Automation by the Numbers

• Industry Update

Summary

54%

Kaspersky Lab announced the findings of its "State of Industrial Cybersecurity 2017" survey: 54 percent of industrial control system (ICS) companies interviewed have experienced at least one cyberattack in the past 12 months-with one in five (21 percent) experiencing two incidents in the same time frame. Overall, half of the companies surveyed experienced between one and five information technology (IT) security incidents in the past 12 months.

To better understand the issues and opportunities faced by ICS organizations today, Kaspersky Lab and Business Advantage conducted a survey of 359 industrial cybersecurity practitioners from 21 countries across the globe from February to April 2017. The research indicated a gap in the reality and perception of ICS incidents.

Organizations may not always know if there has been an attack on their control systems, either because the attack was subtle and designed to identify small weaknesses, or the existing risk controls have successfully intercepted the threat. The ICS companies surveyed are aware of the potential risk of a cyberattack on their systems, with 74 percent of respondents saying they expect a cybersecurity attack on their infrastructure. There is a misunderstanding, however, when it comes to the priority of the risks these systems are facing.

Despite high awareness about new threats, such as targeted attacks and ransomware, the biggest pain point for the majority of ICS organizations is still conventional malware. Among respondents, conventional malware and virus outbreaks were the top incident concern (56 percent), followed by threats from third parties (44 percent), and sabotage or other intentional physical damage by external actors (41 percent).

The findings show that there is also confusion surrounding employee errors and unintentional actions, which are far more threatening to ICS organizations. The top threats that caused incidents were conventional malware and virus outbreaks (53 percent), then targeted attacks (36 percent) and employee errors/unintentional actions (29 percent). External actors are in the top three risks that ICS organizations worry about the most, but human error ranks higher than incidents from the supply chain and partners, or sabotage and physical damage by external actors.

1000

America's military veterans will play a pivotal role in powering the next generation of advanced digital manufacturing, providing needed talent for rapidly transforming high-tech roles. A partnership announced between Rockwell Automation and ManpowerGroup will upskill 1,000 veterans per year by 2018, investing in the future workforce and creating a pool of certified talent for in-demand advanced manufacturing roles across the U.S.

The U.S. manufacturing sector is estimated to produce up to 3.5 million new jobs over the next decade. But with close to 2.5 million manufacturing workers set to retire by 2025 and ongoing skill shortages, up to 2 million of those new jobs could go unfilled. The U.S. needs to rapidly increase the skills of its manufacturing workforce, and the thousands of veterans exiting the military every year are a talented, skilled, and underutilized source to fill these emerging roles.

A recent global survey by ManpowerGroup found that most U.S. employers think automation will increase, not decrease, headcount in manufacturing, but at a higher skill level. This innovative technical retraining program will address this need, rapidly upskilling and placing veterans in high-demand roles in as little as four months. Through the program, veterans will learn advanced manufacturing processes, acquiring skills that will significantly increase their earning potential and set them up for sustainable jobs at the forefront of advanced manufacturing.

$14 Billion

The process instrumentation and automation market in the U.S., valued at $11.7 billion, is projected to grow 3.6 percent by 2021 to a total of $14 billion. The Measurement, Control & Automation Association (MCAA) has published its MCAA Annual Market Forecast for 2017. The report, prepared by the analysts at Global Automation Research, focuses on the process instrumentation and automation markets in the U.S. and Canada. Twelve industry segments and product categories are examined in depth, with a forecast timeline extending to the year 2021.

Growth will be concentrated in five industries: chemicals, electric utilities, oil refining, food and beverage, and pharmaceuticals. The cumulative market gain will be $2,282 million over the forecast period. The chemicals industry market gain will be the largest at about $850 million.

• Facebook
• Twitter
• Linked In