DEPLOY INDUSTRIAL INTERNET
FUNCTIONALITY NOW,
RAPIDLY AND ECONOMICALLY
A Distrix Networks White Paper
September 8, 2015
By
Dennis G. Defensor, President, and
Kevin White, Vice President - Engineering and Client Services
© 2015 Distrix Networks Ltd. All Right Reserved 1
Introduction
“It’s safe to say that we are at the start of another industrial revolution.”1
things, machines, computers and people, enabling intelligent industrial operations using
2
Cisco estimates that there are up to 14 billion objects connected to the Internet today, and this is projected to
grow from 20-100 billion connected devices by 2020.3 More than half of the Internet of Things activities are
will have rolled out IoT initiatives”.4
In the consumer market, the Internet of Things means wearable technology, health monitoring, home
appliances and other applications. For the business and industrial sectors, it means big data analytics,
autonomous machines and equipment sensors, among others.5 The business and industrial applications
will be greater than the consumer applications of the Internet of things, according to the latest McKinsey &
Company report.6
The technical drivers of the Industrial Internet are the explosive growth of mobile devices, declining costs
of sensors, cost-effective cloud storage and the rising big data analytics7. The business drivers are greater
safety and growth derived from the integration of the formerly disparate Informational Technologies (the
digital realm) and Operational Technologies (the physical realm).8
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© 2015 Distrix Networks Ltd. All Right Reserved
Adoption Of The Industrial Internet
The Industrial Internet brings Business Systems and Operational Systems together
From cutting edge to old guard
As such, many commercial companies, ranging
from GE to Caterpillar, are embracing Industrial
Internet models. GE, an innovation leader, has
initiated a multi-billion dollar initiative to add “digital
sensors to its machines” which are connected
to a cloud-based software platform. As a result,
the company delivered more than $800 Million in
incremental revenue in 2013, and projected that
annual incremental revenue to reach $1 Billion
thereafter. Conversely, Caterpillar, with a brand
name that reminds one of “old guard” corporate
incorporating Industrial Internet technologies to its
operations in order to enhance its competitiveness.9
IBM recently announced its $3 billion investment in
a new division focused on the Internet of Things.10
DOD Agencies
According to the Defense Information Systems
Agency (DISA), “the Internet of Things will affect
everything we do.” Lt. Gen. Ronnie Hawkins Jr.,
USAF, DISA director said, “IOT helps because
the more information you have being provided,
the better situational awareness you have.”
Retired Capt. Mark Hagerott, deputy director of
cybersecurity for the U.S. Naval Academy said,
“Our ships are floating SCADA systems”.11 The
reconnaissance systems, transportation and
logistics, building and base perimeter security,
military hospitals, health monitoring of individual
soldiers, and the gathering of mission-critical
information from various sensors.12
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Civilian Agencies
Civilian agencies, like the General Services
Administration (GSA) is using this new technology
to build automation information in about 81 large
government buildings; involving 29 million data
points a day from “building lights, elevators, energy
consumption, chillers and boilers.”13 The U.S.
technology during the 2014 holiday season when it
experimented with sensors on packages, delivery
people and vehicles, in tandem with big data
analytics tools to provide a seven-day package
delivery.14
Ninety percent (90%) of the total data in the world has been generated over the past two years at the rate of
15
. Big Data analytics and
Industrial Internet are needed in both commercial and government applications because of this huge volume
of data generated and storage needed when every possible device becomes a data-providing sensor.16
Bill Ruh, who spearheads GE’s Industrial Internet initiative, warns “Industrial people who aren’t in the game
today, who are not making the kind of investments we’re making, it’s like someone in the retail sector now
sector, you have to take the risk now. Because by the time it’s obvious, which is a few years from now, it’s
going to be too late.”17
And the price of being late to the game? The head of Cisco’s consulting arm, Martin McPhee, pointed out that
after the introduction of the worldwide web in the mid 1990s, “just 25 percent of the Fortune 100 top U.S.
companies were still in existence 15 years later.”18
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© 2015 Distrix Networks Ltd. All Right Reserved
Secure, Resilient And Intelligent
Industrial Networks
DISTRIX middleware allows companies and government agencies to build secure,
resilient and intelligent private industrial networks which overlay existing IT networks
Distrix Bridges Today’s Non-Integrated Informational Technology
And Operational Technology (It/Ot) Worlds.
Distrix overlays the existing network infrastructure, preserving the current infrastructure investment, and
connecting to operational networks for increased integration, flexibility, control, and security. Running on
low-cost, COTS hardware on a blade or in a VM as an embeddable software platform, Distrix solutions can
connect to:
The driver of the physical port, for example, a digital I/O, serial port or an Ethernet port;
An RS-232, RS-485 or IP at layer 3 to connect the networks together;
Modbus and HTTP (and soon OPC, BackNet and other protocols);
Application sockets; and
Internal Control Systems (ICS) like SCADA and others.
Intelligence From The Core To The Edge.
Wherever there are sensors and big data projects, Distrix is a valuable middleware technology. Distrix applies
from various IP and non-IP sensors, actuators and other edge devices.
