January 2026: New Scheduling Standard for OPC UA in Manufacturing Engineering

In January 2026, the landscape of manufacturing engineering standards receives an important update with the publication of a new standard: IEC 62541-24:2026, OPC Unified Architecture – Part 24: Scheduler. This pivotal standard introduces a comprehensive model for automating actions based on scheduled dates and times within OPC UA Servers, laying the groundwork for next-generation industrial process control, smart manufacturing, and seamless integration across Industry 4.0 systems. This article provides an in-depth exploration of the new requirements, the technical model, and practical strategies for compliance, catering to engineers, quality managers, automation professionals, and compliance officers eager to stay ahead amid evolving standards.

Overview / Introduction

Manufacturing engineering is the backbone of modern industry. In recent years, fresh demands for process automation, smarter scheduling, and robust data integration have pushed companies toward increasingly sophisticated solutions. Standards in this field shape how interoperability, efficiency, and reliability are achieved on the shop floor and in distributed industrial systems.

In January 2026, the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) published a critical new addition to its portfolio: IEC 62541-24:2026, a standard dedicated to scheduling within OPC Unified Architecture (OPC UA) environments. This standard defines how to configure, expose, and manipulate schedules for automated actions, enabling manufacturers to orchestrate operations with precision—whether repeating, on specific dates, or in response to globally defined events like public holidays.

In this article, you’ll learn:

• How the new OPC UA Scheduler information model works
• Key requirements and technical specifications
• Who benefits from adopting this standard, and compliance considerations
• Best practices for implementation

Detailed Standards Coverage

IEC 62541-24:2026 – OPC Unified Architecture – Part 24: Scheduler

OPC unified architecture – Part 24: Scheduler

Scope and Purpose: IEC 62541-24:2026 specifies an OPC UA information model designed to communicate when specific actions should be executed in an OPC UA Server. It enables both discovery and configuration of such schedules, either directly within the model or by referencing global calendars (such as public holidays or plant shutdowns). This reduces manual interventions, enhances process automation, and increases uptime for manufacturing and industrial systems.

The standard covers:

• Defining schedules for actions (e.g., variable writes, method calls) at precise times and dates
• Supporting both regular/recurring and special (exceptional) events
• Allowing schedules to reference globally shared calendars for synchronization
• Providing mechanisms for clients to dynamically add, remove, and manipulate schedules via the information model

Key Requirements and Specifications:

• Information Model Structure: The standard introduces two main ObjectTypes:
  • CalendarType: Defines a set of date entries (specific dates, repeated dates, date ranges) as a shared resource.
  • ScheduleType: Specifies schedules that reference specific dates, times, and determine the action(s) to execute, with complex logic for exceptions and priorities.
• Weekly and Exception Schedules: Users can define normal weekly operations and overlay exception days (holidays, special events), with exception schedules taking priority when overlaps occur.
• Priority Handling: Exception schedules can overlap; each entry may have a defined priority, ensuring the most relevant schedule is executed.
• Methods for Dynamism: OPC UA Clients can manipulate schedules using provided methods like AddDateListElements, RemoveDateListElements, AddExceptionScheduleElements and RemoveExceptionScheduleElements.
• Action Types: The model supports scheduling for writing to variables, calling methods, and can be extended to other automation actions.
• Startup Behaviors: The ApplyLastAfterStart property defines whether actions from the most recent scheduled event (before server start or restart) should be immediately applied, or whether only future events are considered.
• Namespace Management: Annex A defines the NamespaceUri for all defined NodeIds, ensuring consistent addressing and extensibility across implementations.

Who Needs to Comply:

• Manufacturers, automation engineers, and systems integrators deploying OPC UA-based solutions in discrete and process industries
• Solution architects and IT/OT integrators aligning plant-wide and enterprise automation platforms
• Organizations seeking to optimize resource usage through schedule-driven operations

Practical Implementation Implications:

• Enables fine-grained automation, such as energy savings during off hours, dynamic resource allocation, or time-based maintenance triggers
• Facilitates centralized management of operational calendars—essential for global enterprises
• Reduces risk of manual errors and increases traceability for compliance

Notable Changes from Previous Versions: As a newly published part in the OPC UA series, this standard formalizes scheduling best practices previously implemented on an ad-hoc basis. It also introduces dynamic configuration methods and calendar referencing, improving scalability and maintainability.

Key highlights:

• Standardized information model for scheduling and calendar management within OPC UA
• Flexible support for regular, exceptional, and globally synchronized events
• Built-in hierarchy, priorities, and dynamic manipulation via client interfaces

Access the full standard:View IEC 62541-24:2026 on iTeh Standards

Industry Impact & Compliance

How does IEC 62541-24:2026 affect manufacturing businesses?

