The hidden cost of fragmented remote access (and how to fix it)

Why standardizing remote support is critical, and how machine builders are regaining control with IXON.

In an ideal world, every machine in the field would be supported through a secure, reliable and standardized remote access method.

But for many machine builders, that’s far from reality.

Instead, support engineers find themselves navigating a maze of VPN tools, remote desktop apps, TeamViewers, LogMeIns, customer-controlled firewalls and homegrown hacks, each one different depending on the site, the customer, or the region.

It’s inefficient. It’s a security risk. And it’s completely unsustainable as your installed base grows.

The real cost of fragmented remote access

When you let each customer dictate how your team can access your machines, you sacrifice:

• Time: engineers spend more time connecting than troubleshooting.
• Consistency: no standardized approach to onboarding, service or documentation.
• Security: unknown VPNs, unmanaged logins and risky access permissions.
• Scalability: supporting 10 machines is fine. Supporting 500 across dozens of methods? Chaos.
  
  

What you actually need is a platform

This is where standardizing on a remote access platform like IXON Cloud changes the game.

✅ One secure platform for all remote access needs 
✅ Role-based access control to manage permissions by user, region or function 
✅ End-user transparency through the Request Access feature (they see every connection and can approve/deny it) 
✅ Fully brandable interface so the customer experience is yours, not a third-party app 
✅ No per-user or per-connection licensing limits to slow down your team

Real-world example:

One of our machine builder customers came to us after trying to support machines at over 200 sites. Their engineers were juggling:

• Remote desktop via TeamViewer (customer 1)
• Customer-managed VPN and jump boxes (customer 2)
• Emailing files back and forth because access was denied entirely (customer 3)
• …and more

Security without sacrificing trust

Machine builders often hesitate to centralize remote access out of concern they’ll upset customers. But IXON’s platform is designed with the customer in mind:

• Request access approval: End users stay in control of when connections happen
• Audit trails: Full logs of who connected, when, and for how long
• Read-only options for sensitive HMI connections
• Branded portal means customers feel like they’re using your system—not IXON’s

Conclusion

Remote access shouldn’t be an afterthought or a patchwork of whatever the customer is willing to allow.

It should be a core service capability that reflects your professionalism, protects your IP and scales with your business.

If you’re ready to bring order to the chaos, let’s talk about how IXON can be your single, secure, standardized remote access solution.