18 Mar 2025
Learn how IT/OT convergence helps manufacturers reduce downtime, improve visibility, and enable secure remote operations across industrial environments.
Manufacturers face constant pressure to reduce downtime, cut costs, and stay competitive. But when IT and OT systems operate in separate silos, these goals become harder to achieve.
For OT engineers, the priority is keeping production running. For IT teams, it is securing the systems that production depends on. Although these goals complement each other, the teams have historically relied on different tools and processes. This can lead to fragmented infrastructure, operational disruptions, and security gaps.
IT/OT convergence addresses this divide. However, successful convergence requires solutions that support both IT security requirements and OT workflows. This guide explains what IT/OT convergence means, its benefits and challenges, and how manufacturers can approach it effectively.
IT/OT convergence is the integration of Information Technology (IT) and Operational Technology (OT) into a single connected environment that shares data and supports smarter decisions across the entire manufacturing operation.
IT covers the information technology systems used to store, process, and analyze data. This includes enterprise applications, cloud platforms, corporate networks, data storage, and data management.
OT covers the operational technology systems that control physical industrial operations:
For decades, IT and OT operated separately. Before the rise of IIoT, the cloud connectivity and advanced analytics, this approach was often sufficient.
Today, siloed systems create costly blind spots. Here is what IT and OT staying siloed can cost manufacturers:.
IT/OT convergence is not just about connecting systems. It is about giving the right people the right data at the right time, in an industry that can no longer afford to operate any other way.
The global manufacturing sector is a complex and shifting landscape shaped by economic uncertainty, geopolitical tensions, and rapid technological change. While overall output grew modestly—rising 0.6% in 2024—this figure masks deeper regional and sectoral disparities. Excluding China, the sector actually contracted by 0.9%. European manufacturers in particular faced energy shortages, inflation, and the ongoing disruption of geopolitical instability. Add escalating trade tensions and rising tariffs, and business confidence across multiple regions is eroding fast.
Technology is changing what it means to stay competitive in manufacturing. Investment in AI, sustainability, and digital infrastructure is no longer a future priority. It is happening now:
48% of manufacturers are actively considering investment in AI and machine learning
68% of manufacturing executives are implementing extensive, corporate-wide sustainability strategies
Workforce complexity is growing, with manufacturers increasingly dependent on IT and software skills that the available talent pool has not kept pace with
Digital transformation in manufacturing is the mechanism through which companies reduce waste, improve resilience, and stay competitive.
When IT and OT share data seamlessly, teams gain the visibility they need to identify issues faster, troubleshoot more effectively, and make informed decisions across the organization.
Some estimates put the number of unfilled manufacturing roles globally at 10 million. IT/OT convergence helps close that gap by making industrial environments more connected, more visible, and easier to manage remotely, with fewer people on-site.
As industrial environments become more connected, manufacturers need to provide employees, vendors, and service partners with access to critical systems without increasing risk. Regulations such as NIS2 and the Cyber Resilience Act are raising expectations around access governance, auditability, and resilience. IT/OT convergence creates a common security foundation across both environments, enabling secure remote operations, granular access controls, and visibility into who can access which systems and when. The result is stronger protection for critical assets without disrupting production.
Converged IT and OT systems give operations leaders real-time visibility into factory-floor performance. Machine data, production rates, and process anomalies surface immediately, allowing teams to address issues before they become costly disruptions.
Instead of waiting for an on-site technician, connected manufacturers can resolve many issues remotely. The Bühler Group used TeamViewer Tensor to diagnose and resolve problems in remote plant locations with limited connectivity, reducing site visits, shortening response times, and supporting its ISO 27001 certification efforts.
IT/OT convergence provides the real-time data foundation needed for automation and AI in manufacturing. Automated systems streamline repetitive processes, reduce bottlenecks, improve quality, and increase efficiency.
