By: IPP Bureau
Last updated : July 03, 2026 4:55 pm
Partnership introduces software-defined manufacturing framework, innovation demo facility, and digital skills programme to support India's smart manufacturing ambitions
Rockwell Automation, Inc. and Cisco have announced a strategic collaboration to accelerate the digital transformation of India's manufacturing sector by integrating industrial automation with advanced IT infrastructure.
The partnership aims to help manufacturers build AI-enabled, resilient, and globally competitive operations while supporting India's vision of becoming a leading global manufacturing hub.
As part of the collaboration, the companies have launched a Full-Stack Software-Defined Manufacturing reference design, which combines Cisco's software-defined networking capabilities with Rockwell Automation's software-defined automation technologies.
The integrated architecture is designed to enable secure, resilient, and observable manufacturing environments, allowing seamless data exchange between information technology (IT) and operational technology (OT) systems.
The solution provides manufacturers with real-time operational visibility and actionable insights to improve productivity, strengthen cybersecurity, reduce operational risks, and support AI-driven decision-making while maintaining compliance and safeguarding critical industrial assets.
In addition, Rockwell Automation has established a Software-Defined Manufacturing Demo Pod at its Gurugram facility in collaboration with Cisco's Country Digital Acceleration programme.
The facility will serve as a collaborative innovation centre where customers, partners, and industry stakeholders can experience, validate, and co-develop software-defined manufacturing solutions tailored to India's industrial requirements before scaling deployments across production facilities.
Dilip Sawhney, Managing Director, Rockwell Automation India, said, "India's manufacturing sector is at a defining moment. By bringing together industrial automation expertise and modern digital infrastructure, we are helping manufacturers build operations that are more resilient, intelligent, and ready for the future."
Kartika Prihadi, Vice President, Partner and Routes to Market Sales, Cisco APJC, said, "Cisco is proud to work alongside Rockwell Automation to support India's manufacturing transformation. By unifying secure networking, automation, and AI-ready infrastructure, we are helping manufacturers move from automation to autonomy, unlocking new levels of efficiency, innovation, and trust."