Control System World

The exida Cybersecurity Scorecard Program™ is an independent evaluation of the cybersecurity capabilities and robustness of a product or system. The evaluation criteria is based upon industry standards and specifications such as ISA/IEC 62443 (formerly ISA 99), NERC CIP, NIST 800-82 and WIB. Cybersecurity Scorecard is not pass/fail. Rather, it is straightforward evaluation and reporting of the facts – analogous to a CarFax® report. It can serve as an indication of readiness of a product for certifications such as ISASecure™ or Achilles™.

A Cybersecurity Scorecard offers a quick and inexpensive solution for companies that want or need to know the security posture of their products.

• Provides product management with an independent evaluation of their device or system’s security
• Identifies security vulnerabilities in devices or systems before “the bad guys do”
• Aides developers in identifying and remediating security bugs
• Provides documented third-party appraisal that can be shared with prospective customers
• Quick and inexpensive – most devices can be assessed in less than a week and for less than $10,000
• Allows suppliers to evaluate the feasibility of full security certification without the risk

Learn More about the program here

Rockwell Automation today announced an initiative to help manufacturers reduce security risks to control systems in response to growing cyber-security threats. The initiative will help automation and IT professionals more effectively secure their industrial processes with a combination of control system design and best practices, contemporary technologies and professional services from Rockwell Automation and its strategic partnerships, including Cisco.

“The rapidly evolving nature of the industrial security landscape makes it critical that today’s manufacturers view security as an ongoing business imperative, rather than a one-time investment event,” said Sujeet Chand, senior vice president and chief technology officer, Rockwell Automation. “A more secure network infrastructure will allow manufacturers to deploy contemporary technologies and emerging solutions, like mobility, virtualization and cloud computing, while still performing mission-critical automation functions. Rockwell Automation is dedicated to providing the technologies and resources that will help facilitate the design and management of a secure connected enterprise.”

Three-pronged Rockwell Automation initiative is designed to achieve a secure connected enterprise through the following:

Defense-in-Depth Methodology: Addressing both internal and external threats by forming multiple layers of defense which help mitigate various types of risks. The Rockwell Automation defense-in-depth approach employed in an industrial control system design and operation helps manufacturers by establishing processes and policies that identify and contain evolving threats in industrial systems.

Secure Automation Architecture: The industrial control system represents the heart of production, and the security of information used for control, configuration and monitoring is critical. Rockwell Automation is committed to providing an evolving set of products and services that help to reduce risks, and better protect and enhance the security of your production assets. From active consulting engagements to specific product offerings, such as managed switches, secure communications, user authentication and access control, and end-point capabilities for tamper proofing and tamper evidence, Rockwell Automation is continuing to make investments to bring security practices and products to its customers.

Enterprise-Ready Industrial Security Solutions: By teaming with Cisco and other industry leaders in physical network designs and software applications, Rockwell Automation is addressing both IT and industrial automation security challenges. Leveraging open-standard technology, Rockwell Automation and Cisco are helping manufacturers build a unified, secure environment from the enterprise to the end device on the plant floor. Together, the companies advocate for a common network architecture approach that helps decrease inconsistencies in network protocols, security practices and training. In the future, Rockwell Automation and Cisco will offer guidance on topics, such as resilient network design, access control, contextual identity management and protection of assets, through a portfolio of jointly developed industrial products and industrial control system security resources.

“Rockwell Automation and Cisco are leading the way in helping manufacturers recognize that information security spans from the plant floor through the enterprise,” said Guido Jouret, vice president and general manager of the Internet of Things business unit for Cisco. “It’s important to take what we’ve learned in the IT space and educate manufactures on the business value associated with taking a consistent and seamless approach to security. Together we’re delivering expertise and solutions to help secure their important physical and intellectual assets in a world with dynamic security threats.”

The industrial security initiative from Rockwell Automation is based on a multilayer network design approach that combines resiliency in the infrastructure with security-enabled, end-point devices to help manufacturers establish a sustainable security culture, conduct comprehensive security assessments, and deploy a robust security infrastructure across both automation and industrial IT assets. Core to the initiative is implementation of a secure network infrastructure based on the use of the standard Internet Protocol (IP).

For more information on best practices for security and defense strategies, download the Rockwell Automation and Cisco white paper on design considerations for securing industrial automation networks.

German power giant Siemens said on Tuesday it has won a $966m contract to supply key components for a major combined-cycle power plant in Saudi Arabia.  The power station is designed to deliver electricity to the Jazan Industrial city area in the southwest of the country and to the refinery of Jazan, which will additionally be supplied with process steam.

Jazan will be the largest gasification-based power plant site in the world with the contract worth $966.8m, Siemens said in a statement.  "This is not only the largest order to date for Siemens from Saudi Aramco, but also a significant milestone in our successful cooperation with the biggest oil company in the world," said Michael Suess, Siemens board member and CEO of the energy sector.

Siemens' scope of supply includes 10 gas turbines, of which six will be manufactured in Saudi Arabia, five steam turbines, 15 generators and 10 heat recovery steam generators.  Nabil Aldabal, managing director of Aramco Overseas Company, said: "This new, highly efficient combined cycle power plant is an important part of our major project in the new economic zone in Jazan, and for this we must have efficient and reliable technology. We are looking forward to working with Siemens on this strategic project."

