Digital Manufacturing and Related Risk

Digital manufacturing is the application of digital technologies to manufacturing, having the right information, at the right place, at the right time.

The goal is to link disparate systems and span processes across all departments and functions within the value chain. By doing so, each stakeholder gains quicker access to more accurate data, allows higher customization of product, producing smaller batch, generate cost savings, workplaces are becoming more ergonomic and health is being promoted. It is not always about product but also services.

Nevertheless, convergence of the information technology (IT) and operational technology (OT) is potential increasing the cyber risk, connecting historically isolated production systems with enterprise IT infrastructure. This shift often opens potential vulnerabilities, creating conduits for malware to enter the organization through end user workplace devices e.g.  spear-phishing. One of the biggest risks facing manufacturers today is the potential disruption of production services as a result of a cyber-attack.

This bring new opportunities and challenges for safety and health at work in the world of work, in production and application. Safety in the broadest sense refers to both physical security (safety) and IT or cyber security (security).

The approach of the Section Machine and System Safety is to make available documents with simple solutions and examples to reduce those risks.

"Digitalization is the business process of using digitization everywhere. The result of digitalization is digital transformation."

Each individual element of the system Human - Machine - Environment may be the cause of system failure and thus lead to risks. In Cyber Physical Systems additional risks from digitization must be analyzed and assessed.

The digital transformation offers great opportunities for occupational safety and health to make workplaces even safer. By networking a large number of safety devices, for example, areas can be better monitored and safeguarded. The safe remote control of machines is another example and can also lead to dangerous work processes being carried out safely without causing hazards for people. It is therefore important that occupational safety and health guides digital manufacturing from the very beginning.

In all these considerations, industrial security must be an essential element. Processes that can be changed by unauthorized access would have a negative impact on occupational safety.
 

Activities

• extend the classical risk assessment including security risks
• develop practical examples from industry => industry guides for integrating industrial security and occupational safety and health
• create fact sheets on special topics of industrial security
• develop training for engineers, employees, prevention and IT-experts
   

Topics

Always with the focus on how safety and health at work is connected to industrial security we plan to discuss relevant issues and give practical examples and advice on the following topics:

• Smart Human
• Digital connectivity of machines
• Artificial Intelligence
• Digital Factory
• Robots

The structure for this guide to a safety & security checklist describes measures on 4 different levels:

Partners for any of those tasks are welcome.