Twenty years ago, we bought mobile phones for their hardware. Since then, a lot has changed, and now, embedded software delivers the primary value – offering entertainment, navigation, augmented reality, productivity apps, and so on.

However, such software does not work alone. It requires the phone’s hardware (connectivity, cameras accelerometers, etc.), and a cloud ecosystem to download new apps and share data. But it is the software – the operating system and firmware on the phone – that runs the show.

As a result, consumers now have sky-high expectations of technology. And if industrial companies can’t deliver products with a similar software-driven user experience, they will lose these customers. Manufacturers of cars, planes, trains, satellites, solar panels, cameras, home appliances, and so on are all undergoing a similar shift driven by embedded software.

That shift has huge implications – not just for the product itself, but for the company designing it.

Ever more products become software-driven

Let’s start with the product. Take a car or a plane – products that are increasingly software-driven. Both are developing software for automation and route optimization on the one hand, and to improve user experience and entertainment on the other.

They are not alone. Trains need one type of software with smart signal controls for optimal route planning, and another type that allows users to order food from the buffet car on their phone. Satellites must make real-time decisions about trajectory, data capture, and energy management. In-home batteries must control energy in and out, and track what they sell back to the grid.

Embedded software drives a change in organizational thinking

Embedded software is not entirely new in these industries – cars and planes, for example, have long had bits of control software. But its scale and sophistication are now skyrocketing.

A Capgemini Research Institute (CRI) survey – of 1,350 $1bn+ revenue companies with goals to become software-driven – found software accounted for 7% of revenue in 2022, but was expected to rise to 29% by 2030. That same report also found that 63% of Aerospace & Defense organizations believe software is critical to future products and services, with industries from automotive to energy making comparable claims.

But getting there will mean some big changes at these organizations.

Unlike a phone – which was designed to be a single integrated device – cars, planes, satellites, drones and other industrial systems were originally designed with multiple ECUs (electronic control units), each running multiple pieces of software. Each ECU was developed separately by different parts of the organization.

But now there is a need to integrate everything. For example, autopilot won’t work if its underpinning software can’t communicate seamlessly with the separate control units for sensors, steering, and brakes.

The importance of transversal software

Doing this in the current siloed way would create unmanageable complexity. Software needs to be ‘transversal’ – ie. developed consistently across the organization, rather than in silos. There must be a centralized team defining strategy, and managing and developing embedded software as a product across the organization. This must all be done with the same standards to facilitate interoperability, scalability, upgrades and reuse – whether it’s a landing control system, energy management system, in-flight infotainment, or smart cockpit. This transversal operating model makes software teams the backbone of software-defined organizations, continuously developing software solutions across the company.

That doesn’t mean all software must be connected to the final system, or that everything will be developed in the same way. Software can be very different. For example, rear-seat entertainment software can offload some data-heavy functions to the cloud, and developers can launch beta versions to get user feedback. On the other hand, high-integrity software for braking must do everything on board, work every time, and be separate from any hackable entry points into the system.

There are separate development tracks for different software components, so that less safety-critical software can quickly get to market, while more safety-critical parts can be carefully managed through verification and validation (V&V), and certification. But all development tracks should be within a centralized software team, which works together, sharing a consistent system architecture, standards and learnings, and creating products the entire business can access once complete.

A positive example

Consider Stellantis, which owns multiple car brands, including Opel, Peugeot, Dodge and Fiat, among others. It has invested in developing three core software platforms: one which is the backbone of the car (STLA brain), one for safety-critical assisted driving (STLA AutoDrive), and one for the connectivity and cockpit services (STLA SmartCockpit).

It implemented centralized software standards that are systematically used across all brands and models. This is similar to a trend we’re seeing across all markets – ‘platforming’. The platforming approach leverages generic components (computer vision, voice command, navigation services, etc.) that are applied to several projects, products and use cases – sometimes used with customizations to different brands and marketings – all without needing to build, test and certify everything from scratch.

Innovate or fail

All of this requires a major shift in thinking from organizations. But they must make this shift to survive.

And largely, they are. The auto industry is taking the threat from Tesla (and its advanced on-board computing) seriously. They may soon be pushed to move faster by software-driven Chinese competitors, like BYD and Nio, whose car interiors can transform into immersive cinemas at the push of a button. Industries from aviation to energy are no longer complacent – all recognize that embedded software is critical to their future. And all know they must undergo radical organizational change to turn legacy hardware into future-proof, software-driven products.

See how embedded software is helping industries transform their business – and how Capgemini can help along your journey.

Most manufacturing plants these days work just fine. Each stage of the production process performs its appointed task, and passes its work on to the next.

Which is as it should be, at least as far as it goes. The trouble, though, is that much of data issued by these pieces of equipment is siloed in their individual ecosystems. It means that, while traditional operational excellence practices will still deliver, there is no way to make the most of process-wide insights in real time.