Power demand is expected to rise by about six percent annually amid a population boom which is set to see numbers rise from 28 million today to 34 million in 2020.  To meet the predicted annual rise in power demand, the installed power generation capacity will have to at least double within 10 years from 67 gigawatts in 2012 to an estimated 140 gigawatts in 2020.

Siemens Saudi Arabia said it is investing in this growth market by constructing a facility in Dammam for the manufacturing of gas turbines and related equipment and for the servicing of this equipment in the country.

MatrikonOPC has announced the release of its OPC Server for Well site Information Transfer Specification (WITS) which provides open data connectivity to well site data systems using WITS-compliant devices. Areas in which WITS-based data is common at a well site include geology, drilling, cementing, drill stem testing, electronic data recorders (EDRs) that capture logging while drilling (LWD) and measurement while drilling (MWD) data.

“With the release of the OPC Server for WITS, end users gain direct access to their WITS data via any [OPC enabled] application,” said Darek Kominek, marketing manager at MatrikonOPC. “This application makes it easier to share and work with key data onsite and with the rest of the enterprise.”

Key features of the MatrikonOPC Server for WITS include:

• Support for communications through TCP/IP, UDP and/or serial channels
• Simultaneous support for WITS Level 0 compliant active and passive devices
• Permits read and write access to available data points
• Fully compliant with OPC DA 1.0, 2.0a and 3.0 specification

To learn more about the MatrikonOPC OPC Server for WITS, please visit:
http://www.matrikonopc.com/opc-drivers/opc-wits-level-0/base-driver-details.aspx

KBR has announced it has secured an award to execute front-end engineering and design (FEED) for a crude oil refinery revamp project for one of the oldest operating refineries in the U.S.

During the feasibility phase, KBR’s expertise will focus on determining the optimum economic configuration to increase overall heavy crude processing capability and flexibility. The refinery currently processes light sweet crudes and aims to take advantage of fluctuations in the crude oil pricing market by gaining the flexibility to process heavier sour crude oils.

“KBR draws upon its deep domain expertise in refinery solutions and revamp projects to help satisfy our customer’s economic and operating flexibility needs,” said David Zelinski, President, KBR Downstream. “We look forward to the successful execution of this project and continuing our long-term relationship with this valued client.”

exida, the global leader in functional safety certification for the process industries, has certified the Det-Tronics FlexSonicTM Acoustic Gas Leak Detector for functional safety, ensuring that they meet the functional safety requirements for Safety Integrity Level (SIL) 2 capable per IEC 61508.

“Det-Tronics has created practical technology for acoustically detecting high pressure gas leakage,” said Hal Thomas, exida Senior Safety Application Engineer. “Given the concern over gas sensor effectiveness and detection time, this product should provide significant safety improvement in the right applications.”

“During the witnessed performance testing and fault injection testing, it was impressive to see this instrument in action,” said Dr. William Goble, exida Certification Evaluating Assessor. “Det-Tronics has a strong, detailed design and testing process which was fully audited during the certification process.”

“exida has the technical capabilities to evaluate new technology like the FlexSonicTM detector,” said Mark Gaalswyk, Det-Tronics Senior Compliance Engineer. “exida has the experience and reputation to provide a trusted certification which our customers depend upon for their critical applications.”

Siemens' Dairy Functional Toolset (DFT) complements the Simatic PCS 7 process control system by adding various important functions for milk-processing enterprises. DFT allows specific workflows such as milk sampling, pasteurization, separation, cheese and yoghurt production and the end-of-process cleaning of pipes and tanks to be accurately and easily controlled via Simatic PCS 7.

The new DFT software contains all necessary visualizations (faceplates) for displaying plants and processes controlled by Simatic PCS 7 on the screen. Important process steps are pre-installed to the most up-to-date industry standards and can easily be configured to suit any application. Moreover, this Siemens DFT toolset continuously captures and archives production-related data such as temperature, agitation time, pH, and storage location. These data can then be exported to a superimposed MES (Manufacturing Execution System) or an ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) system. This integrated data management concept ensures consistently high product quality and product traceability from the raw milk to the processed, saleable product.

Functions related to specific process steps and workflows are pre-consolidated within the DFT software. For example, modules for the management of materials, system parameters, orders and storage locations are pre-installed. These support the automation of production processes from the delivery of the raw milk to the signing off for bottling and packaging. Further modules such as those for tank management, piping system management, process line management, follow-up material testing and a CIP (cleaning in place) sequencer have been optimized within the new software with a view to automating processes such as transfers, mixing and cleaning.

Milk processing today calls for extremely efficient and perfectly interacting processes from the delivery of the raw milk and its sampling and initial preparation through the various operations in the dairy processing plant to its packaging, storage and shipment. With its customized solutions such as the DFT software and an extensive product portfolio of integrated automation and drive solutions, Siemens is helping milk-processing enterprises to optimize their production processes and thus enhance their competitiveness.

South Korea's Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) has been awarded a contract by Saudi Electricity Co (SEC) to build a SR12.2bn ($3.4bn) power plant in Shuqaiq, Reuters has reported. To be built within five years, HHI will install four steam generating units with highly efficient boilers to produce 2,640 megawatts of capacity, SEC said.