30/09/2026 - Press release COPA-DATA brings software-defined grid automation to Enlit Europe 2026

Giving grid operators greater flexibility in how they modernize, integrate and operate increasingly complex energy infrastructure while limiting CAPEX

At Enlit Europe 2026 in Vienna, taking place from November 10 - 12, 2026, COPA-DATA will demonstrate at booth A.a91 how its zenon software platform supports utilities in modernizing substations and grid operations across legacy, digital and virtualized environments. Additionally it will be shown how operators can benefit from these capabilities as they emerge into new grid realities.

Currently, power systems are undergoing fundamental change. Grid expansion and renewable integration are increasing demands on transmission and distribution infrastructure, while utilities need to manage assets from different vendors and technology generations. At the same time, virtualization, cybersecurity requirements and growing volumes of operational data are changing how substations and grids are engineered and operated.

The central theme of COPA-DATA’s presence is to address these challenges with software-defined and vendor-independent automation: enabling utilities to modernize infrastructure step by step instead of tying transformation to individual hardware vendors and their technology cycle thus making the grid future-proof.

What’s happening at the COPA-DATA booth?

At the center of COPA-DATA’s Enlit presence is Substation Automation for transmission and distribution, complemented by virtualization, control center applications, cybersecurity and data utilization. The aim is to give visitors a practical view of how software-defined automation can simplify different stages of grid modernization. 

The showcases range from Substation Automation to Renewable Energy Management including Wind Turbine Monitoring and Wind Park Controlling, as well as integrating and controlling utility-scale and industrial & commercial Solar PV, Hybrid Renewables and BESS. Platform Management and IIoT Services complete the landscape, demonstrating how zenon can handle different areas and levels of increasingly connected energy infrastructure. 

The demonstrations focus on five main benefits that utilities can explore with COPA-DATA experts: 

• Modernize substations while keeping existing infrastructure in play and limiting CAPEX: Visitors can explore Substation HMI, SCADA and gateway applications, IEC 61850 digital substations and the new IEC 61850 Configurator in zenon 16. Top-down engineering from SCD files and the integration of legacy and IEC 61850 environments demonstrate how utilities can approach modernization without starting from scratch, thus leveraging existing infrastructure further and minimizing CAPEX. 

• Reduce hardware dependence and take advantage of interoperability: COPA-DATA will demonstrate software-defined, virtualized architectures including vPAC, vHMI and vRTU. Visitors can see how conventional, digital and virtualized environments can form part of the same modernization strategy – reducing dependence on individual hardware technology cycles. 

• Connect individual substations with wider grid operations and become future-ready: DMS functions and multi-site substation management will demonstrate how zenon can extend from the local substation to network control. The wider Energy Landscape demos add renewable generation, storage and HVDC to this perspective. 

• Ensure cybersecurity as central pillar of grid modernization: COPA-DATA experts will address OT security in the context of NIS2, the Cyber Resilience Act (CRA), NERC CIP, IEC 62443 and IEC 62351. The focus is on integrating cybersecurity considerations into increasingly connected and software-driven grid architectures. 

• Get more value from operational data: Through MQTT, device management, dashboards and fleet-wide reporting, visitors can explore how IIoT services can make operational data available across distributed assets and sites for improved monitoring, analysis and decision making.

Interoperability: One plattform across different hardware and stages of modernization

The common thread runs through all COPA-DATA demonstrations at Enlit: simplifying operations without relying on hardware standardization. As a vendor-independent, hardware-agnostic software platform, zenon can connect different vendors and generations of infrastructure – from legacy equipment and IEC 61850 digital substations to virtualized environments, control centers and renewable assets. 

For visitors, this opens the opportunity to see different areas of energy automation within one connected landscape and discuss how a software-defined approach can support their existing infrastructure while advancing their modernization goals. 

Visitors can experience these applications live and discuss their individual grid modernization strategies and objectives with COPA-DATA’s energy automation experts. Visit COPA-DATA from November 10. – 12. in Vienna at Enlit Europe (VIECON venue, at booth A.a91).

Press contact

About COPA-DATA

COPA-DATA is an independent software manufacturer that specializes in digitalization for the manufacturing industry and energy sector. Its zenon® software platform enables users worldwide to automate, manage, monitor, integrate and optimize machines, equipment, buildings and power grids. COPA-DATA combines decades of experience in automation with the potential of digital transformation and a strong drive for sustainability-enabling solutions. In this way, the company supports its customers to achieve their objectives more easily, faster and more efficiently.  

The family-owned business was founded by Thomas Punzenberger in 1987 in Salzburg, Austria. A sales network of international distributors and 14 subsidiaries ensures that the software is marketed worldwide. More than 500 certified partner companies further support end users with the efficient implementation of the software, particularly in the key industries of food & beverage, energy & infrastructure, automotive and pharmaceutical. 

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Samuel Inwinkl

Press International, COPA-DATA Headquarters

Contact Samuel Inwinkl