Summary
The development of new information technologies is revolutionizing SCADA platforms in their capabilities and the new functionalities derived from them. In this article, we analyze their evolution, their present, and their future.
Evolution of SCADA
SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) systems were born out of the ancillary need to graphically supervise industrial processes and have become an indispensable element of any industrial control system.
Their evolution has taken them from being simple variable monitoring interfaces to performing tasks of collecting and historizing alarms and process events, and from being designed as stand-alone architectures such as HMI (Human-Machine Interface) for isolated machines or processes to being deployed in server farms capable of collecting and processing all data from one or several complete industrial plants.
The Technological Revolution
The exponential emergence of new technologies such as IIoT, Edge computing, ML/DL, AI, Big Data, along with their widespread adoption and cost reduction, has enabled SCADA systems to adopt new capabilities and provide new functionalities, representing a true revolution for these platforms.
Thus, the advent of IIoT (Industrial Internet of Things) requires current SCADA systems to handle enormous amounts of information, involving the use of large databases, optimized communication systems, and intelligent processing algorithms for the collected data.
The growing demand for real-time data analysis and operational logic, along with the incorporation of Edge computing technologies, has meant that SCADA must enable new integration capabilities not foreseen in traditional systems.
Increased competition and the demand for optimization and efficiency in markets have led users of our systems to require new functionalities that streamline and improve their processes. Among these new needs are automatic anomaly detection, failure prediction, energy optimization, advanced and intelligent analysis of their variables, execution of algorithms aimed at predictive maintenance, increased availability of all systems, or having systems that simulate them. This is why the native adoption of new technologies, such as AI and ML/DP, is essential, turning SCADA into true business decision platforms.
Open Systems
On another note, our clients understand SCADA systems as open, not only in terms of development ownership but also in their ability to connect and integrate with a growing number of systems that support their businesses. Therefore, the incorporation of open protocols such as OPC UA or MQTT into industrial SCADA systems, and their ability to adopt new standards through open APIs, event-driven architectures, containers, and models based on Unified Namespace (UNS) or virtualization, have become non-negotiable requirements for new platforms.
Industrial Cybersecurity
Finally, we cannot forget that an increasingly connected industrial control system carries greater risks related to information security. In this sense, industrial infrastructures have become strategic targets for cyberattacks, meaning that new SCADA platforms must comply with our cybersecurity paradigms such as Zero Trust, continuous monitoring, and advanced threat detection, and adapt to new regulations like IEC 62443 or NIS.
The Future of SCADA
With all this, the development of new functionalities and capabilities in SCADA platforms is a reality that will further transform this element in the coming years to definitively and practically incorporate all these technological innovations.
The classic image of an operator in front of multiple screens in a control room will also change based on new capabilities and the incorporation of autonomous, distributed, and resilient systems, with less human intervention but improved early detection and shorter response times, which will result in greater efficiency and safety in the controlled processes that are the primary objective of industrial control systems.
Our Vision
At Alventia Tecnología y Consultoría, we understand that it is essential to bet on modern SCADA solutions that incorporate the latest advances in information technology, and therefore we invest in innovation and development so that all our SCADA solutions are aligned with the new challenges our clients face.