SOFTWARE & SYSTEMS
IT INFRASTRUCTURES
RITTAL
GREATER SECURITY IN MANUFACTURING IT
Rittal’s teams work closely with leading
industrial companies to create IT
infrastructures for use with Industry 4.0
technology, including edge computing
platforms. We’ve put together the following
tips to help companies implement fast-
deploying and secure IT for production
environments.
The first step when starting any Industry 4.0
initiative or digital transformation within a
manufacturing environment, is to define the
common goals and consistent use of terms.
One goal should be to achieve real-time
processing of measured values through the
use of more IT and additional sensors. This
will enable innovative applications, such as
machine learning, process optimisation and
predictive maintenance, which can only be
done via big data analysis. Deviations can
be recognised very quickly, increasing the
reliability of these environments.
FIND A SECURE LOCATION FOR
THE IT SYSTEMS
Another consideration where to put any IT
systems (such as an edge computing system)
within a production environment. This
requires input from a range of different
departments: facility management, fire
prevention and safety managers, production
managers, IT managers and other specialists in
network technology and production planning.
Project managers should therefore start
planning with the relevant departmental
managers at an early stage to identify any
issues. It may mean finding an alternative
space or even building a whole new facility to
house the additional IT systems, but it’s just as
likely that a business will be able to retrofit IT
systems in the manufacturing hall.
In one recent project, Rittal’s team installed
the necessary IT for automated production
on the second floor of the production hall. As
part of the project, special security rooms
were used for the IT racks. It works extremely
well, however, because this arrangement used
a water-based IT cooling system, it carried the
risk of a leak onto the manufacturing facilities
located below. To prevent this happening,
leak detectors were installed in the IT racks
and throughout the building to alert the
facility management team of any problems
at an early stage, increasing operational
reliability.
In general, companies should select the
best possible locations for IT systems from a
technical security perspective as well as to
support well thought-out network cabling.
Ensuring there is sufficient distance to the
manufacturing devices will protect IT systems
from heat, dirt and vibrations.
INCREASE SAFETY WITH
MONITORING
Small and medium-sized companies often
find that the IT systems can send detailed
alarm messages to control centres within the
company, but not outside of it, as these alerts
are blocked by the firewall.
The process of monitoring IT systems and
sending an alert to relevant technicians also
needs to be addressed collectively by all of
the project participants, starting with a review
of the existing organisation-wide IT security
strategy.
For example, we worked with a manufacturing
company to upgrade the IT cooling systems
in its production hall to lower energy costs
and increase the reliability of the IT system.
Modern cooling systems are now able to send
status messages directly to the manufacturer.
In this instance, the firewalls had to be
configured according to the data protocols
used, otherwise the message would not have
got through and the cooling systems would
not be able to function in accordance with the
designated levels of safety and efficiency.
SECURE MONITORING
SOFTWARE
Monitoring software (DCIM) used to oversee
production-related IT systems should be
subject to special protection. Such a solution
has a large number of interfaces and supports
a variety of protocols, so it can be vulnerable
to cyber-attacks.
To make the whole installation more robust,
including the server platform, we recommend
using software to conduct a security
analysis. So-called network vulnerability tests
check the systems for known but still open
security weaknesses.
Without this protection, in extreme cases,
attackers could shut down the fans in
intelligent cooling systems or turn off
switchable power distribution units (PDUs).
SET UP EDGE COMPUTING
QUICKLY AND SECURELY
If areas of a production plant cannot be
shut down while work is in progress, then it
may be advisable to install pre-configured
IT containers which are equipped with the
required active IT components. Companies
can therefore expand their IT capacities to
decentralised production sites quickly and
safely using what are termed “edge” data
centres.
To set up an edge computing infrastructure
for Industry 4.0 initiatives, partners Rittal and
iNNOVO Cloud offer turnkey IT module and
container solutions.
These contain IT environments in sturdy steel
containers that house power distribution
units, UPS, IT cooling systems, racks and,
optionally, active components. This provides
a quick and secure start to production, in
locations across the world.
For more information visit www.
rittal.co.uk, www.friedhelm-loh-
group.com, or on twitter @rittal_ltd.
Issue 37 PECM
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