Schneider Electric kicked off its Innovation Summit World Tour 2020, a virtual event series from Oct. 8 to Nov. 26, that connects thought leaders, visionaries, experts, change makers, partners, and customers globally to discover the latest digital solutions for a more resilient and sustainable future.

Schneider’s flagship annual Innovation Summits are now in their fifth year. This year’s iteration is the first to take place purely online, with 10 regional — and interactive — events to follow over the coming eight weeks. These will give attendees from around the globe the chance to learn more about the critical role that electrification, digitization, innovation, energy management and industrial automation can play in the transition toward a lower-carbon world to limit climate change to 1.5°C.

In his virtual keynote address, Jean-Pascal Tricoire, Schneider Electric’s chairman and CEO, urged attendees to accelerate their digital transformation to better position themselves for the upheaval caused by both the climate crisis and the global pandemic that has swept the world in 2020.

“Across the globe, in just a few months, our lives have changed — and digitalization has helped us to adopt the new normal,” he said. “Digitized remote operations can maintain business continuity, strengthen resiliency, and offer insights to better anticipate and adapt with agility. Digital innovation and connectivity have changed how we work and live together, and will positively change our impact on the environment and drive economic recovery and sustainability for us all.”

Throughout the event series, Schneider Electric is unveiling the following new offerings for customers and partners.

• A new range of low-voltage switchboards, PrismaSeT™ Active, and a new generation of breakers, ComPacT™, to be released in 2021, that unlock crucial information related to electrical fire risk and power availability within the electrical systems of buildings. The cloud-connectivity of PrismaSeT Active allows users to continuously monitor power distribution and receive notifications in case of hazardous power losses. The new generation of ComPacT takes power availability to the next level with major ergonomic improvements as well as connectivity-ready and modular plug-and-play accessories to expand the capacity for advanced monitoring capabilities.
• An innovative green switchgear, SM AirSeT™, which uses a combination of air and vacuum technology instead of SF6, a greenhouse gas commonly contained in electrical equipment used to power the grid and industrial electrical installations. The new technology offers a pathway to avoid the equivalence of millions of tons of CO₂ in energy networks. Its extensive IoT connectivity also unlocks the benefits of data and analytics for network management and optimization.
• A new category of automation, EcoStruxure™ Automation Expert, a software-centric industrial automation system creating step-change improvements throughout the complete operational lifecycle.

This year’s Innovation Summit features high-level conversations between Schneider Electric’s top executives and leaders from AECOM, GlaxoSmithKline, RIB Software, and AVEVA.

There will also be interactive panel discussions with representatives from: JPMorgan Chase & Co., McDonalds, Danone, JLL, Acciona, Enedis, Suez, and Arup.

Summit attendees will be able to visit a virtual Innovation Hub where they can experience, in 3-D, Schneider and its technology partners’ innovations and connect live to Schneider’s labs, showrooms, and manufacturing facilities around the world to chat with experts and see hands-on demos.

In addition to the global kick-off, regional Innovation Summit events, including additional content based for local geographies are scheduled throughout October and November. These include the the Middle East and Africa (Oct. 28), East Asia (Nov. 4), Korea (Nov. 5), North America (Nov. 10), South America (Nov. 12), Turkey (Nov. 17), France (Nov. 19), U.K. and Ireland (Nov. 24) and Hong Kong (Nov. 26).