Rockwell Automation (NYSE: ROK) and Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) have announced a strategic collaboration aimed at reimagining the future of manufacturing in India. The partnership unites IT and industrial automation to support the country’s ambitions for advanced, resilient, and globally competitive manufacturing.
At the core of this initiative is the launch of a Full-Stack Software-Defined Manufacturing reference design. Additionally, a Software-Defined Manufacturing Demo Pod has been established at Rockwell Automation’s Gurugram facility, developed in collaboration with Cisco’s Country Digital Acceleration program. The companies have also introduced a joint digital skills initiative to address the manufacturing digital skills gap, leveraging Cisco Networking Academy and Rockwell’s Learning+ program.
These efforts reflect a shared commitment to help India’s manufacturing sector transition from traditional automation toward AI-enabled autonomous operations. The Full-Stack Software-Defined Manufacturing reference design integrates Cisco’s software-defined networking with Rockwell Automation’s software-defined automation, delivering secure, observable, and resilient operations. By enabling secure data flow across IT and OT, manufacturers gain real-time visibility and actionable insights to improve efficiency, reduce risk, and support AI-enabled decision-making while maintaining compliance and protecting critical operations.
“India’s manufacturing sector is at a defining moment,” said Dilip Sawhney, managing director of Rockwell Automation India. “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.”
The Software-Defined Manufacturing Demo Pod in Gurugram will serve as a collaborative innovation environment where customers, partners, and ecosystem players can experience, validate, and co-create solutions tailored to India’s manufacturing needs. It provides a practical foundation for organizations to move from pilot projects to scalable deployment across plants and production lines.
A key aspect of this collaboration is skills development. Through a social impact initiative, Rockwell Automation and Cisco Networking Academy are committed to equipping India’s manufacturing workforce with essential digital, networking, and cybersecurity skills for modern, software-defined industrial environments. This initiative supports India’s goals for workforce readiness and inclusive growth as manufacturing becomes more digital.
“Cisco is proud to work alongside Rockwell Automation to support India’s manufacturing transformation,” said Kartika Prihadi, Vice President of Partner and Routes to Market Sales at Cisco APJC. “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.”
As India continues to strengthen its position as a global manufacturing hub, the Rockwell Automation and Cisco collaboration provides a blueprint for how technology, skills, and ecosystem partnerships can come together to support sustainable growth and operational excellence.