What ProLeit by Schneider Electric does

ProLeiT GmbH (branded 'ProLeit by Schneider Electric') is a German-headquartered software manufacturer of PLC-based process control systems with integrated Manufacturing Execution System (MES) functionality, founded in 1985 and now operating as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Schneider Electric. Its core products are Plant iT — a modular, object-oriented PCS/MES platform for general process industries — and brewmaxx, a brewery-specific configuration that controls breweries producing more than 350 million hectoliters of beer annually, roughly one-fifth of global beer output. The architecture rests on a 'parameterization instead of programming' philosophy with ISA-88 compliant batch systems, a compiler-less design that allows configuration changes during live production, and multi-PLC abstraction supporting Schneider Electric, Siemens, and Rockwell Automation controllers. The platform is extended by the ADVANCE for PROCESS and ADVANCE for INTEGRATE module families, optimization products CIPoptimize and LINEoptimize, and Plant iT Connect for ERP/LIMS integration.

The company sells predominantly to enterprise customers across nine process-industry verticals — brewing and malting, beverages, dairy, food, baking, life sciences (pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical), chemical and fine chemical, paints and coatings, and distilleries — with named accounts including Carlsberg, Heineken, Molson Coors, Diageo, Danone, Müller Milch, Almarai, BASF, Henkel, Bayer, and Merck KGaA. Go-to-market combines a direct sales force organized by industry verticals (Beverages, Dairy & Food, Chemical & Life Science) with a tiered partner network of system integrators, OEM partners, plant manufacturers, and scientific partners. Revenue is generated through one-time software licenses for Plant iT and brewmaxx, modules and add-ons, professional services and training (ProLeiT Academy), and recurring support, cybersecurity, and CIPoptimize subscription contracts. ProLeiT solutions are deployed across more than 3,000 installations in over 110 countries, with FDA 21 CFR Part 11 compliance and ISA-88 batch certification supporting regulated-industry use cases.

Name

ProLeit by Schneider Electric

Legal name

ProLeiT GmbH

Website

https://proleit.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Short description

ProLeiT by Schneider Electric develops PLC-based process control systems (Plant iT and brewmaxx) with integrated MES functionality for food, beverage, dairy, pharmaceutical, chemical, and paints manufacturers, deployed across 3,000+ installations in 110+ countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Process Control & MES Software

NAICS

Instruments and Related Products Manufacturing for Measuring, Displaying, and Controlling Industrial Process Variables (334513), Relay and Industrial Control Manufacturing (335314), Navigational, Measuring, Electromedical, and Control Instruments Manufacturing (33451)

SIC

Industrial Instruments For Measurement, Display, And Control (3823), Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373), Electrical Industrial Apparatus (3620)

akta.pro primary industry

Industrial Automation Software (SCADA, HMI, MES, Historian) (IMAHAHAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Process & Batch Control Software (Recipe Management, ISA-88) (IMAGABAH), Industrial Controllers & Control Systems (PLCs, PACs, CNC Controllers) (IMAHAHAH), Control System Integration & Engineering Services (Design, Commissioning, Retrofits) (IMAGABAK)

Keywords

• Process control systems
• Manufacturing execution software
• Industrial automation software
• Recipe management systems
• Line management software

Headquarters

HQ city

Herzogenaurach

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Software Licenses (Process Control Systems): Sale and licensing of PLC-based process control systems Plant iT and brewmaxx with integrated MES functionality. Available in multiple language versions. Systems support various PLC manufacturers.
2. Modules and Add-ons: Additional modules such as CIPoptimize, LINEoptimize, Equipment Modules, Maintenance, Routing Management, Energy Management, and Weighing Assistant can be added to base systems.
3. Professional Services: Implementation, system integration, training, and support services. ProLeiT provides extensive project engineering, on-site support, and training programs through their Academy.
4. Support and Maintenance: Annual support contracts, cybersecurity services, MS patches, and remote access services. International support available Mon-Fri 9am-5pm CET.
5. CIPoptimize Subscription Model: CIPoptimize available as a subscription model with various feature tiers.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

ProLeiT develops and licenses PLC-based process control systems (Plant iT for general process industries and brewmaxx for breweries) with integrated Manufacturing Execution System (MES) functionality, plus optimization and reporting modules (CIPoptimize, LINEoptimize, Plant Integrate iT, ADVANCE for PROCESS/INTEGRATE). The solutions support controllers from Schneider Electric, Siemens, and Rockwell Automation, use an object-oriented parameterization approach that avoids custom programming, and are sold to enterprise manufacturers in food & beverage, pharmaceutical, chemical, and paints & coatings industries.

Product overview

ProLeit by Schneider Electric offers a modular platform-plus-modules architecture centered on two core process control systems: Plant iT (general-purpose modular PCS with MES for process industry) and brewmaxx (industry-specific solution for breweries). Plant iT and brewmaxx share a common engineering philosophy ('parameterisation instead of programming') and architecture. The platform is extended through ADVANCE product families: ADVANCE for PROCESS adds specialized modules like Material management, Archive Manager, EnMS energy management, Equipment Modules, Maintenance, Routing Management, MWS weighing assistant, and Messenger; ADVANCE for INTEGRATE provides Batch Cockpit and Workflow management. Separate optimization products include CIPoptimize (automated cleaning management) and LINEoptimize (line management system). Plant Integrate iT provides MES reporting and workflow management, while Plant iT Connect enables ERP/LIMS integration. The product portfolio serves food & beverage, pharmaceutical, chemical, paints & coatings, and bakery industries across more than 110 countries with over 2,100 production facilities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Plant iT: Modular process control system with integrated MES functionality for the process industry, supporting various PLC manufacturers and available in multiple languages.
• brewmaxx
• CIPoptimize
• LINEoptimize
• Plant Integrate iT
• ADVANCE for PROCESS
• ADVANCE for INTEGRATE

