The Internet of Things may be the latest hot topic, but not all companies involved with the IoT use shiny new telecommunications protocols and technologies. In fact, some machine-to-machine work has been going on for years and provides a lesson on the value of established technologies.
David Bell, senior product manager in GE’s Intelligent Platforms business unit, has for years worked on just such a system. In 2011, the GE division Bell works for purchased a startup company he joined back in in 1999, called SmartSignal, that produced predictive diagnostic analytics software. SmartSignal was formed to commercialize technology developed at Argonne National Labs, with help from the University of Chicago, designed to monitor nuclear plants. The system analyzed sensors on machinery to provide early warning of problems on many kinds of gear, but particularly critical infrastructure equipment.
Besides the all-important avoidance of catastrophes, the SmartSignal system saved operators money by enabling them to be proactive about fixing equipment and doing required work during scheduled maintenance windows. We all know the nightmare of unplanned downtime; now add to that the fact that an error with your equipment could have disastrous consequences, and you can see why SmartSignal had a successful model.
Bell says GE is embracing what it calls the Industrial Internet, which is its way of branding the strategy of marrying new and older technologies involved with machine-to-machine communications.
“The system connects via standard Internet connectivity, with very high levels of security, to large industrial turbines or offshore oil turbines’ internal Digital Control Systems,” says Bell. “To expand to certain mobile or remote equipment in the future, specialized data communication infrastructure is needed. Much like the last-mile issue that telecom providers have faced for years, if GE’s customers are using products that utilize standard Internet connectivity, there may not be a reason to change it. However, we do see in the future lower-cost technology and common protocols emerging that may make it more cost-effective to provide our technology on a broader range of equipment.”
This GE business unit has been doing work on machine-to-machine for critical infrastructure over the Internet since 2004 and has hundreds of very happy customers. They may not be utilizing the latest gadgets or protocols, but when they decide to, I have no doubt they will do so in a very safe and prudent fashion. Their customers will accept nothing less.
Bell’s story reminds me of some of my work with the cloud over the past eight years and how technologies are embraced. Yes, many companies are creating software and systems that will run on new technologies and protocols — the “born in the cloud” and now “created for IoT” crowd. But there are also companies out there that will continue to run operations as they have for years, because their clients need them to do so. Critical infrastructure will never be quick to change, because as we know, change involves significant risk. Regardless of how great some new systems might be, there is often too much at stake to move quickly.
Companies invest in the care and feeding of legacy applications and systems for a reason.
Being a vendor of software and solutions these days is not for the faint of heart. There will be a significant transition period where customers will require support of all of the systems they want to run. They’ll need help making sure those legacy systems are available and secure until they fully embrace new-generation technology. Until that time it will take significant work to anticipate all of the operational and security needs that this disparate mix of systems will require.
For example, a recent SANS study showed that 32 percent of ICS operators surveyed said their industrial control system assets or networks had been infiltrated or infected at some point; 34 percent believe their systems have been breached more than twice in the past 12 months; and 44 percent were unable to identify the source of the infiltration.
Companies and solutions providers that manage ICS and Supervisory Control and Data Access SCADA systems will have to be cognizant that threats to these infrastructures will continue to be more and more prevalent.
As you discuss the Internet of Things (IOT) with your clients, you may find that they were IoT pioneers just like GE. Let me know any stories or ideas you have found and I may feature your client in a future blog about the IoT, or as GE calls it, the “Industrial Internet.”
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