Modern Technology Systems (MTS) uses SIMATIC AX to bring proven IT development practices into industrial automation. By applying object-oriented programming, automated testing and Git-based collaboration, MTS improves efficiency, code quality and scalability, bridging the gap between IT and OT in production machine development.
How MTS uses SIMATIC AX
Benefits of SIMATIC AX for MTS
Accelerate development with modern engineering
Object-oriented programming, package management and dependency handling speed up coding, improve structure and make automation software easier to maintain and evolve.
Improve software quality through automation
Built-in unit testing allows teams to automate PLC testing, catch issues early and deliver more reliable machine software without relying on physical hardware.
Scale collaboration across multiple projects
Git integration and IT-style workflows bring transparency and control to code and configuration changes, enabling teams to collaborate efficiently on large, multi-engineer projects.
How SIMATIC AX enables MTS’s engineering approach
Applying IT software practices to OT development
MTS had long aimed to bring proven IT engineering methods into operational technology but found traditional automation platforms limiting. SIMATIC AX provides the environment needed to apply object-oriented programming, modular architectures and automated testing directly in OT. This allows MTS to develop clearer, more maintainable code while reducing technical debt and improving long-term system reliability.
Building modular, scalable automation frameworks
With tools for package and dependency management, SIMATIC AX supports modular project structures that scale across machines and production systems. MTS uses this flexibility to standardize components, reuse functionality and manage growing project complexity, while tailoring solutions to specific production needs.
Extending SIMATIC AX through open-source innovation
MTS goes beyond using SIMATIC AX by building its own open-source frameworks — AX# and AXOpen — on top of the platform. Shared publicly on GitHub, these frameworks demonstrate how SIMATIC AX enables advanced customization, fosters collaboration and supports community-driven innovation in industrial automation.
SIMATIC AX is what the iPhone was to the mobile phone industry. If you are a decision maker, go and have a look at it because this is the future.
We’ve been trying to use our software practices in OT development for a long time but with each platform we’ve chosen, we hit the wall. We couldn’t go further; we couldn’t do what we are used to do in classical software engineering. SIMATIC AX is the tool and environment that allows us to replicate IT practices in OT.
