Operational Technology Viewpoints

As part of our considerable coverage of cybersecurity at the ARC Industry Forum in Orlando this February, we will continue to discuss the importance of device level cybersecurity for manufacturing operations.  Unfortunately, today’s device-level networks and connected devices may have little in the way of protection from cyber-attack.  

End users must focus in on getting the most out of their installed assets from several viewpoints.  Any automation project today requires a compelling business case.  ARC has identified several scenarios where migration is required.  Like other capital assets, automation assets have a lifecycle.  At the end of that lifecycle, it becomes necessary to plan and execute a control system migration. 

The Global Risks Report 2019 that was published last week precedes the World Economic Forum to be held in Davos from January 22nd-25th.  The report presents the results of the latest Global Risks Perception Survey (GRPS), in which nearly 1,000 decision-makers from the public and private sectors, academia and civil society assess the risks (in terms of likelihood and impact).  These are the five main challenges cited and discussed in the report follow.  They highlight the risks of Cyber Insecurity in a Connected World.

We have a comprehensive series of workshops and sessions dedicated to cybersecurity at the annual ARC Industry Forum in Orlando this year, and the convergence of cybersecurity and safety is an important topic.  

With today’s maintenance management functions being increasingly sophisticated and complex, the need to collect, synchronize, and share EAM and operations data by EAM integration is critical to a successful cross-functional organization.

Improving safety continues as a concern in manufacturing companies. Automation has helped alleviate some problems, but also allowed companies to push the boundaries of the safety envelope.  Over the years, the industry’s safety record has improved overall, but when things go wrong, the consequences are often more severe. It's time to improve manufacturing safety with analytics.

The vast majority of the tens of millions of field instruments in process plants today support the HART protocol. Though dating from the 1980s, HART can provide a number of important and valuable services for end users if they were Integrating HART Field Devices.

Automation’s success can be attributed to the value it delivers.  As technology has progressed, manufacturing automation has proliferated from basic control on the plant or factory floor to today’s advanced applications, thus opening the door to automation's vulnerability.  

Digital transformation with IoT, artificial intelligence, and machine learning, helps companies improve productivity, increase efficiency, and take cost-saving measures

The last decade in India belonged to startup companies; and 2018 saw eight startups enter India's unicorn club (private companies valued at over $1 billion), ushering in an era of unprecedented growth.