Traditionally, networks used in manufacturing enterprises have been optimized for
performance in specific applications: most commonly, device, control, information and
safety. While well suited to the functionality for which they were designed, these networks
were not developed with a single, coherent enterprise architecture in mind. Since efficiency,
reliability and, ultimately, profitability are generally dependent on having more than one of
these capabilities, manufacturers have been forced to implement several different networks,
none of which communicates innately with the other. As a result, most manufacturing
enterprise network environments are characterized by numerous specialized—and generally
incompatible—networks existing in one space.