Plex by Rockwell was born on the factory floor to make production data visible and usable for the people running the machines. It quickly evolved into a full enterprise cloud platform, shaped by real-world needs. Starting where work happens, Plex by Rockwell extended its clarity to planning, finance, supply chain and customer-facing processes.
Today, it stands as a cloud-first environment that unifies production control, quality management, and back-office workflows into one streamlined experience, connecting people and data seamlessly. As Plex by Rockwell matured into a comprehensive platform, the need for partners who could guide manufacturers through adoption and change became clear.
Control+M Solutions stepped into this role as a specialist partner grounded in those same practical roots. Its mission is to provide architects who help translate Plex by Rockwell's capabilities into practical, implementable plans. "We believe digital transformation works best when it respects daily work and the people doing it," says Patti Nowak, founder of Control+M Solutions. "That's why we focus on clear scoping, thorough operator training, and phased rollouts, so change feels seamless."
That philosophy aligns with broader industry currents, where manufacturers are navigating a landscape increasingly defined by cloud adoption and automation. A 2025 Deloitte survey of 600 manufacturing executives found that more than 75% plan to allocate 20% of their improvement budgets to smart manufacturing initiatives, prioritizing foundational tools such as automation hardware, data analytics, sensors, and cloud computing. This shows strong investment in digital systems that unify operations while enhancing responsiveness.
Meanwhile, Manufacturing Operations Management Software (MOM), which bundles Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Manufacturing Execution System (MES), planning, and analytics, is projected to grow significantly. It's driven by demand for unified platforms that reduce silos between plant operations and corporate decision-making.
Plex by Rockwell offers a fully cloud‑hosted platform that reduces the need for traditional on‑premise servers. Accessible from distributed locations, it operates on a subscription model with routine updates and provider‑managed backups, which can help ease IT burdens.
Its architecture is designed to bring together ERP, MES, quality management, supply chain visibility, Electronic Data Interchange (EDI), and analytics in one consistent environment. With web services and partner connectors, Plex by Rockwell may integrate with external systems ranging from automation controls to enterprise applications. "When you bring these capabilities together, they can help streamline work, connect systems more effectively, and give everyone a shared, real‑time view of operations," Nowak states.
Practical implications for manufacturers are straightforward and often familiar. The platform is positioned as scalable so that smaller plants can grow into broader use while larger operations can use it as a focused MES that complements other enterprise systems. Implementations are frequently framed as phaseable and oriented toward the rapid realization of value.
Early focus areas include production control, traceability, and reducing manual, repetitive data entry that has often lived in spreadsheets. The net effect may be an environment that helps lower routine operational complexity, supports compliance efforts, and allows staff to spend more time on higher‑value activities.
Control+M Solutions' role in that picture is to help organizations turn potential into practice. The company provides programmatic implementation approaches, ongoing module rollouts, and targeted optimization projects that emphasize practical use cases, such as scheduling, costing, and EDI onboarding, so the tools can align more closely with the way teams actually work. With a global team of consultants who are industry experienced, they bring not only digital transformation but also include Operational Excellence techniques for a broader impact.
Control+M Solutions has also invested in community and learning through open training, a growing video library of walkthroughs, and Plex-a-Palooza, their annual user conference where customers and practitioners share lessons and build familiarity. Nowak states, "When people see the work is guided by real operators and not just dashboards, the distance between intent and impact may begin to shorten."
Those community investments matter because thoughtful adoption is often as much about people as it is about code. "We try to make the change feel like a sequence of small, confidence-building steps," Nowak says. "Training that fits the flow of the day can work well. It may reduce anxiety and encourage discovery." This perspective aligns with Control+M Solutions' approach of providing editable process documentation and hands-on learning, which is intended to help lower the barriers that can slow adoption.
As manufacturers look to modernize with cloud-based tools, platforms such as Plex by Rockwell offer an environment designed to bring ERP, MES, quality, and analytics together in a consistent, cloud-native framework. Control+M Solutions works with organizations to apply these capabilities in ways that support daily operations and reflect how teams actually work. By combining platform expertise with practical implementation methods, the company aims to make digital transformation more accessible and grounded in the realities of the shop floor for companies of all sizes.