TeamViewer's own research from 2024, based on 1,400 IT decision-makers across industries, shows AI adoption is accelerating across manufacturing:
The most common use cases include customer support automation, data analysis, process automation, and supply chain optimization. AI depends on clean, connected, real-time data. Without IT/OT integration, AI tools lack the information they need to deliver value.
Many manufacturers still rely on OT equipment that was never designed to connect to modern IT networks. Industrial gateways, edge computing, and cloud platforms help bridge this gap by connecting legacy systems to modern infrastructure. Secure remote access solutions such as TeamViewer Tensor allow IT teams to support OT environments without disrupting production.
Many organizations still rely on VPNs or homegrown access solutions, but these often lack the scalability, security, and auditability required in today's industrial environments. Purpose-built remote connectivity has become the new standards.
Connecting IT and OT expands the attack surface, particularly when legacy OT systems lack modern security controls. In manufacturing, a breach can do more than expose data. It can halt production, damage equipment, and create safety risks.
Effective IT/OT cybersecurity requires:
External vendors often require remote access for support and maintenance. Traditional VPNs frequently provide broader access than necessary, increasing security risks.
Modern remote connectivity solutions restrict access to specific devices and provide visibility, audit trails, and role-based permissions. This helps organizations maintain security without disrupting operations.
OT teams prioritize keeping production running, while IT focuses on security. Successful IT/OT convergence requires solutions that support both goals.
This means:
When both teams align around shared goals, collaboration replaces friction and security becomes easier to adopt.
IT/OT integration requires upfront investment, but a Boston Consulting Group study found that companies implementing IT/OT integration typically achieve an average ROI of 20-30% within three years, driven by reduced downtime, improved resource utilization, and greater operational efficiency. Standardized access controls can also strengthen regulatory compliance.
A converged IT/OT environment is built on three connected layers:
Each layer plays a distinct role, and all three need to work together for IT/OT convergence to deliver real operational value.
Edge computing processes data directly at or near the source, on the factory floor itself. Instead of sending raw OT data all the way to a central cloud, edge devices filter, analyze, and act on it locally. This is especially important for OT environments where low latency is critical and where network connectivity may be inconsistent.
Once relevant data is processed at the edge, cloud platforms like Microsoft Azure IoT or AWS IoT Hub bring it together centrally. This gives IT teams, operations directors, and senior management a unified view across all production assets and sites.
The third pillar is secure remote access. IT and OT teams need to access industrial systems, PLCs, HMIs, and network endpoints without disrupting production. This is where purpose-built remote connectivity platforms like TeamViewer play a critical role. They provide secure, auditable, and role-based access to connected environments across your entire manufacturing footprint, without requiring on-site presence.
Remote operations is the practical category that makes IT/OT integration work in the real world. It covers everything from secure remote access and device management to diagnostics, troubleshooting, and AR remote assistance. Without it, even a well-architected convergence strategy depends on people being physically present, which is neither scalable nor sustainable.
Remote connectivity lets IT and OT teams diagnose and resolve issues without traveling to the source. The difference between a 15-minute remote fix and a half-day service call is measurable in both cost and production output.
With remote access to PLCs, HMIs, and industrial controllers, technicians can read diagnostic logs, adjust configurations, and test fixes without touching the physical environment. This reduces risk and accelerates resolution.
Purpose-built industrial remote access tools handle the security constraints of OT environments. They support unattended access to OT devices, headless systems, embedded platforms, and physically inaccessible endpoints, without opening unnecessary network exposure.
Managing hundreds or thousands of endpoints across multiple sites requires centralized visibility. Remote connectivity platforms with built-in endpoint management let small IT teams scale support across an entire manufacturing ecosystem. This directly addresses the skills gap challenge.
Augmented reality tools like Assist AR let remote experts guide on-site workers step by step through maintenance and repair procedures. This makes skilled expertise available anywhere in the world, reducing the operational impact of unfilled technical roles. At the same time knowledge from the support session is captured and shared across the team for easier resolution of repetitive issues.
