Setting up Smart SCADA for digital transformation

Data means everything in the world of modern business. Collecting it, analyzing it and, more importantly, acting on it, is the difference between businesses that thrive and those that fail. Whatever steps you take on your individual path to digital transformation, determining how to manage your data is an important first step. That's where SCADA comes in.

In our blog post on what Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) is the infrastructure that allows you to take control of your data and use it to make highly impactful decisions. One of the leaders in Smart SCADA is Inductive Automation, the creators of Ignition. This is a platform that gives users more control over their data than ever before.

A conversation with Travis Cox of Inductive Automation

We asked Travis Cox, the Co-Director of Sales Engineering at Inductive Automation to answer a few questions about how Ignition helps users with the challenges of implementing a modern smart SCADA solution. This impacts the business and their way of working, saving a lot of time, money and headaches in the long run.

Smart SCADA for digital transformation - Where to start?

OnLogic: Smart SCADA solutions can look intimidating at first glance. Where would you recommend someone looking to connect separate systems to their infrastructure to start?

Travis Cox: Don't remove and replace everything; build a parallel infrastructure first.

A major obstacle to digital transformation is the perception that you have to remove and replace the old system. It's intimidating to think about having to use a whole new system, as this affects productivity and can disrupt normal operations. There are hundreds of millions of obsolete PLCs and devices still in use. It would be far too expensive to upgrade them all. You cannot switch to a new technology overnight; it might result in catastrophic failure and loss of revenue.

How to solve?

We can solve this by taking a different approach, which is to use software to build a parallel infrastructure alongside your existing installation. It is much easier to get started with software than with hardware. You can gradually transfer devices from your old system to the new one IIoT infrastructure. The gradual approach gives you time to try out the new system and make sure it is stable before making a full infrastructure transition. This also allows you to improve ROI while fixing problems in the system. As you remove manual work, paper and whiteboards, collect and centralize more data and add things like history, alarms and reporting, you'll see the results of each of these improvements immediately.

Another important point is to look for a platform on which to build further. The usual approach has been to add coding to operating systems, but a better approach is to build applications on top of platforms. This is because platforms based on open standards are scalable, extensible and future-proof compared to conventional software products. It is very important to choose platforms with an unlimited licensing model and where communication is possible between disparate systems. This ensures that all your data can be brought together and made available to anyone who needs it.

Key communication protocols for Digital Transformation

OnLogic: Are there key communication protocols that are emerging as suitable options when it comes to this kind of digital transformation?

Travis Cox: Connect your devices directly to your infrastructure, not just your applications.

The operational world is extremely complex and includes hundreds of different protocols, communication media and legacy devices. The reality of digital transformation is that it must be implemented bottom-up, with the OT on board first. It requires a new mindset or mindset shift to keep systems open, interoperable and secure. The journey begins with the operational infrastructure and creating a migration strategy that implements digital transformation, but also meets all OT requirements. It comes down to one crucial concept: an architecture change. We need to stop connecting devices to applications with protocols, and instead connect devices to infrastructure. At the same time, we need to provide a superior OT solution that meets operators' needs while also being plug-and-play, reliable and scalable.

This new architecture uses MQTT, a lightweight publish/subscribe protocol that enables message-oriented middleware architectures. This is not a new concept in the field of IT; in fact, Enterprise Service Bus (ESB) has long been used to integrate applications via a bus-like infrastructure. With MQTT, device data is exceptionally published to an MQTT server; locally or in the cloud. Applications connect to the MQTT server to retrieve data; there is no need to connect to the end device itself.

MQTT has several advantages:

• Open standard/interoperable (OASIS standard & Eclipse open standard [TAHU])
• Disconnects devices from applications
• Message by exception
• Requires little bandwidth
• TLS protection
• Remote connection (outbound only; no incoming firewall rules)
• Stateful awareness
• Single source of truth
• Auto-discovery of tags
• Data buffering (save and forward)
• Plug-and-play functionality

Summary: MQTT is the standard for IIoT communication.

Possible pitfalls in a Smart SCADA project

OnLogic: Are there other pitfalls to watch out for when it comes to smart SCADA projects?

