OPC DataHub makes history at OPC Japan Interop Workshop

Georgetown, Ontario (September 28, 2006) At the recent OPC Japan Interoperability Workshop in Tokyo, Cogent Real-Time Systems made history by becoming the first non-Japanese company to attend this annual event. The workshop is a venue for testing compatibility between products from leading OPC vendors. Cogent's OPC DataHub software received many accolades, and went on to pass all server and client tests with flying colors.

"Cogent Real-Time Systems was the first foreign company ever to participate in the Japanese OPC Interoperability Workshop," said Toshio Oono of Yokogawa Electric Corporation. "Cogent made a fresh and lasting impression on all of the participating companies. Because of Cogent's involvement, many companies said that they would like to see more overseas companies participate in the Japan IOP in the future."

OPC is the leading protocol for data communications between industrial hardware devices and Windows software. Each year hardware and software manufacturers test their compliance with OPC standards at workshops in North America, Europe, and Japan. This allows industrial products from different manufacturers to work together seamlessly.

"We are looking forward to the synergy effect that OPC DataHub will have with our own products in the future," said Takebishi Corporation's Ryuji Takeuchi.

"We certainly received a wonderful reception in Tokyo, and the OPC DataHub has generated significant interest from all the major players in the OPC community in Japan," said Andrew Thomas, president of Cogent. "Our Japanese friends were excellent hosts and the positive feedback from the workshop shows us that the OPC DataHub is unique in this market."

"Technological progress occasionally sweeps like a huge wave through manufacturing systems and methods," said Masashi Murakami, Chairman of the OPC Japan User Committee. "We believe that the OPC DataHub is the next big wave of progress for manufacturing, since it allows you to easily and inexpensively connect OPC systems within and beyond the Windows OS."

Cogent's OPC DataHub software represents the next generation of applications designed for working with real-time data. It provides OPC tunnelling, bridging and aggregation as well as the ability to connect OPC data to Excel, web browsers, mobile devices and Linux-based applications. At the workshop in Tokyo the OPC DataHub was tested against all 30 OPC servers and clients provided by participants such as Yokogawa, Yamatake, Fuji, Toshiba, Hitachi, OMRON, and Digital Electronics (Proface). In every test, the OPC DataHub performed flawlessly.

"This Interoperability Workshop provided us with a very valuable experience," said Yoshinori Teraoka of Hitachi. "We were able to test our products with an overseas company for the first time. We plan to spend more time to evaluate the OPC DataHub for our future use."

The OPC DataHub's ability to connect other protocols and non-Windows platforms is generating new interest in OPC. "The OPC DataHub can solve problems in many diverse applications in the manufacturing industry," said Miki Miyasaka of ACCA Networks Co., Ltd. "We are already planning to make good use of the OPC DataHub in upcoming exhibitions in November."

Susumu Wada of Seedsware Corporation said, "We are planning to expand our field of operations to include plant automation in the future. I am looking forward to working together with Cogent and their software."

Cogent sees great potential in Japan. There is a strong industrial base, and OPC is becoming recognized as the connectivity standard of the future. The OPC DataHub is well positioned in this growing market, offering a wide range of applications from heavy industry to high tech.

Founded in 1995, Cogent Real-Time Systems is the leader in real-time cross-platform data integration between Windows, Linux and QNX. Customers include the Bank of Canada, Cadbury Chocolate and the European Space Agency. Cogent leverages its experience in real-time data communications to provide the next generation of OPC products.