AspenTech acquires IIoT cloud and edge connectivity assets of RtTech Software Inc.

Aspen Technology, Inc. has announced it has acquired the IIoT cloud-native software and edge connectivity assets of RtTech Software Inc. of New Brunswick, Canada.

The acquisition strengthens AspenTech’s asset optimisation strategy by providing sophisticated cloud and edge processing technology that captures and aggregates critical data from assets throughout the plant and across the enterprise. This holistic view of every plant’s connected assets will extend the modelling and machine learning abilities of aspenONE software to continually deliver accurate and actionable insights that optimise asset, plant and enterprise performance throughout the entire life cycle.

RtTech’s Cipher software is designed to provide affordable, high-performance connectivity for old, new, local and remote assets, without having to rip out and replace existing IT/OT (information technology/operational technology) infrastructures or business systems.

With Cipher, users can eliminate the challenge of having to build and maintain their own IIoT infrastructure to connect their assets to the enterprise. Using the latest IIoT technology, Cipher works with almost any commercially available edge device. It supports a wide range of industry-standard communication and security protocols, enabling thousands of remote and local assets and devices (wired or wireless) to be connected to Cipher’s cloud-based data store for advanced analytics and asset optimisation.

Cipher is a cloud-native application with multitenant capabilities leveraging a modern architecture design, based on Microsoft’s Azure Internet of Things platform. Key current components include:

• Cipher Portal: Used on-premise and in the cloud to create a rich, aggregated data store of asset information for advanced analytics and asset optimisation.
• Cipher Connect: Used at the edge to collect, cleanse and analyse data from sensors and other data sources. Cipher Connect supports a wide range of communication protocols including MQTT, OPC UA, OPC DA, Modbus, BACnet, EtherNet/IP and MT Connect for connecting almost any asset or device. Data collected by Cipher Connect can be written to a Cipher Portal on-premise or in a public or private cloud for analysis. Data can also be written to enterprise systems such as historians, APM, EAM and ERP use in business analysis and applications.

In addition, the founder of RtTech, Keith Flynn, along with other key technology and sales contributors, will join AspenTech. These employees will bring significant expertise in areas of edge and cloud computing, as well as in the wastewater, manufacturing and pulp and paper industries, complementing AspenTech’s strategy to expand in asset-intensive environments outside of the process industries.