Google certifies automation provider’s company, employees and devices

Companies that guarantee their customers security and up-to-date devices with support can be certified by Google for its Android Enterprise Partner Program. With the acquisition of the Silver Partnership in 2023, Pepperl+Fuchs is among the companies worldwide that have acquired Google's highest certification: not only for the company, but also for its consultants and products.

As part of the Android Enterprise Partner Program (AEPP), Google partners with companies that optimize their solutions for the management, deployment and support of Android devices in business environments. Validated partners receive access to Google resources, tools and support to better integrate and support Android devices in the enterprise.

The program includes various certifications and categories corresponding to the specialization and solutions offered by each partner. These include, for example, mobile device management (MDM) providers, hardware manufacturers, software developers and system integrators.

Pepperl+Fuchs has more than 60 sales employees globally who have reached Google Associate level.

3 pillars of certification

The certification for the Android Enterprise Partner Program comprises three pillars that build on each other. The employees of a company, the company itself and its products are certified. For the individual certifications, the global sales teams and application engineers must complete a predefined training program and confirm the respective certificates with an examination. This certificate consists of three levels: associate, expert and professional. Employees who achieve the certification can call themselves Android Enterprise Associate, Expert or Professional. The training courses cover the entire range of Android-related topics, including mobile device management and security.

Companies may be certified only if the expertise of their employees qualifies them to do so. In order to achieve Silver Partner status, companies seeking certification must have a certain percentage of employee certifications in the various expert groups in each active market. Pepperl+Fuchs has achieved this on a global scale and has been a Silver Partner of the Android Enterprise Partner Program since 2023. This means that Pepperl+Fuchs fulfills Android's increased requirements in terms of business, products, service and performance.

"We are pleased to welcome Pepperl+Fuchs as a Silver Partner in the Android Enterprise Partner Program," said Ken Schutt, director of Android Enterprise Partnerships. "By joining the Silver Partner Program, Pepperl+Fuchs demonstrates its commitment to its customers and guarantees that they will receive world-class customer service, support and solutions to help them grow their business."

The third pillar of the certification program relates to the Silver Partner's Android products. The certification of products is part of the Android Enterprise Recommended program. Google verifies the hardware and software of the mobile devices based on defined requirements and parameters—for example, suitability for use in an industrial environment, guaranteed 90-day security updates for at least five years after the start of sales and further commitments by the manufacturer to at least one OS upgrade, in order to guarantee Google's professional users a comprehensive service package.

Figure 1: The intrinsically safe smartphone Smart-Ex 03 received Android Enterprise Recommended certification.

The intrinsically safe smartphone Smart-Ex 03 from Pepperl+Fuchs, as well as other product series such as Tab-Ex 03 and Tab-Ex 04 Pro, received Android Enterprise Recommended certification and forms the basis for future-oriented digital application scenarios in potentially explosive atmospheres (Figure 1). In the 6-inch Android smartphone, Pepperl+Fuchs combines its global support with the expertise of its subsidiaries ECOM Instruments as a pioneer in intrinsically safe mobile devices and Aava Mobile as an expert in industrial tablets and wireless technologies. The smartphone with Android 13 operating system meets the latest technical standards such as 5G/5G SA, WiFi 6 and eSIM.

With the successful certification, Pepperl+Fuchs is listed in the Android Enterprise Solutions Directory as a device manufacturer. All validated companies can be found there, categorized as "Devices, EMM, Device Manufacturer and Mobility Consulting Service."

Android tools facilitate the secure, professional use of mobile devices in an industrial environment. Customers can request the required configuration of the basic device from the device manufacturer, who will pre-load the devices in production and then provide the appropriate pre-configuration to the customer. The mobile devices can be integrated into the IT infrastructure manually via Android Zero Touch or a QR code. This way, all new devices are integrated into the customer's MDM system with their international mobile equipment identity (IMEI) and can then be managed and updated over the air.

"Behind the Google certification for people, companies and products is a holistic, coherent concept in which the individual processes interlock like pieces of a puzzle and one fits into the other," said Jörg Hartleb, head of product management at ECOM, a Pepperl+Fuchs brand. "By certifying the hardware and the company to the highest standards in conjunction with professional staff training, we offer our customers first-class support and service during the initial installation of the mobile devices, as well as during use."