Catena-X meets Factory-X: GEC and Cofinity-X realize a showcase for interoperable data exchange

Important step towards implementing the European Manufacturing-X vision

COLOGNE, GERMANY, January 26, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- German Edge Cloud (GEC) and Cofinity-X are implementing one of the first showcases for interoperable data exchange between Catena-X and Factory-X. The goal is to enable continuous, sovereign data flows across company and industry boundaries. This marks an important step toward seamlessly networked Manufacturing-X architectures.

The showcase focuses on the technical integration of two central industrial ecosystems: Catena-X as an open, federated dataspace for the automotive industry and Factory-X as a cross-industry reference architecture for digital, networked production. The demonstrator shows how identities, access rights, and data interfaces can be aligned so consistent data exchange across domains and industries becomes possible.

From production to the dataspace
The technical basis for intra-factory integration is provided by the ONCITE Digital Production System (DPS) from GEC and Dataspace OS by Cofinity-X. ONCITE DPS acts as a central data hub within the factory: It collects and contextualizes production data from machines, systems, and sensors, and prepares the data in a structured and standards-compliant manner for transfer to higher-level IT systems and dataspace connectors.

“Our task is to structure and integrate production data in such a way that it can be used confidently along the value chains,” says Dieter Meuser, CEO of GEC.

Using Dataspace OS, companies can then integrate this data securely, in a standardised and compliant way, into Catena-X and share it with their partners. The data owner retains full control over his data, access rights, and terms of use at all times.

Cross-industry dataspaces for Manufacturing-X
As operating company, Cofinity-X provides the required dataspace infrastructure and manages central services. This creates a technical and organizational framework for secure, reliable, scalable dataexchange beyond automotive.

“The showcase demonstrates that federated dataspaces work across industries,” says Thomas Rösch, CEO of Cofinity-X. "As operator and enabler of dataspaces, we are laying the foundation for interoperability – today between Catena-X and Factory-X, tomorrow for many other industries. This is a crucial step toward putting Manufacturing-X into practice."

Complementary roles in the project
Within the partnership, Cofinity-X and GEC assume clearly defined, complementary roles. Cofinity-X focuses on horizontal integration between companies and provides interoperable connector infrastructure for secure data exchange based on the Eclipse Dataspace Components Connector. This level forms the basis for data exchange along the value chains.

GEC is responsible for vertical integration within companies and intra-factory networking based on the MX ports specified by Factory-X. These standardized integration points from the Factory-X environment are provided by SmartFactory Kaiserslautern (SFKL), among others, and enable the structured connection of production systems to higher-level dataspaces.

The model factory of SmartFactory Kaiserslautern serves as a real production demonstrator. The modular, service-oriented production facility exemplifies how digital twins based on the Asset Administration Shell, OPC UA-based machine communication, and sovereign data exchange interact in a real manufacturing environment.

Live at Hannover Messe 2026
The showcase will be presented at Hannover Messe to demonstrate how dataspaces work together seamlessly and how the European Manufacturing-X vision can be implemented in practice. GEC, Cofinity-X, and SmartFactoryKaiserslautern are thus concretly contributing to the digital sovereignty of European industry.

Full version: https://www.cofinity-x.com/blog/catena-x-meets-factory-x-gec-and-cofinity-x-realize-a-showcase-for-interoperable-data-exchange

GEC
German Edge Cloud is a provider of software, services, and technologies that support industrial companies in their transition to digitized, resilient, and energy-efficient factories. With its ONCITE Digital Production System (DPS), GEC offers a software solution with standardized applications and microservice-based architecture for easy integration of new functionalities.

The solutions of GEC are used by wellknown companies in various industries. GEC is a member of Catena-X. As part of the automotive network and with its Catena-X-certified ONCITE DPS, GEC is committed to efficient, transparent, and secure data exchange along the entire value chain of the automotive industry.
www.gec.io

Cofinity-X
As an operator of data ecosystems such as Catena-X, Cofinity-X enables standardized, secure, and sovereign data exchange between all participants in the value chain. The company provides the technical infrastructure for data ecosystems, supports the connection of participants, and operates a marketplace for apps and services, including its own solutions.
www.cofinity-x.com

German Edge Cloud GmbH & Co. KG
Diezer Straße 52
65549 Limburg a.d. Lahn

Dr. Ingo Herbst
-VP Corporate Communications-
+49 6431590970
ingo.herbst@gec.io

punctum pr-agentur GmbH
Neuer Zollhof 3
47800 Düsseldorf

Ulrike Peter
-Managing Director-
0211-97179 77-0
up@punctum-pr.de

Rafael Rabe
Cofinity-X GmbH
+ +49 1578 0601327
press@cofinity-x.com
Visit us on social media:
LinkedIn

Legal Disclaimer:

EIN Presswire provides this news content "as is" without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.