Vision 2030 Jan. 2013 | Page 40

In addition to that, we have partnered with IBM on their “Smarter Cities” project, so Schneider technology is very much in play there, integrated with IBM’s systems. These are just two examples of Schneider Electric taking a leading role in the cleantech space.” So, what is the message to potential partners? “We believe in collaboration and partnership. This is evidenced by Schneider’s R&D collaboration agreements with many global companies such as IBM and Cisco, as well as a host of universities and research centres worldwide.” “Schneider Electric values its business partners and works hand in glove with many specialists, but particularly in the switchgear ar ea, application software and integration for projects in energy management, building automation and factory automation, as well as many other complementary added value activities.” “Schneider Electric’s new focus on solutions requires its various product and service activities to work more closely together to develop innovation and offers with common hardware and software platforms, based on open architecture and standards. These platforms also facilitate the integration of products and solutions coming from acquisitions or partnerships.” “Partnership is a way of life within Schneider Electric with end user partnerships and solution partners helping us all to make the most of our energy”. 40