Introduction
Ferraro designs and manufactures high-tech textile machinery for finishing, treatment, and fabric stabilization processes.
As its machines became increasingly connected and its customers demanded greater visibility into production and operating costs, Ferraro chose to evolve its automation architecture toward a more integrated and scalable model.
Together with EXOR International group companies, Ferraro developed a new architecture combining machine control, HMI, connectivity, and cloud capabilities within the X Platform ecosystem.
CORVINA added the digital layer needed to transform machine data into accessible information, enabling secure remote assistance, energy monitoring, and a foundation for new service-oriented business models.
Project Overview
Company: Ferraro S.p.A.
Registered office: Lonate Pozzolo (VA), Italy
Industry: Textile Machinery
Employees: ~60
Digitized machines: ~100 per year
Project development year: 2022-2026
X Platform components: eXware703/eXware707, eX210/eX215 Web Panels, MicroEdge Plus, JMobile Runtime & CODESYS, Corvina VPN & IoT Platform
Ferraro needed to move away from a fragmented automation environment and toward a more centralized architecture capable of supporting both machine operation and future digital services.
The project simplified machine control and software management while introducing structured remote connectivity and data collection.
For Ferraro, this also created the foundation for an energy management application capable of giving customers real-time visibility into machine consumption and operating costs.
Ferraro's Challenge
Reducing complexity while creating more value from machine data
As Ferraro’s automation architecture evolved over time, different systems for PLC control, HMI, supervision, remote assistance, and data management increased the overall complexity of its machines.
At the same time, the company wanted to respond to new market requirements: greater connectivity, secure remote access, structured data collection, and more advanced digital services.
Energy consumption was a particularly important area. Ferraro’s machines often operate continuously and within complex production lines, making energy use a relevant component of operating costs.
The challenge was therefore twofold: simplify the underlying automation architecture while creating the digital infrastructure needed to turn machine data into useful information for both Ferraro and its customers.
The Solution
Connecting automation, data, and services within one ecosystem
The answer came through a joint effort between Tecnorobot, EXOR International, and CORVINA.
Ferraro developed a centralized architecture based on SoftPLC CODESYS, integrated HMI, edge connectivity, and cloud capabilities.
EXOR technologies provided the hardware and automation foundation, helping centralize machine control, HMI, and connectivity while supporting software standardization across different machine configurations.
CORVINA extended this architecture into the digital layer.
Through Corvina VPN & IoT Platform, Ferraro was able to enable secure remote assistance, collect and historize machine data, and make energy information remotely accessible within a single cloud environment.
This integration also created a scalable foundation for future applications involving monitoring, analytics, and additional digital services.
Results of the X Platform
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Real-Time Energy Visibility Energy consumption and operational data can be monitored in real time, providing customers with greater visibility into production costs and process efficiency. |
More Structured Remote Support Secure remote access and connectivity make remote assistance and diagnostics more structured and easier to manage across internationally distributed installations. |
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A Scalable Digital Foundation The integrated architecture creates a common foundation for data collection, monitoring, analytics, and future digital applications. |
Ready for Servitization Ferraro can increasingly complement machine sales with data-driven services, creating a more continuous relationship with customers throughout the machine lifecycle. |
“This collaboration enables us to reduce complexity, standardize our solutions, and look to the future with an increasingly digital and service-oriented approach.
Today, technology is not just an operational element, but a strategic lever to support our customers over the long term”
Leo Petruzio
FERRARO S.p.A.
The Value of CORVINA in the Project
For Ferraro, CORVINA represents more than a remote connectivity layer.
It provides the digital infrastructure needed to collect, historize, and access machine data securely, turning operational information into a resource that can support both service activities and the end customer’s decision-making.
Energy management is a concrete example of this evolution. By making consumption data available in real time, Ferraro can provide customers with greater visibility into machine operating costs and support a more informed approach to production efficiency.
At the same time, the same digital foundation can evolve toward additional monitoring, analytics, and service applications.
From Machine Connectivity to Servitization
For machine builders, connectivity creates value when it becomes part of a broader service strategy.
Remote assistance, machine monitoring, data analysis, and energy management make it possible to maintain a closer relationship with customers even after commissioning.
Ferraro is gradually moving in this direction, complementing the machine with digital services based on operational data.
The result is not simply a more connected machine, but an architecture designed to support value throughout the machine lifecycle.
One X Platform, Two Complementary Layers
The Ferraro project shows how machine automation and digital services can evolve together within the same technological ecosystem.
EXOR technologies provide the automation, HMI, and edge foundation required to simplify and standardize the machine architecture.
CORVINA builds on this foundation by adding secure remote access, data collection, energy management, and the digital capabilities required for future service models.
Together, these technologies form the X Platform: a common architecture designed to connect machine operation with the digital services that increasingly surround it.
Conclusion
For industrial machine builders, digitalization is increasingly about more than connecting a machine to the cloud.
The real opportunity lies in creating an architecture where automation, connectivity, and data work together: reducing complexity at machine level while enabling new services for customers.
Ferraro’s experience shows how energy data can become part of this broader transformation, moving from a technical parameter to a tool for operational visibility and long-term service value.
Want to explore how CORVINA can help turn machine data into new digital services?
Request a demo and discover how to build more value around your connected machines.