Technologies can be enablers, but they come with their own additional constraints. For example, integration through data (including semantic layers) is promising, but it requires significant effort for a sometimes unclear return on investment, especially at plant level.

What’s more, budgets aren’t limitless. It can be hard to prioritize competing digital or physical investment initiatives, especially considering the accelerating impact of IT on operational technology (OT).

We believe this conflict of interests might find a solution in the effective convergence of the IT and OT worlds, enabled by real-time access to multiple data sources brought together with AI. This isn’t tech whizzery for the sake of it: it’s about developing an approach that can result in new applications, with a solid operational and financial basis leading to tangible business outcomes.

The question is how to get there. Considering all the constraints and the many state-of-the-art technologies; can everything be brought together?

Key factors

Here at Capgemini, we believe that edge computing is the current direction of travel. It’s where we believe the most effective convergence of IT and OT will happen, combining the strengths of both worlds and delivering the “real ‘real-time’” promise, at scale, and at the required pace of innovation.

We also believe that in time, NT and intelligent networks will provide an additional mobility aspect to the edge that will trigger additional value. Therefore, moving to multi-access edge computing (MEC) may be a reasonable bet.

Third, the integration or interoperability of all systems at the edge will be the key for scaling, taking solutions far beyond beyond localized initiatives in closed ecosystems.

Intelligent Edge Application Platform

As a result, we’ve developed an intelligent Edge Application Platform (IEAP), which pulls everything together in layers – infrastructure, data, and applications – and which fosters the interoperability of siloed systems, opening new business opportunities while managing the convergence of IT and OT. Available as a managed service or as a packaged client solution, it can help tackle macro manufacturing issues at plant or company level, such as risk prevention.

Needless to say, multiple data sources converge on this MEC platform, and specific edge-native AI algorithms are also designed to handle vast amounts of real-time data and make sense of it all. The approach doesn’t merely collate and organize, but presents information in insightful and actionable ways to reach tangible business outcomes.

Introducing Margo

There is a but, though, and it’s a big one. Couldn’t it be argued that the development of IEAP itself constitutes the creation of another silo – a set of practices and technologies that work well together on their own terms, but to the exclusion of others?

Well, yes. That point could indeed be made. Which is why Capgemini has formed a consortium with other major industry players to create an open-source standard that everyone can use. It’s called Margo, and it has just been launched and hosted by the Linux Foundation.

Our partner founding consortium members, ABB / B&R, AVEVA, Microsoft, Rockwell Automation, Schneider Electric and Siemens, have endorsed the approach, and have collaborated to visualize a shared destination in the industrial automation space, together with the conditions that will need to prevail.

Once this initiative goes live, other vendors will be free to participate and to become compliant with the proposed new standard. It will mean they won’t need to have specialist knowledge of the infrastructure of their fellow vendors. It will also mean that their services will be able to access a wider spectrum of infrastructure, since their participation in the project will automatically make everything open and interoperable. That, after all, is what establishing a standard is all about.

And of course, Capgemini has ensured that the Intelligent Edge Application Platform is compatible with the standard.

A game-changing moment for manufacturing

This can be seen as a watershed moment – as the point at which the manufacturing world has changed, at which factory floor systems are moving from working locally and in isolation to operating at scale, at AI-driven levels of efficiency, and – perhaps most crucially of all – in a unified manner, with full interoperability and communication.

These are exciting times. It’s an opportunity not just for all the participating vendors addressing this market, but for every manufacturer they serve. All of them – vendors and manufacturers alike – will be able to find new ways to innovate, to diversify, to operate, to optimize, to serve their customers, and ultimately, to succeed.

And because the consortium is already broadening and building momentum, we can do more than merely hope for greater improvements. We can expect them.

The factory of the future is closer than ever. Working together, we can all start to build it right now.

Current initiatives in France and their dynamics

1.  The ecological bonus

As I discussed in an earlier article, this French government initiative originally encouraged the purchase of electric cars in general, but it was recently updated to address the carbon footprint of the electric car’s whole lifecycle from design and manufacture to sale.

The revised scheme encourages consumers to buy vehicles that are more environmentally friendly in terms of overall decarbonization, not just emissions on the road. In addition, the bonus is available only for vehicles costing less than €47,000.

These recent changes disqualified almost 40% of cars on the French market from the bonus scheme. Leading models affected included MG Motor’s MG4, Tesla’s Model 3, Dacia’s Spring, and the Kia Niro.

In order to remain competitive, some OEMs whose models are excluded by the new rules have been quick to take compensating actions. Two options have emerged here. First, BMW, Audi, and Peugeot have lowered some prices to less than €47,000 to qualify for the bonus. Second, where a car didn’t score high enough on sustainability to earn the bonus, some manufacturers have offered a discount instead. Both changes will tend to heat the price competition already happening in this market area.

