Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Are we secure yet My posts on security are drawing some interesting feedback. Check out Dave Harrold's comments to yesterday's post about Joe Weiss. Dave points out that security is a huge problem. In a private message to me, he pointed out that we can take all kinds of measures in a generating plant, then someone can just do something simple at a substation and wipe out a big part of the grid. I've also added a new listing to my list of companies and blogs--Mu Security. Marketing VP Adam Stein wrote and pointed to the company, Web site and blog. Check out this post. 7:42:04 AM    comment []

ARC Forum Keynotes Larry O'Brien, Research Director for Process Industries at the ARC Advisory Group in Dedham, Mass., recently issued an "ARC Insight" analysis of the keynotes from the recent ARC Forum held in Orlando. O'Brien says that the talks highlighted some of the key challenges faced by manufacturers across all disciplines. Managers from Dow, Boeing and Bristol Meyers Squibb gave presentations while a manager from General Motors appeared on the wrap up panel discussion. O'Brien identifies the common themes as "getting the best possible performance out of your employees and your partners, leveraging standardization while making room for site specific requirements and leveraging technology to create a real business value proposition." He concludes by noting that many of the issues revolved around people, saying, "It is clear that the human factor will continue to be a dominant theme in the manufacturing environment of the 21st century." Here are some takeaways O'Brien points to from a couple of the talks. BMS Business Drivers for MES Integrated Recipe Expedite Batch Review and Release Reduction of unintentional errors that occur when following SOPs Reduction of batch processing problems Drive standardization to support tech transfer and regulatory compliance Standardization at BMS Standardization is a big part of BMS's plan. BMS is implementing ISA 88 and ISA 95 standards and the supporting MSA infrastructure. The company is also implementing standard electronic work instructions to assist in the reduction of unintentional errors that occur when following manual SOPs. Dow's Recommendations for Dealing Effectively with People Listening to peopleâo[dot accent]s concerns Providing a strategic roadmap Empowering people Recognizing peopleâo[dot accent]s contributions Respecting cultural differences Making safety the number one priority 7:31:55 AM    comment []