In ODVA’s media briefing held at the recent SPS IPC Drives Show in Nuremberg, ODVA reported that EtherNet/IP continues to represent the largest number of new nodes of industrial Ethernet networks shipped, at approximately 25 per cent market share, according to IHS Markit, an international analyst firm which reported EtherNet/IP’s share of market as part of its Industrial Communications Intelligence Service for 2017. 

The EtherNet/IP technology is defined in The EtherNet/IP Specification published by ODVA. This specification, and ODVA’s process for enhancing the specification, ensure that the technology is open, non-proprietary and future-proof. Another key component in the strength of EtherNet/IP’s value proposition is ODVA’s conformance testing for EtherNet/IP products, which provides users with assurance that EtherNet/IP products will interoperate in multi-vendor systems. First released by ODVA in 2001, today EtherNet/IP is supported by a large ecosystem of solution providers for the automation of industrial processes. Thousands of EtherNet/IP products are available for applications in discrete, hybrid and process industries with support for distinctive services for cyber security, functional safety, energy management, time synchronisation and motion control. 

“The number one position of EtherNet/IP among industrial Ethernet networks shows that Industry has clearly accepted EtherNet/IP as the premier workhorse for the automation of industrial processes and the integration of OT with IT,” stated Katherine Voss, president of ODVA. “EtherNet/IP adoption will continue to grow, not only as the overall rate of connectivity increases, but also as a result of penetration of Ethernet and Internet technologies into new applications previously served by legacy networks and fieldbuses, replacement of proprietary networks and IIOT-centered applications.”

“In 2016, EtherNet/IP maintained its position in the market for industrial Ethernet accounting for 25% of all new Ethernet nodes shipped,” stated Susanne Cumberland, analyst for IHS Markit. “Adoption of EtherNet/IP is expected to remain strong as one of the technologies and standards well positioned to benefit from the overall growth in IP-connected devices.”

For more information about companies who make and sell EtherNet/IP products or the ODVA CONFORMANT EtherNet/IP products that are available, visit www.marketplace.odva.org which is updated on an on-going basis. ODVA will publish the next edition of The EtherNet/IP Specification in the fourth quarter of 2017.