From Paper to Digital Product File: How Pepperl+Fuchs and Neoception Set the Standard for Industrial Data Harmonization
Company Profile
Customer: Pepperl+Fuchs SE
Industry: Automation, sensors, explosion protection
Project partner:
Dr. Gunther Kegel, General Representative of Pepperl+Fuchs SE
Dr. Jörg Nagel, Head of the Digital Innovation Office at Pepperl+Fuchs
Project Goal
The goal of the project was to create a scalable, future-proof digital infrastructure that harmonizes product data across all systems, replaces paper-based documentation, and enables automated, regulation-ready information delivery using the Asset Administration Shell (AAS). This provides Pepperl+Fuchs with a unified foundation for efficiency gains, cost reduction, and upcoming requirements such as the Digital Product Passport.
Tradition Meets Digitalization
For more than 80 years, Pepperl+Fuchs SE has stood for industrial innovation made in Mannheim. What began as a pioneer in inductive proximity sensors has grown into a global leader in factory and process automation. Today, Pepperl+Fuchs combines deep expertise in sensor technology and explosion protection components with a strong digitalization strategy – actively shaping the industry of tomorrow.
The mission: making automation smarter, safer, and more sustainable. To achieve this, Pepperl+Fuchs focuses on standardized data flows, connected systems, and digital value creation – all the way down to the field device.
The Challenge: Mountains of Paper and Data Silos
“The EU’s fourth Omnibus Directive gave us a great opportunity: B2B products no longer need to be accompanied by paper!” explains Dr. Gunther Kegel, General Representative of Pepperl+Fuchs SE.
But turning this opportunity into reality required overcoming a double challenge:
- a product portfolio with tens of thousands of variants, and
- a data-rich but highly heterogeneous IT landscape where product information existed, but scattered across different systems, formats, and structures.
Still, Pepperl+Fuchs wanted to seize the opportunity to eliminate the high effort associated with printing, logistics, and maintaining paper-based documentation.
“Digital product documentation doesn’t just save paper costs – it streamlines processes, accelerates information flows, and improves the customer experience,” adds Kegel.
This became the starting point to move into a paperless future – with a solution that harmonizes data across all systems and meets emerging regulations such as the Digital Product Passport (DPP).
The Solution: Digital Product Documentation Based on the Asset Administration Shell (AAS)
Together with Neoception, the digitalization expert within the corporate group, the idea was developed to create a solution capable of handling the enormous variant diversity and heterogeneous IT landscape while digitizing the entire product documentation (nameplate, technical data, and handover documentation) as a first step.
The following guiding principles were defined:
- Align with emerging technologies and customer requirements
- Leverage existing networks such as ZVEI, ECLASS, and IDTA
Neoception was the ideal partner from day one: as part of the corporate group, the team understands the product variety, system landscape, and business requirements of Pepperl+Fuchs in detail. At the same time, Neoception brings deep technical excellence in Asset Administration Shells, ECLASS, and Digital Twins to handle the complexity of the data environment.
Advantages of the Solution
- Unified data access across the entire product portfolio
- Easy configuration of data packages instead of complex programming
- Full digitalization of product documentation for the entire portfolio
Within just a few minutes, the complete product documentation of the first 120 million products could be digitized. This led to significant process efficiencies and measurable cost reductions.
In addition, the Neoception® Digital Twin Infrastructure now serves as a core technology for the entire company to meet future requirements such as the Digital Product Passport (DPP).
Measurable Results and Added Value
After only a short rollout period, significant improvements became visible – both technically and economically:
Paperless and efficient:
Eliminating paper-based documentation reduces material and logistics costs significantly – by up to €50,000 per 1 million produced products
Less IT effort:
Data packages can now be created through configuration instead of programming – enabling faster, more flexible implementation of new use cases (e.g., DPP)
Improved customer experience:
Through the graph database integration, customers can not only access product information but also view replacement products and related content
Standardization:
Harmonized data structures across multiple systems
Pepperl+Fuchs has achieved a major milestone in its digital transformation – and set a foundation for leading the way in Industry 4.0.
A Strong Partnership Driving Real Industrial Impact
The joint project was characterized by enthusiasm, agility, and technical depth. Neoception successfully translated complex requirements into a practical solution that is both efficient internally and compatible across markets.
From concept to rollout, Neoception supported with expertise in ECLASS, standardization, and data modeling – ensuring seamless integration of the Asset Administration Shell into existing processes.
By introducing the Digital Nameplate based on the Asset Administration Shell (AAS), Pepperl+Fuchs once again demonstrates its pioneering spirit – and is now continuing on this path.
Together with Neoception, the company has created the foundation for paperless processes, automated data provisioning, and future regulatory compliance – an important step toward a fully connected, digital industry.
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