Note, though, that manufacturers whose cars did not initially qualify for the current version of the ecological bonus also have the option of applying for a review of the score. To do so, they need to provide convincing evidence that their actual emission values are better than the location-based values used by the initial assessment. Ideas like battery passports are relevant here.

2.  Social leasing

Alongside the ecological bonus for car buyers, the French government has introduced a long-term leasing offer for electric cars priced at just €100 per month. The first wave of the scheme, which ended on February 14, 2024, was a spectacular success, not least with younger drivers. In total, 50,000 electric cars were leased – double the initially anticipated 25,000 – and a total of 90,000 applications were received.

Although successful, the scheme is quite costly. The French government provides a one-off €13,000 subsidy for each leased vehicle; unsurprisingly, this year’s scheme had to be halted, leaving around 40,000 disappointed applicants. A new wave of leasing will open in 2025, according to the government’s website, but we don’t have details yet.

Given their costs, incentive schemes need to be carefully assessed and compared, to ensure that the optimum mix of incentives is chosen. That necessitates an objective, quantitative assessment of the costs and benefits of each scheme, together with modelling of alternative approaches.

3.  Manufacturing small, affordable small cars in Europe

It’s not just the French government that’s taking action. France’s OEMs, too, recognize that customers’ budget constraints are a limiting factor for electrification and that affordable models are needed. 2024 looks set to mark a turning point in that respect, with leading French OEMs introducing new, high-quality electric models at competitive prices.

As announced at the recent Geneva International Motor Show, the new Renault 5 electric will be available from September 2024 for approximately €25,000. In October, the new Citroën ë-C3 electric will go on sale for around €23,300; details are already online. If these vehicles benefit from the ecological bonus, as hoped, then actual prices could be as low as €20,000, providing unprecedented accessibility.

Let’s hope that these new vehicles are the first of many. In a “letter to Europe” published in March 2024, Luca di Meo, CEO of Renault Group, proposed promoting small, affordable cars and vans made in Europe. He envisages cooperative projects between manufacturers to develop and market these vehicles; consumers can be encouraged to buy them via benefits such as reserved parking spaces, cheaper parking and reserved charging points, along with bonuses.

In technical terms, producing this new affordable generation of vehicles looks likely to present challenges of its own, many of them around “lightweight” – reducing the weight of vehicles and batteries to make them more economical to run. This requires expert knowledge of the latest materials and design techniques.

Building on initial experience

With initiatives like these, France is advancing toward the dream of putting electric vehicles within the reach of every citizen who needs a car, including the younger generation.

Of course, there are still challenges to overcome. Today’s more affordable prices are, to a large extent, the result of state subsidies. With many other demands on state funds, these subsidies are always going to be limited, so other ways to achieve affordability are needed. A related challenge is that in response to the ecological bonus in particular, fierce price wars are being waged between OEMs, involving not only European manufacturers but also some based further afield. That means margins are being severely squeezed. For businesses to remain viable, and for governments to achieve their goal of decarbonization, this picture must change. Instead of price-cutting, we need schemes and actions that encourage OEMs to compete through innovation to deliver genuinely affordable, sustainable e-mobility. And this has to happen at a time when some manufacturers have been putting back the scheduled release dates for new electric models. To bring about the required shift, governments may want to consider a range of different interventions in addition to those that incentivize consumers: for example, offering investment aids to help OEMs improve the sustainability of manufacturing processes, particularly concerning batteries.

Clearly, success within a single country is not going to achieve global climate change objectives. Proven ideas need to spread rapidly from country to country and from continent to continent.

At all levels, focus needs to be maintained. In the EU, the coming months promise to be exceptionally busy, with the European Parliament elections from June 6 to 9 and the subsequent establishment of a new commission in Brussels. It’s to be hoped that automotive sustainability initiatives are not deferred as a result.

Meanwhile, for individual OEMs, the current price war mustn’t be allowed to distract attention from long-term strategy. As with many innovations, profitability from e-mobility won’t arise immediately, but patience (and flexibility) will be rewarded. It’s also important to keep a close watch on the marketplace – for example, we’ll soon have the opportunity to study the impact of affordable models such as Renault’s R5 and Citroën’s ë-C3.

According to the market intelligence company IDC, worldwide spending on public cloud services is forecast to reach $1.35 trillion in 2027.

As the cloud becomes more ubiquitous and capable, consumers expect an ever-improving quality of service from the services they use. Whether it’s accessing a website, streaming media, or gaming, these consumers want it to be faster and more reliable. Network operators are under pressure to ensure that their infrastructure can deliver on these expectations.