Products and services

• Plant iT Modular, object-oriented, PLC-based process control system with integrated MES functionality for general process industries. Supports PLCs from Schneider Electric, Siemens, and Rockwell Automation, and uses parameterization-instead-of-programming architecture enabling live operational changes without downtime.
• brewmaxx PLC-based process control system with integrated MES specifically tailored for brewery operations, including recipe control for liquids. Deployed in over 850 brewery installations worldwide, controlling annual output of more than 350 million hectoliters.
• CIPoptimize Automated Cleaning-in-Place (CIP) management solution that optimizes cleaning efficiency and reduces consumption of energy, water, and chemicals while providing detailed cleaning process documentation. Available standalone, as an add-on to Plant iT/brewmaxx, or via subscription tiers.
• LINEoptimize Hardware-independent production line management system providing centralized monitoring, analysis, and optimization of production lines, identifying causes of downtime in real time and integrating with ERP and MES systems.
• Plant Integrate iT MES reporting and workflow management system providing location-independent real-time reports, interactive analytics dashboards, and consolidation of historic data from multiple Plant iT servers and external systems. Built on Microsoft Reporting Services and Integration Services.
• Plant iT Connect Interface manager providing parameterisable communication interfaces between Plant iT and external systems including ERP (SAP, Oracle, Microsoft), LIMS, maintenance systems, and intelligent measuring instruments. Supports iDoc/MQ, XML/B2MML, RFC, and SQL/ODBC channels.
• ADVANCE for PROCESS Extension suite that extends Plant iT and brewmaxx base systems with specialized modules including process-oriented materials management, archive manager, energy management (EnMS), equipment modules, maintenance, routing management, manual weighing (MWS), and Messenger.
• ADVANCE for INTEGRATE Extension suite boosting data and workflow efficiency with solutions for evaluating and validating production data, including the Batch Cockpit and Workflow Management tools for managing production activities.

Quantifiable outcome

• brewmaxx controls breweries with annual output exceeding 350 million hectoliters - approximately one-fifth of global beer production
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers25 records

Segments9 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration10 records

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Schneider ElectriccoreOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing PartnerProLeiT operates as ProLeiT by Schneider Electric, serving as the software manufacturer within the Schneider Electric portfolio. The company supports controllers from Schneider Electric alongside Siemens and Rockwell Automation. ProLeiT products are integrated into Schneider Electric's broader energy and automation digital solutions.
• System PartnersmajorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerSystem partners implement ProLeiT solutions. Partner program includes training, support, and certification pathways. 28 partners from 17 countries participated in ProLeiT Partner Days.
• OEM & Plant PartnersmajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPlant manufacturers and OEM partners embed ProLeiT solutions into their equipment and plants. Certified OEM Solution Program provides service, PCS, and MES for machine and plant builders.
• Scientific PartnersminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversities and research institutions collaborate with ProLeiT on R&D, particularly with Technical University of Munich (TUM) for dairy and food industry solutions. Collaborations focus on knowledge transfer in process control technology, automation, and MES solutions.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• AVEVA: AVEVA is a direct competitor providing industrial software and MES solutions (incl. AVEVA Process Simulation, MES, and Unified Operations) for process industries, overlapping directly with ProLeiT's PCS+MES offering for F&B, chemical, and pharma customers.
• Rockwell Automation (FactoryTalk): Rockwell's FactoryTalk suite delivers integrated process control and MES, and is supported by ProLeiT as one of its three multi-PLC options; it competes head-to-head where customers standardize on a single controller vendor.
• Siemens Digital Industries (Opcenter / SIMATIC PCS 7): Siemens is a direct competitor: SIMATIC PCS 7 competes with Plant iT/brewmaxx as a process control system, and Opcenter competes directly with ProLeiT's integrated MES; ProLeiT even supports Siemens PLCs, recognizing them as a primary alternative stack.
• Emerson (DeltaV / Syncade): Emerson DeltaV is a major PCS in brewery, beverage, chemical, and life science process plants, and Syncade is its MES; the pairing is the closest functional analog to ProLeiT's Plant iT + integrated MES architecture.
• Honeywell (Forge / Experion): Honeywell's Experion PKS (process control) and Forge / Connected Plant (MES + analytics) are direct comparables in the process industries including life sciences and F&B, overlapping on recipe/batch management and integrated MES functionality.

Others

• Krones AG: Krones is the leading brewery and beverage line equipment OEM; as an OEM/plant-partner it integrates third-party process control (historically including ProLeiT-adjacent solutions) and is thematically adjacent in brewery automation but does not itself market a competing MES/PCS platform.

Emerging players

• iBASEt (Solumina MES): iBASEt's Solumina is a focused MES vendor with strong position in discrete and regulated manufacturing (aerospace, industrial, life sciences); partial overlap with ProLeiT's MES module given its expansion into pharma/process customers.
• Critical Manufacturing: Critical Manufacturing is a focused MES provider, particularly in semiconductor and regulated industries; an emerging player whose Advanced MES overlaps with ProLeiT's batch/electronic batch records and pharma life-sciences positioning.

Broad incumbents

• ABB (System 800xA / Ability): ABB's System 800xA integrated automation platform combines DCS, MES, and asset management, and ABB is a broad incumbent with deep process-industry presence across F&B, chemical, and pharmaceutical customers overlapping ProLeiT's verticals.
• Yokogawa Electric (CENTUM VP): Yokogawa CENTUM VP is a major DCS competing for the same process-industry projects (F&B, chemical, pharmaceutical) that ProLeiT targets; it is an established broader incumbent outside direct European brewery dominance.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about ProLeit by Schneider Electric