Bridging the Divide: The Evolution of IT/OT Integration in the Data Space
By the time I became the chief data officer of an oil and gas company, I had already spent decades on the IT side in the FMCG and heavy industry sectors. For all my experience, I was still trading foreign ground in a very different and complex industry, where one can spend a lifetime getting a grasp of the ins and outs of a single production unit alone. During my tenure in this new role, my process and maintenance engineer counterparts played a big role in shaping my outlook, for which I’m eternally grateful. Experiences like walking into the computer room of an OLEFIN unit — surprisingly similar to the many data centers I had seen before — first seeing our WiHEART devices installed in operation, holding our first LoRaWAN-capable Yokogawa sushi sensor in my hand and witnessing an engineer beg IT for a machine learning environment led me to the realization that the convergence of OT and IT would deeply impact both sides.
So, let’s look at how this convergence between IT and OT presents an opportunity to combine the best of both worlds.
Definitions
First, to get everyone on the same page, let’s define IT and OT for the sake of this article.
IT (information technology) and OT (operational technology) are two foundational pillars of most industrial organizations.
- Information technology encompasses the systems and technologies used for data management, retrieval and communication and emphasizes data processing, analytics and cyber-physical security.
- Operational technology, which is deeply rooted in industries like manufacturing, energy, utilities and transportation, comprises technologies that control, monitor and manage physical processes and operations, including machinery, sensors, and programmable logic controllers (PLCs).
What Drives IT/OT Integration
There are several key catalysts for the integration of IT and OT — let’s look at the most important ones:
Connectivity from operations to the cloud and to the edge: The rise of intelligent (“smart”) field devices, wireless instrumentation, enhanced LoRaWAN coverage and the ongoing proliferation of private 5G networks have expanded connectivity from operations to the cloud. This powerful connectivity provides new, more flexible avenues for collecting, storing and managing data.
Unprecedented data processing capabilities: New technologies like Databricks Delta Lake and Snowflake’s offerings, which separate compute from storage, coupled with hyper scalers’ (AWS, Azure, GCP) data ecosystems enables efficient processing for all types of data (structured, unstructured, picture, video, etc.) from a variety of sources (batch, micro-batch, streaming, etc.). This, combined with rapid innovation in the field — thanks in no small part to a vibrant start-up community — results in envelope-pushing solutions like enabling 200 million concurrent connections for IoT devices.
Advanced analytics and machine learning: Machine learning’s core principles may not have changed much since its early iterations in the 1950s, but its capabilities have skyrocketed — as has the number of models, with Hugging Face, for example, currently having over 120k machine learning models in its repository. Today, ML-powered solutions can often surpass human capabilities in uncovering insights: since 2018, machines have been able to recognize human speech better than an average human, and they have more effective vision for certain tasks. This has greatly expanded the scale at which we analyze data and use it to inform decisions — and that was before the current GenAI boom.
Increasing cybersecurity risks: The increasing connectedness of OT environments has increased the risk of cyberattacks. Since the infamous Stuxnet attack against an Iranian nuclear facility in 2010, the sophistication of cyber threats has only grown, leading organizations to realize they need to step up their OT practices and implement more network segmentation, monitoring and patching techniques to safeguard their operations.
So What’s Keeping Everyone from Integrating IT and OT?
As the above drivers show, there are significant opportunities — and even a degree of necessity — inherent in IT/OT integration. However, this development requires overcoming deep-rooted, systemic challenges that need to be tackled together for long-term success:
Cultural differences: The contrasting priorities and mentalities of IT (e.g. focusing more on speed, more rapid changes) and OT teams (where operations continuity above all is the name of the game) often create a cultural divide that makes the deeper understanding and collaboration of the two fields difficult.
Breaking down silos: Complex technical systems often require highly customized solutions that lead to siloed organizations. Breaking down these silos to share data and promote cooperation without interrupting crucial processes and compromising security is a significant challenge.
Clarity of value propositions: The complexity and statistical nature of the benefits of IT/OT integration can make it challenging to accurately quantify the value proposition. To make matters more difficult, the potential productivity gains — often in the range of 2–5% — might not be a top priority for organizations dealing with persisting supply chain disruptions and general economic turmoil. Additionally, unlocking the abovementioned benefits may require large upfront investments — such as a data lakehouse architecture — which might be difficult to justify on their own.
The Integration Partner’s Perspective
As system integrators, we’ve seen great variation in the pace of IT/OT integration across industries. For example, in asset-heavy industries, asset replacement cycles are often lengthy, and fitting in modern components takes more time. Also, the willingness and ability to embrace the integration journey differs even between players in the same industry: based on the leadership’s beliefs, market dynamics, staff readiness and the level of accumulated technological debt, we encounter significantly different appetites and approaches.
Nonetheless, across various sectors, we’ve helped companies identify, pilot and successfully scale up hundreds of use cases.
What This Means for IT and OT Leaders
The convergence of IT and OT in the data space represents a remarkable transformation in the world of technology. It challenges the traditional boundaries and opens up new horizons for innovation and efficiency, and, as this integration continues to evolve, it’ll redefine the way organizations operate and make decisions.
While no two IT/OT integration journeys are alike, common themes, promising use cases and cost-effective technologies have clearly emerged. This will help sketch a roadmap for those looking to embark on or continue their transformative journey. Stay tuned and watch this space as we delve into these emerging trends in greater detail.
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