Adoption of this scheduler standard empowers industrial organizations to achieve new levels of automation, flexibility, and cost optimization. Some areas of impact include:

• Operational Efficiency: Scheduling reduces energy waste, prevents unscheduled downtime, and aligns production with supply chain and energy market signals.
• Global Coordination: Supporting global holidays and local calendars helps multinational facilities synchronize operations without redundant, bespoke code.
• Compliance and Reporting: Standardized scheduling data structures enable easy auditing, increasingly important for sustainability and operational excellence certifications.
• Risk Mitigation: Automating schedule-based actions helps avoid costly human errors and ensures critical safety or quality routines are reliably executed.

Compliance Considerations and Timelines:

• Organizations implementing or upgrading OPC UA-based architectures should plan phased adoption.
• Adoption may be driven by procurement policies, customer requirements, or legal mandates in highly regulated sectors (e.g., pharmaceuticals, food, chemicals).
• It’s critical to coordinate IT/OT integration teams, ensuring both legacy and new systems are compatible with the new information model, and updating documentation and training accordingly.

Benefits of adopting IEC 62541-24:2026:

• Enhanced control over operations scheduling
• Reduced total cost of ownership (TCO) and maintenance overheads
• Improved compliance transparency and traceability
• Futureproofing facilities for Industry 4.0 and smart manufacturing initiatives

Risks of Non-Compliance:

• Workflow inefficiencies and increased costs
• Reduced competitiveness as peers automate more deeply
• Potential for regulatory lapses if traceability or scheduling fails

Technical Insights

What does the standard require technically?

• Information Model Fundamentals: Implementations must map both CalendarType and ScheduleType Objects in the OPC UA AddressSpace, maintaining up-to-date schedules and supporting dynamic manipulation when needed.
• Method Integration: OPC UA Servers should support calls for adding/removing dates and exceptions, handling error codes for duplicate, not-found, or invalid entries.
• Priority & Conflict Resolution: Where multiple exceptions are defined, servers must resolve which takes precedence based on the defined priority (lower number = higher priority), ensuring business logic is correctly upheld.
• Data Types and Structures: Implementation teams must be familiar with SpecialEventType, SpecialEventPeriodType, CalendarEntryType, and related structures to ensure correct serialization, networking, and UA client compatibility.
• Time Zone Management: Since all times are stored in UTC, facilities must use the defined LocalTime property to correctly translate and display schedules for users and systems operating in varying time zones.
• Persistence & Startup: Decisions about the ApplyLastAfterStart property affect how schedules behave after restarts, impacting uptime and process safety.
• Security and Auditability: Scheduling actions such as variable writes or method calls should be audit-logged in high-value or safety-critical environments, ensuring transparent and tamper-proof operations.

Implementation Best Practices:

1. Centralize Calendar Management: Define global calendars and manage them centrally to reduce redundancy.
2. Validate Action Definitions: Use vendor-supplied tools to validate that time-based actions map correctly to operational requirements.
3. Test Overlapping Exceptions Thoroughly: Simulate and test exception schedules with overlapping periods to verify priority handling.
4. Monitor and Audit: Implement system monitoring to verify that schedules execute as planned, and to support regulatory audits.
5. Document Configurations: Keep clear records of all schedule definitions, exceptions, and changes for auditability and troubleshooting.

Testing and Certification:

• Leverage OPC UA conformance test tools to validate implementation according to this standard
• Engage with certification bodies (where required) to certify compliance for regulated industries
• Validate against real-world use cases, such as holiday shutdowns, shift changes, and coordinated maintenance windows

Conclusion / Next Steps

Adoption of IEC 62541-24:2026 is set to transform how manufacturing engineering organizations automate and control scheduled operations in distributed environments. By enabling standardized, flexible scheduling within OPC UA Servers, enterprises can enhance reliability, efficiency, and global coordination for smart manufacturing.

Key Takeaways:

• A powerful, new standardized method for defining, exposing, and manipulating time-based schedules in OPC UA environments
• Direct benefits for efficiency, compliance, and futureproofing industrial operations
• The opportunity to integrate best-in-class automation for both routine and exceptional operating scenarios

Recommendations:

• Evaluate current scheduling needs and compare with IEC 62541-24:2026’s offerings
• Engage IT/OT stakeholders in planning upgrades to OPC UA implementations
• Reference the official IEC 62541-24:2026 standard on iTeh Standards for full details
• Stay engaged with standards updates to ensure your manufacturing operation remains resilient and competitive

Stay informed — explore the latest standards at iTeh Standards and equip your organization for excellence in the evolving world of manufacturing engineering.