Free
seminar to inform area business and manufacturing leaders on importance
of better protecting
critical infrastructure from industrial cyberattack
Research
Triangle Park, North Carolina, USA (15 April 2014) — The Automation Federation
and Chevron will co-sponsor a free seminar 13 June 2014 at Chevron’s Houston,
Texas offices to educate area business and manufacturing leaders on the value
and importance of the recently launched US
Cybersecurity Framework.
A key contributor to the development of the framework, the Automation
Federation is helping to organize a series of informational meetings across the
US in 2014 to raise awareness around the need to put the framework’s guidelines
into action and improve America’s defenses against industrial cyberattack.
As the umbrella organization of the International Society of Automation (ISA),
the Automation Federation in 2013 worked with cybersecurity experts at the
White House, the US Department of Homeland Security and the National Institute
of Standards and Technology (NIST) to incorporate ISA’s internationally
recognized industrial automation and control systems security standards (IACS)
within the US Cybersecurity Framework.
ISA’s cybersecurity standards—known as ISA/IEC 62443—are designed to mitigate the effects of cyber
damage to industrial plant systems and networks (commonly used in transportation grids, power plants, water treatment facilities and other vital industrial settings), thereby preventing widespread plant shutdowns, operational and equipment failure, severe economic and environment disruption, and serious risks to the public.
Also supporting the June seminar, titled Cybersecurity Framework for Protecting our Nation’s Critical Infrastructure, are the Greater Houston Manufacturing Association (GHMA) and the Texas Manufacturing Assistance Center (TMAC), an affiliate of the Manufacturing Extension Partnership program of NIST. Interested persons are encouraged to register soon as space is limited.
For more information, visit www.chevron.com.
About GHMA
The Greater Houston Manufacturing Association (GHMA) is an organization of manufacturing companies in greater Houston that is committed to stimulating growth in area manufacturing and forging a range of public-private partnerships to support realization of that goal.
The association works with the University of Houston, Houston Community College, and Lone Star College on a variety of educational, training and workforce development initiatives; hosts a range of marketplace events to promote interest in manufacturing, and maintains a steady dialogue with local elected officials to improve awareness about the value and importance of manufacturing.
For more information, visit www.houston-mfg.com.
About TMAC
The goal of Texas Manufacturing Assistance Center (TMAC) is to increase the global competitiveness of the Texas economy by working with the extended manufacturing enterprise. The organization delivers hands-on technical assistance and training to a wide range of businesses, including manufacturing, government, and health care. Focus areas include Lean Enterprise, technology solutions, strategic management, quality systems, productivity, efficiency, environment and safety.
Over the past 16 years, TMAC has worked with more than 6,200 companies. In independent surveys, those customers have reported cumulative impacts totaling:
- $1.8 billion in new or retained sales
- $537 million in cost savings and cost avoidance on materials, labor, inventory and equipment
- More than 16,700 Texas jobs created or retained
The program is hosted by seven partner institutions: The University of Texas at Arlington; the Texas Engineering Extension Service (TEEX), part of the Texas A&M University System; the University of Texas at El Paso; the University of Houston; Southwest Research Institute; Texas Tech University; and the University of Texas – Pan American.
For more information, visit www.tmac.org.
About the Automation Federation
The Automation Federation is a global umbrella organization of 16 member organizations and six working groups engaged in automation activities. The Automation Federation enables its members to more effectively fulfill their missions, advance the science and engineering of automation technologies and applications, and develop the workforce needed to capitalize on the benefits of automation. The Automation Federation is the “Voice of Automation.” For more information about the Automation Federation, visit www.automationfederation.org.