This ‘always-on, always-connected, always-available’ expectation drives the need for autonomous networks which can respond dynamically to changing traffic demands, degradation or faults, so that users are impacted minimally by changes.

One critical aspect of an autonomous network is the ability to monitor network elements and traffic flows at various points in that network. Datacenter networks, based on the well-established Clos or Leaf-Spine topologies, along with technologies like MC-LAG (Multi Chassis Link Aggregation) have an extremely high level of redundancy and, as a result, high fault tolerance. However, enterprises and service provider access/aggregation networks use different topologies and may not have the luxury of installing such a high level of redundancy in the topology itself. Indeed, enterprises that operate less fault-tolerant infrastructures require even closer monitoring.

A variety of monitoring tools are available currently and well distributed in networks. However, many of these take a performance-monitoring approach, rather than a telemetry approach. The significance of this is mainly from a investment perspective – large datacenters can often afford expensive monitoring systems, some of which are bespoke to the equipment they use. In contrast, smaller enterprises usually can’t. Most importantly for the focus of this blog, these bespoke tools cannot monitor SONiC NOS based networks.

Why is this important? SONiC (Software for Open Networking in the Cloud) is a major enabler for open networking in datacenters, which require accurate and up to the second monitoring. SONiC is typically installed into a router or switch in a network. But network monitoring must be done by other software which is external, eg. on a server. However, existing installed tools may not readily be able to collect the necessary information from SONiC, due to compatibility issues.

To this end, we have put together a demonstration and proof of concept that shows a completely open solution to the challenge of properly monitoring your network, leveraging popular and proven open source components.

Our SONiC monitoring solution

We use a combination of sFlow-RT, Prometheus and Grafana for this. The sFlow-RT tool collects telemetry data using the established sFlow methodology. Prometheus stores the collected data in a real-time database and provides access to this data to other tools/systems. Grafana offers an administrator a rich visual view of the network traffic. We used the open-source Debian Linux distribution as the platform for these tools, and we generated the traffic data patterns using TRex, an open-source traffic generator.

The benefits of such network monitoring include:  

• Immediate network visibility
• Real-time insights  
• Critical metrics on utilization and error statistics  
• Being able to identify irregular traffic patterns  
• The ability to respond to emerging network issues  
• Maintaining optimal performance  

More about sFlow

SONiC-based network elements include switches and routers. We will now delve into the the details of sFlow – why it is important and how it is integrated into these network elements to monitor and collect essential network traffic data. This data includes packets, byte counts, traffic patterns, and flow information.   

sFlow (an abbreviation of “sampled flow”) is a network monitoring technology that provides real-time insight into network traffic. It doesn’t capture every single packet of data that flows through a network, but rather samples subsets of packets for analysis. sFlow collects valuable information about the source and destination of the sample packets, the type of traffic, and traffic volumes –  identifying patterns, trends, and irregularities within the network’s traffic. This is especially useful in troubleshooting to spot inefficiencies and problem areas in a network.  

The SONiC NOS includes an sFlow agent. This sFlow agent, when correctly set up, samples and collects data about network traffic flowing through the device. It sends the collected information, (encapsulated in sFlow datagrams) to a designated destination, typically a sFlow collector. These datagrams contain details about the sampled packets, such as source and destination addresses, ports, and other relevant information. 

sFlow-RT (sFlow-RT installation) is the sFlow Collector, a tool to collect sFlow data sent out by sFlow agents embedded in devices in the network. It can also provide critical metrics, like packets-received, bytes-received, packets-transmitted, bytes-transmitted, utilization, and error statistics. A Collector receives, stores and analyzes sFlow datagrams from multiple agents across the network. It stores the data in a real-time database, providing real-time visibility into network performance, traffic patterns, and anomalies in the network.  

Prometheus (Prometheus installation) is a monitoring and alerting toolkit that collects, stores, analyzes, and visualizes time-series data, including network flow data. It stores the collected telemetry data in a real time database and provides an elegant, user-friendly interface to read and use the collected data – both in real-time and post-facto. 

Grafana (Grafana installation) is a data visualizer. It transforms the data/metrics from other tools (like Prometheus) into meaningful visualizations. The inbuilt dashboards make it easy to get started, by setting up the most common parameters that network administrators are interested in. The dashboards can be customized and additional elements can be added, depending upon need. This helps users to interpret and analyze network performance data.

The detailed configurations are shown in the video. A summary of the configurations is below.

Better oversight: better network performance

This setup helps network administrators gain insights into network traffic, so that they can oversee their networks, identify hot spots, troubleshoot issues and optimize performance. This allows you to get the best out of your deployed network resources.  

Capgemini Engineering helps clients to best use SONiC in their projects. Contact our experts today to see how we can help you leverage the benefits of open networking.