Distrix feeds these data streams through separate, secure and resilient virtual tunnels to the analytics
systems or any other systems, as required. These tunnels can also connect to physical interfaces, protocol
Distrix embeds logic and control at the edge when it is needed. The Distrix approach of adding intelligence at
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Resilience And Continuity To Provide High Availability Networks.
embedded fail-over recovery, creating a self-healing network that can dynamically reroute around an outage.
The managed links can include multiple types of communications, such as satellite communications, cellular,
wireless, RF and serial.
Quality of Service can be applied to all data at the edge of the network, where it originated, and service flows
Enhance Network Management And Scalability.
Distrix middleware management environment with vast quantities and varieties of sensors, including the
big volumes of data generated in large enterprise and production systems. Distrix can push policies and
network. Network nodes are then empowered to determine the best path for packet forwarding based on a
controlled contextually based on changing conditions.
Enhance Network Security
Distrix creates inherently secure networks
because its virtual and logical network is
abstracted from the physical network. This
concern of the underlying physical capabilities
and vulnerabilities (for example, Distrix closes
many SCADA vulnerabilities).
Distrix enables a federated security and identity
user types. Distrix helps operators and embedded
systems monitor for threats and respond to them
in real time. By bringing various systems into
a common security perimeter, more effective
security policies can be integrated, the attack
vectors greatly reduced.
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© 2015 Distrix Networks Ltd. All Right Reserved
Agency Use Cases
Integrated Base or Perimeter Defense
With Distrix, the military can deploy networked sensors, actuators and other edge devices all around
a military base, or any local or remote defended perimeter, combine the various military bases into
a nation wide area network of sensors, and consolidate all defense perimeter networks into a global
command and control center. All these can overlay the current Agency network infrastructure.
Border/Air Space Surveillance and Patrol
Distrix can enable the government to deploy sensors/actuators to monitor and survey borders, air
analytics engine for processing and reporting.
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Survivable Energy Systems
Distrix can help prepare against power grid attacks. In local or remote sites, Distrix can autonomously
manage the alternative and backup power resources. Distrix can interface with operational networks
embedded fail-over functions.
Logistics and Tracking Of High Value Assets
actuators and other smart devices to provide multi-layer monitoring and tracking of transports,
shipping containers and high-value assets within the shipping containers – on location or in transit
– through an intelligent overlay network, will be very valuable to the Agency. Distrix can provide these
8
© 2015 Distrix Networks Ltd. All Right Reserved
References
1.
Shawn DuBravac and Carlo Ratti. The Internet of Things: Evolution or Revolution. AIG and CEA. p.2.
https://www.aig.com/Chartis/internet/US/en/AIG%20White%20Paper%20-%20IoT%20English%20DIGITAL_tcm3171-677828.pdf
2.
Industrial Internet Reference Architecture. Industrial Internet Consortium. June 4, 2015. P. 9.
http://www.iiconsortium.org/IIRA.htm
3.
Internet of Things Connections Counter. Cisco Systems, 2014
4.
IDC Reveals Worldwide Internet of Things Predictions for 2015
https://www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=prUS25291514
5.
The Internet of Things: Evolution or Revolution. p 8
6.
Internet Of Things: Mapping The Value Beyond The Hype. McKinsey & Company. McKinsey Global Institute. June
2015.
world?cid=other-eml-alt-mgi-mck-oth-1506
7.
The Internet of Things: Evolution or Revolution. p. 7-8.
8.
IDC Reveals Worldwide Internet of Things Predictions for 2015
9.
Business. Harvard Business Review. November 2014.
10. IBM says to invest $3 billion in ‘Internet of Things’ unit. Reuters. Technology. March 31, 2015.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/31/us-ibm-investment-idUSKBN0MR0BS20150331
11. Sternstein, Aliya. Navy Takes On Internet of Things With New Task Force. Nextgov. October 31, 2014.
http://www.nextgov.com/cybersecurity/2014/10/navy-takes-internet-things-new-task-force/97913/
12. Seffers, George I. Department of Defense Awakens To The Internet Of Things. Signal (An AFCEA publication).
January 1, 2015.
http://www.afcea.org/content/?q=defense-department-awakens-internet-things
13. Walker, Molly Bernhart. GSA, USPS Finds Early Success With Internet Of Things. Fierce Government IT. May 18, 2015.
14. Ibid
15. The Internet of Things: Evolution or Revolution. p 2
16. Department of Defense Awakens To The Internet Of Things
17. John Gertner. Behind GE’s Vision For The Industrial Internet Of Things. Fast Company. 2015.
http://www.fastcompany.com/3031272/can-jeff-immelt-really-make-the-world-1-better
18. Eric Auchard. Many Big Companies Live In Fear For Their Future In Digital Age.
http://news.yahoo.com/many-big-companies-live-fear-future-digital-age-132019448--sector.html
Photos: MdE, [CC BY SA 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons, Royal Air Force, [CC OGL], via Wikimedia Commons
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About Distrix
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© 2015 Distrix Networks Ltd. All Right Reserved