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Building Resilient Operations after a Cyber Attack

Following a ransomware attack that disrupted operations across a large portion of its manufacturing network, the packaging company recognized the need for a more consistent approach to industrial connectivity.

Case study
Background

Background

Strengthening industrial connectivity across a complex manufacturing network

For a U.S.-based packaging company, maintaining resilient operations and securing the supply chains that support its high-profile customers are essential. Its vertically integrated manufacturing network includes paper mills and converting plants that depend on reliable, secure access to industrial data.

Following a ransomware attack that disrupted operations across a large portion of its manufacturing network, the packaging company recognized the need for a more consistent approach to industrial connectivity. It turned to Kepware to establish a secure, scalable foundation for its industrial data strategy across its facilities.
Man looking at factory floor
The challenge

The challenge

Recover from disruption while building greater resilience for the future

In 2021, the packaging company experienced a ransomware attack that caused production outages across a large portion of its manufacturing network. The disruption resulted in lost product, short-term financial impacts, and two months of operational disruption.

Although Kepware was already deployed across several mills, connectivity practices were not yet standardized across the organization. The packaging company needed to strengthen the way industrial data moved between segmented OT and IT environments while establishing a consistent architecture that could support security, visibility, and system recovery across its facilities.
The solution

The solution

Standardizing industrial connectivity across facilities

After the cyberattack, the packaging company made the strategic decision to standardize on Kepware across its facilities. The initiative focused on securely tunneling data across firewalls, enabling real-time visibility, and creating a unified OT data architecture.

Key elements of the approach included:

  • Secure data tunneling: Kepware now enables secure communications paths to send data through firewalls across the company's OT and IT network segments, ensuring safe, controlled access to industrial data.
  • Enterprise-wide standardization: Every paper mill now operates under a single playbook, ensuring consistency, simplified maintenance, and streamlined connectivity.
  • Purdue/ISA95 model implementation: The company built its network architecture around the Purdue model, ensuring a layered, secure approach to data governance and system integration. With Kepware's secure tunnelling solution as the consistent gateway for data collection, critical data paths can be more easily managed to reduce OT system disruption during cybersecurity events.
  • Industrial automation and cloud integration: Kepware sends real-time data to Aveva Pl, MES solutions, air quality measurement systems, AWS, and other platforms for enhanced analytics and compliance tracking. 
  • Improved equipment security: Kepware helps translate and secure machine protocols, making legacy equipment less vulnerable to cyber threats.
Manufacturer smiling
The results

The results

A more secure, scalable, and resilient OT architecture

By standardizing on Kepware, the company has tranformed its industrial connectivity strategy, delivering critical business benefits. It has ensured greater visibility, operational efficiency, and security across all facilities. With real-time data access, the company can now monitor asset utilization, OEE metrics, and sustainability insights, helping drive more informed, data-driven decision-making. 

The creation and adoption of a standardized connectivity playbook across every site has significantly reduced response times in the event of future incidents, ensuring every mill follows the same protocols for security and system recovery. Additionally, simplified IT/OT management has lowered the administrative burden, allowing IT teams to focus on strategic improvements rather than reactive troubleshooting. 

Turn real-time industrial data into operational insight

Connect assets and systems to improve visibility into equipment performance, asset utilization, and sustainability metrics while simplifying connectivity management across operations.

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What's next

What's next

Ensuring a secure, connected, and future-ready industrial infrastructure

The company continues to expand its Kepware deployment, with plans to implement Kepware across its smaller converting plants. Future initiatives include: 

  • Deploying Kepware on Linux and containers for greater flexibility
  • Further automation of data collection to drive quality and compliance
  • Enhancing cloud integrations to improve AI-driven analytics

Build a more resilient industrial connectivity foundation

Learn how Kepware helps industrial organizations securely move data across OT and IT environments, standardize connectivity across facilities, and strengthen operational resilience.

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