Schneider Joins WEF Lighthouse Operating System Board

Schneider Electric has joined the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Lighthouse Operating System (OS) Advisory Board to create an open-source manufacturing blueprint for digital transformation.

According to the WEF, 64% of companies report they are still in the early stages of their digital factory transformation. 

Initiatives like the Lighthouse OS are designed to improve modern manufacturing at all stages of the value chain, from sustainability to technology.

What is the Lighthouse Operating System? 

Schneider Electric describes the Lighthouse OS is an open-source blueprint that translates the proven practices of the world's highest-performing industrial sites into a structured path any manufacturer can follow.

It was developed by the WEF’s Centre for Advanced Manufacturing and Supply Chains in collaboration with leading OEMs, end users and consultancies.

The WEF lists some of its co-creation partners as Bosch, Nestle, Haier, Foxconn Industrial Internet and Siemens Advanta. It was developed in collaboration with NEOM. 

Federico Torti, Head of Technology & Innovation at the WEF, says: “Many manufacturers have the ambition to transform but lack a coherent path to do it consistently and at scale. 

“The Lighthouse OS addresses that directly; it takes what the world's best factories have learned through years of real operational experience and turns it into a practical framework any manufacturer can apply. This is about making Lighthouse-level performance a realistic target for the whole industry, not just its most advanced players.”

How Lighthouse OS works

Lighthouse OS is built around six core operating principles: adaptable and robust processes, connected and transparent flows, end-to-end synchronisation, embedded sustainability, a learning organisation and accelerated digital and data capability. 

It is structured across five levels of operational maturity. Companies can assess their current position, identify where to focus first and scale at their own pace.

Schneider Electric describes Lighthouse OS as a framework built on proven, replicable methodologies designed to help manufacturers modernise at scale. It says it is applicable for companies of all sizes. 

What Schneider Electric is bringing 

Schneider Electric has spent more than 20 years building and refining an OS, which the company says is built on advanced digital systems, AI-driven automation and sustainability-by-design practices.

The company offers industrial automation software which the company says can bring digital transformation for buildings, infrastructure and industry.

Cecile Vercellino, SVP Services, Industrial Automation at Schneider Electric, says: "Schneider Electric has lived this transformation across over 120 smart factories and distribution centres, we know what works, where companies get stuck and what it takes to move from isolated pilots to genuine system-wide change. 

“That direct experience is embedded in the Lighthouse OS. Our organisation is already applying these principles across our broader ecosystem and seeing measurable results.”

Supply chain resilience

According to the WEF, only 12% of companies are protected against future disruptions in supply chains and operations.

Manufacturers in all areas are reporting supply chain disruptions as key challenges affecting businesses.

The US Federal Reserve’s Beige Book recently found that some US manufacturers have reported concerns that the conflict in the Middle East resulted in shortages of raw materials. 

The Lighthouse OS is designed to enable support for new business models, drive value creation and mitigate future challenges in the supply chain.