and wholly owned subsidiary AVEVA, which provides open and interoperable automation and electrification solutions, form the backbone of this ecosystem. They enable continuous monitoring, analytics‑driven decision‑making and subscription‑based services that keep plants running at peak performance.

This is not only theoretical training; the programme’s certification framework ensures that partners develop real, demonstrable expertise. Training is rigorous, multi‑level and tied to specific technologies and industry segments. Certifications are awarded to individuals, not companies, ensuring that skills are embedded in people and that organisations invest in building teams, not just ticking boxes.

Record of successful project delivery

Before a partner can advance to higher tiers, they must prove successful project delivery, giving end‑users confidence that certified SIs can execute in real‑world environments.

This initiative is already paying off, as in South Africa alone, more than 60 Alliance Partners are already using this model to differentiate themselves and secure higher‑value, longer‑term engagements. In the water sector, partners have delivered projects that “use less and output more” by combining automation with analytics‑driven optimisation. Others are leveraging EcoStruxure Automation Expert to improve sustainability performance and reduce downtime, which is a growing priority across mining, CPG and infrastructure.

However, the journey is not without challenges. Many African SIs face organisational barriers such as skills shortages and cultural resistance to service‑centric models. Commercial constraints, from limited access to finance to customer capex bias, can also slow adoption. Technical hurdles, including poor connectivity and uneven digital infrastructure, add further complexity.

Tighter sector focus

Looking ahead, Schneider Electric is deepening its sector‑specific focus. The Alliance Partner Programme is evolving to include specialised electrification and digitalisation competencies for mining, water, CPG and infrastructure.

AVEVA and EcoStruxure integration skills are becoming more granular, aligned to the unique operational realities of each segment. As sustainability, resilience and lifecycle optimisation become central to industrial strategy, SIs who build these capabilities now will be best positioned to lead.

Africa’s industrial future belongs to lifecycle partners, not hardware suppliers. The SIs who invest in skills, digital tools and service‑centric business models today will be the ones shaping tomorrow’s opportunities. Schneider Electric’s Alliance Partner Programme gives them the platform to do this.