Adding factory floor automation to digital ecosystems; tools, technology and transformation.

This paper presents research from the process definition tools implementation at Loughborough University, which is an automated manufacturing testbed that has been integrated into a service orientated architecture (SOA). The enablement of this SOA in terms of digital business ecosystem (DBE) research presents new applications to SMEpsilas that support, require and supply automated manufacturing systems. These new applications and characteristics in the context of digital ecosystem tools, technologies and general architectural changes are examined. In particular new opportunities in virtualisation of automation and integration at both lower and higher levels of distributed applications are presented in a transformed view of a DBE.