Schneider Electric Maximizes Cybersecurity With Latest Development to EcoStruxure
Recently, Schneider Electric announced the latest developments to its EcoStruxure platform.
The single, open, IoT enabled system and accompanying architecture has been a significant part of the global company’s pursuit of digitization by harnessing Industrial IoT technologies since 2009.
The current updates to the system hone in on heightening accessibility, strengthening cybersecurity, and broadening graphics customization.
EcoStruxure: A General Overview
Since its establishment over a decade ago, EcoStruxure has served as Schneider’s IoT platform that provides plug and play and interoperable platforms.
The tools and services within the suite optimize connectivity, simplify data collections and analytics, and provide real-time information and business logic utilizing embedded connectivity and intelligence.
The driving objectives of the platform are the digitization of smart buildings, factories, grids, and data centers.
EcoStruxure security platform. Image used courtesy of Schneider.
As of 2018, EcoStruxure technologies have been installed upwards of 450,000 times, with over 1 billion devices connected.
What’s New For EcoStruxure?
The developments to Ecostruxure are within Ecostruxure Power, one of the architecture's six domains of expertise. The software, entitled EcoStruxure Power SCADA Operation 2020, maintains the line’s digitization goals while maximizing uptime, expanding customization, and fortifying cybersecurity.
Power SCADA Operation is a key facet to Ecostruxure Power; the software aims to simplify “complex electrical distribution systems and promote safety.
The new developments under the 2020 model add risk management, additional network support, and modern control capabilities to the control system architecture.
The most noteworthy features of Power SCADA Operation 2020 are anchored in the following sectors.
- Graphics Usability: Users may access their system anywhere, anytime, utilizing any browser, given compliance HTML5 web browser standards.
- Microgrid Optimization: With any HTML5 compliant web browser, users can access runtime graphics, including animated electrical 1-lines modeling the multi-source electrical distribution systems.
- Cybersecurity: The 2020 model addresses new levels of cybersecurity by enabling role-based access control through Windows Active directory. In addition, the software employs two-factor authentication specifically to prevent ‘zero-day attacks’ and minimize software vulnerability. The system is certified compliant with global cybersecurity standard ISA/IEC-62443.
- Translatability: Power Scada Operation boasts a fully translatable runtime, world-ready translatable software, and adaptable design tools and documentation.
- Simplicity: Users may monitor and control multiple independent systems and multi-site deployments on a single runtime client.
In terms of application, these enhancements will be most optimized for large and power-critical facilities such as data centers, oil and gas operations, and airports. Engineers utilizing SCADA in these settings can monitor, control, and troubleshoot issues with their distribution systems in real-time.
Adapting these practices leads to facility-wide optimization of power availability and operational efficiency, alongside a decrease in safety risks and wasted downtime.
The current Power SCADA Operation available on Scheider’s website is version 8.2, which the company lists as obsolete.
Do you use ExoStructure in your daily operations?
