A PLC stopped talking to the MES at 5:53. A tech was on the floor by 6:04. Shift change happened on time. The line never stopped. The morning report noted it in one line.
We walked this floor before we touched this network. That’s why.
Manufacturing IT · OT/IT convergence · network segmentation · CMMC readiness · vendor coordination · Connecticut
We already know where it hurts
How the visit usually startsA prime’s flow-down clause asking about CMMC. An insurance renewal that suddenly asks about the floor, not just the office. Or the morning the line stopped and nobody could say whose fault it was.
The floor and the network are one system
When a PLC, an MES, and the office share a flat network, one bad click can stop production. Most IT shops only know half the picture.
Downtime with a dollar figure
Every minute a line is down has a number attached. Maintenance has to fit around production, not the other way around.
Compliance moving down the supply chain
Primes and contracts increasingly expect real cybersecurity controls and CMMC readiness — documented, not assumed.
The work behind the quiet
- —Network segmentation that keeps OT and IT apart by design
- —Vendor coordination with recorded requests, approvals, and rollback
- —Tested backups and documented runbooks for the systems that run the floor
- —Identity and email hardening to keep ransomware off a flat network
- —After-hours change windows planned around your production calendar
- ✓Fewer interruptions to production
- ✓Clear notes on what changed and why
- ✓A path back if something fails