As IT and OT environments become more connected, robust access controls are essential. TeamViewer Tensor is an enterprise remote connectivity platform that provides secure, auditable access to industrial systems.
It supports IT governance requirements while allowing OT teams to maintain control over their equipment and workflows. Its security capabilities include:
OT teams retain operational control, while IT teams gain centralized visibility and governance.
Cimbali Group, the world's largest manufacturer of professional coffee machines, previously relied on technicians travelling to customer sites before diagnosing machine problems.
By integrating TeamViewer into its connected coffee machines, technicians can remotely access machine interfaces, diagnose faults, and adjust software settings. The company reports a 20% increase in technician efficiency, lower service costs, and improved machine uptime.
framas, a leading footwear components supplier with roughly 3,300 employees across 13 global sites, needed to support manufacturing equipment and employee devices across its global locations. Using TeamViewer Tensor, its teams can remotely diagnose connections between machines and the ERP system and support terminals across multiple sites. This has helped reduce downtime and travel while providing encryption, single sign-on, and connection traceability as part of a broader cybersecurity program.
See how framas supports a global manufacturing footprint with TeamViewer Tensor.
A successful IT/OT integration starts with a clear strategy and realistic expectations. Here are the key steps:
IT/OT convergence can help manufacturers improve visibility, resolve issues faster, and create the data foundation for automation and AI.
The transition still requires manufacturers to address legacy systems, cybersecurity risks, and organizational silos. Any solution must also protect production continuity and preserve OT control.
TeamViewer Tensor is an enterprise remote connectivity platform that gives IT and OT teams secure, auditable access to the systems they need, without disrupting production or overriding the operational control that engineers depend on.
Start with network segmentation to isolate OT systems from corporate IT. Apply zero trust principles, enforce strict identity and access management, and use secure remote access tools with full audit logging. Align with frameworks like IEC 62443 and the NIST Cybersecurity Framework throughout the process.
Converged systems let a smaller team of experts remotely monitor and support equipment across multiple sites. Instead of requiring on-site specialists at every location, manufacturers can centralize expertise and deploy it remotely. AR-based tools, like Assist AR, extend this further by guiding workers on-site through complex tasks in real time.
According to Boston Consulting Group, companies that implement IT/OT integration typically achieve ROI of 20 to 30% within three years. Savings come primarily from reduced unplanned downtime, better resource utilization, and improved operational efficiency across production sites.
The most common hurdles are legacy OT systems that use proprietary protocols, expanded cybersecurity risks from increased connectivity, friction between IT and OT teams, and the need to justify upfront investment to leadership. Each challenge is addressable with the right strategy, tools, and cross-functional alignment.
Secure remote access lets IT and OT teams manage and troubleshoot industrial systems without physical site visits. It reduces response times, lowers travel costs, and gives engineers access to PLCs, HMIs, and controllers anywhere in the world, while maintaining strict access controls, audit trails, and session traceability.
Industrial IoT sensors generate the real-time data that IT/OT convergence relies on. Edge computing processes that data locally at the source, reducing latency and bandwidth demands. Together, they create a data pipeline that flows from the factory floor to cloud analytics platforms, giving teams operational visibility across the entire production environment.
AI relies on the real-time data that connected IT/OT environments generate. As manufacturers increasingly explore AI-driven use cases, connected data infrastructure provides the foundation for capabilities such as process optimization, quality control, and supply chain planning. Without reliable data flows across IT and OT systems, organizations may find it difficult to unlock the full potential of AI in manufacturing.
Digital transformation in manufacturing is the process of integrating digital technologies into industrial operations to improve manufacturing efficiency, reduce waste, and enable smarter decision-making. IT/OT convergence is one of the most impactful examples of digital transformation in industrial manufacturing in practice. It connects the data generated on the factory floor with the business systems to enable automation, predictive maintenance, and real-time visibility.