Your invaluable guide to IT/OT convergence

Industrial-IP have created a free six page book which gives you a guide to Network Fabric. The network fabric is the physical foundation that enables the convergence of information technology and operations technology into a single network infrastructure – including everything from switching, wireless, computing and storage systems as well as the connectivity, enclosures, pathways and cabling to all the automation and non-automation nodes across today's industrial plants. 

Changing industry demands means that plants must be armed with a reliable and robust network infrastructure for optimized productivity.

The eBook walks you through six chapters breaking down the foundation, value and implementation of a unified network fabric, along with case studies and resources for leveraging best practices throughout your operation.

Gain greater control of your business outcomes by harnessing the limitless potential of the Internet of Things by downloading this free eBook here.

For more information, contact your local Routeco office on 0370 607 1000 or email info@routeco.com

Modernising and migrating your industrial communication technology

Integrating new machines into existing networks can be difficult, time consuming and expensive. But however off-putting migrating now sounds, it can save you time and money in the long run.

Do you have a remote device you have to manually visit to collect the data? Two industrial radios can solve that problem for you.

Is your building automation system connected to your network? Think of the money you could save if you had real-time data on how much and where your energy is being used.

Do you have a hazardous area in your plant? If you could monitor this area remotely with remote video monitoring you could potentially detect dangerous situations early and contribute to increased work-place safety.

The future is in wireless. The Industrial Internet of Things is ever-growing and it is expected that within 10 years everything will be wireless. Look into today’s industrial wireless products and make a five-year plan on what you will make wireless, so you will be ready for the needs of the future.

A migration plan is needed to allow you to layer new data communications technology over the top of existing technology. For more information on how to begin planning for migration, read this white paper from ProSoft Technology.

At Routeco, a member of our Technical Specialist team can help you with your needs for migrating and modernising your industrial communication technology. 

To speak to one of our Specialists about your requirements please contact us by email info@routeco.com or call 0370 607 1000.

Rockwell Automation and Cisco launch new Architectures to reduce security risks

The Industrial internet of things is increasing the need for highly flexible, secure connectivity between devices, machines, work flows, databases and people, enabling new models of policy-based plant-floor access.

The internet of things allows for machine data on the plant floor be analysed and applied to determine optimal operation and supply chain work flows for improved efficiencies and cost savings. A secured connected environment also enables organisations to mitigate risk with policy compliance, and protects intellectual property with secure sharing between global stakeholders.

To meet this increasing need, Rockwell Automation and Cisco have announced new additions to their Converged Plantwide EtherNet (CPwE) architectures to help operations technology (OT) and information technology (IT) professionals address constantly changing security practices.

The new CPwE architectures leverage open industry standards, such as IEC 62443, and provide recommendations for more securely sharing data across an industrial demilitarized zone, as well as enforcing policies that control access to the plantwide wired or wireless network.

Core to the new validated architectures is a focus on enabling OT and IT professionals to utilise security policies and procedures by forming multiple layers of defence. This approach helps manufacturers by establishing processes and policies that identify and contain evolving threats in industrial automation and control systems.

Rockwell Automation and Cisco have created resources to help manufacturers efficiently deploy security solutions.

Each new guide is accompanied by a white paper summarising the key design principles:

• The Industrial Demilitarized Zone Design and Implementation Guide and white paper provide guidance to users on securely sharing data from the plant floor through to the enterprise.
• The Identity Services Design and Implementation Guide and white paper introduce an approach to security policy enforcement that tightly controls access by anyone inside the plant, whether they’re trying to connect via wired or wireless access.

For more information or to arrange an appointment with one of our Automation specialists to discuss this topic further, please contact us at info@routeco.com

Down to the wire - building a resilient network infrastructure

The Internet of Things (IoT) is a trending topic in the technology world. The Internet of Things can be defined as the connection and interaction of objects to the Internet or networks. 

With the Internet of Things increasingly broadening the production space to connect Operations Technology (OT) with Information Technology (IT), it's never been more important to build a highly resilient network infrastructure, as this article from Panduit outlines.

The article also includes tips on how to begin implementing the Internet of Things including assessment steps for manufacturers to undertake to understand their bandwidth and cable requirements. 

To read more, please click the link:

http://www.controlsdrivesautomation.com/page_568773.asp? 

How do you think IoT will affect you? Do you think it will create the business opportunities (to the value of $3.8 trillion for the manufacturing industry) Panduit expect? Let us know your thoughts below. 

For more information please contact us at info@routeco.com or visit our website at www.routeco.com