Travis Cox: Each project is unique, but pay particular attention to these potential challenges:

Fear of change

One of the pitfalls is not a technological but a human problem. Every organization has people who handle change poorly. They have been used to doing things the same way for years. Or maybe they think adopting a new solution is too risky. Perhaps they worry about the learning curve. Or think it's very difficult and time-consuming to implement new solutions. Whatever the reason, they often prevent digital transformation initiatives from getting off the ground. In terms of people, you may need to look around the organization for a new leader who can help you accomplish this initiative. In terms of technology, you can get around these objections by demonstrating value using test software.

High costs with licensing structures

Another obstacle encountered is licensing costs and requirements to achieve ROI. You need to ensure that the new systems being installed have unlimited licensing models and allow you to achieve your ROI as you modernize. This comes down to using systems that take advantage of the latest and greatest technology and proven standards.

A separation between OT and IT

The difference between the OT and IT.departments also creates a stumbling block. They often work in closed environments, speak different (computer) languages in the process and have different responsibilities. We can make these bringing two sides closer together if OT uses tools and technologies that IT understands. This succeeds by using open standards such as MQTT, OPC UA, SQL databases, SOAP and REST, HTML5, and CSS, among others.

Information silos

Another big obstacle: the challenge of bringing data to other people in the organization, especially on the business side. That creates a big gap between the people on the shop floor and the people in the office. The solution is to get more data out of it by adding mobile-first applications, ideally with native HTML5. With a well-designed app on a smartphone or smart-device, you can see the entire system at a glance, or a single chart/dashboard with data relevant to your specific task. Mobile solutions will make more data visible and accessible to multiple people. That will enable them to respond to problems faster and make better decisions. Of course, this brings challenges, such as providing Wi-Fi in the plant or publishing applications.

Security concerns

Another challenge is the delicate balance between increasing data accessibility without compromising security. The solution to this is the use of modern cyber security techniques, through data encryption protocols such as SSL and TLS, the use of federated identity providers that support two-factor authentication and single-sign-on (SSO), and the ability to leverage security infrastructures such as DMZs.

Uncertainty about the utility of cloud use

The final stumbling block is about how to work with the cloud and how to capitalize on the opportunities that exist. A good solution is one that is compatible with cloud providers and one that allows you to take full advantage of your data through things like analytics and machine learning, or leveraging the cloud for more scalability.

Make use of Ignition - Smart SCADA use cases

OnLogic: What are the use cases, environments, or applications where you see the most potential to benefit from implementing a Smart SCADA platform like Ignition?

Travis Cox: There are 4 major use cases that benefit greatly from Ignition's capabilities:

1. Use Ignition's unlimited licensing model and powerful modules to solve organizational challenges. As you remove manual work, paper and whiteboards, collect and centralize more data and add things like history, alarms and reporting, you'll see results for each of these improvements.
2. Make data more accessible to more people using Ignition Perspective, native HTML5 clients. By simply using modern browsers, you can access data anywhere. You also take advantage of mobile device features such as GPS, accelerometer, camera, barcode scanner, NFC, Bluetooth and touch gestures.
3. Leverage MQTT to decouple devices from applications and create a more scalable architecture, often by deploying edge devices for store & forward and local functionality. This is especially important for remote systems, such as in oil and gas, water/water treatment and energy.
4. Take advantage of the cloud in 2 ways:
   1. Deploy Ignition in the cloud for easier maintenance and scalability. Thus, applications and data are more readily available.
   2. Bringing data to the cloud to take advantage of key capabilities such as advanced analytics, business intelligence & machine learning

Take advantage of Ignition HMI

Onlogic: We often hear that combining the Ignition HMIsoftware with ruggedized panel PCs is a more cost-effective approach and offers more features than older SCADA solutions. What makes Ignition HMI the better solution?

Travis Cox: Ignition's HMI combined with a rugged panel PC like the Tacton Series from OnLogic, offers the functionality of traditional HMIs with many extras.

Although HMIs can operate independently, they are not isolated or shielded. They provide the ability for local functionality and "store & forward" that can be integrated native into a centralized system. You get the added benefit of being able to centrally manage HMIs for status and diagnostics, disaster recovery and remote upgrades. If a unit breaks down, it is extremely easy to install a new one compared to traditional HMIs. They are also aimed at Industry 4.0 because they can bridge the gap between outdated device protocols and modern standards such as OPC-UA and MQTT.

Ready to discover more about Ignition industrial automation solutions? Check out our Ignition-Ready hardware solutions and  get in touch with our technical sales team!