Significance of Electric Power Industry

 Electricity generating company is power and energy producing industry that deals with the production of power from naturally existing resources. Sources of electric power include hydroelectric power generation, wind generating power stations, nuclear power stations, and geothermal power generating plants.  Generated power is usually in various forms. The first form includes fossils fuels, which is the production of power as a result of burning fossil fuels like natural gas, coal, and gas. 

The second form of energy is generated from nuclear reactions where uranium atoms are split through a process called fission to produce heat energy. The third form of energy is renewable energy whereby industries use natural energy to generate electricity. Sources of fuel include the wind, marine waves, hydroelectric power, biomass and solar energy.    

Significance of Electric Power Industry

Electric power is applied in different places. Within industries, it is used to drive machines by converting heat energy into mechanical and electrical energy. Electricity is applied in homes to provide lighting. It is also used for cooking in homes and hotels. Electric industries provide energy to companies for commercial services. Health centers use electric energy in specials ways like the treatment of cancer, scanning, and oxygen generation. Similarly, power driven machines help human health to be sustained through electronic devices.  

Industrial Control System Processes Employed

Industrial control system processes in Electric Industry

Electric industries implement synchronized phasor measurement technology to facilitate controlling monitoring and managing power systems. Electric power consumption is determined by Phasor Measurement Units (PMU) at real time. The speed required ranges between 50 to 100 hertz. Through PMU systems, electric industries have the capability of implementing fast and reliable power consumption estimates using Wide Area Measurement Systems (WAMS) (Tolentino, & Kim, 2010). WAMS provides an evaluation of electric power, determination of stability risks, as well as implementing preventive mechanism.                                

 Increased demand for improving communication, storing and data and information processing proved that PMUs could not support and satisfy company needs and specifications. Needs and specifications led to electric companies integrating and optimizing PMUs using SCADA systems and WAMS.

SCADA system consists of a master control station installed in main control and monitoring center. It has installed special systems called Remote Terminal Units (RTU) installed in substations and power generating plants. The function of RTU is to measure the amount of voltage, current, power frequency, as well as calculating active and reactive power. Data and information recorded by RTU are transmitted via the network to SCADA systems at the control center. RTU collect phase information from substations by reading transducers installed in each substation. Application of optical fiber network made the operation of transferring data and information between RTU and SCADA systems fast.

Control Systems that Control those Processes and how they Control those Processes

Electronic company’s implement Load Break Switch Gears (LBS), municipal Substations, and Circuit Break Reclosers (CBR) are designed to carry out utility personnel functions without requiring remote control from the central control unit. Application of advanced RTUs like Motorola ACE3600 allows integration of wireless data communications is providing effective and efficient power grid operations (Shahzad, et al., 2014).  RTUs are responsible for performing remote control to MV distribution as well as communicating with collocated Intelligent Electronic Devices (IED). IEDs performs tasks like power monitoring, and fault detection through using a direct link to 3 phase voltages and sensor devices connected to the MV. CBR control ensures SCADA at control units integrates with IED that allows fault detection. When a fault in the flow of current is detected switchgear device is triggered to block the flow of faulty current across the channels. RTU communicates the fault to SCADA systems at control center where Distribution Management System (DMS) automatically collects the fault by restoring power to normal flow rates.

In hydroelectric power stations, control and monitoring of power distribution are being operated using SCADA acquisition and control systems. Devices applied to hydroelectric power plants include Programmed Automated equipment, intelligence electronic devices, data, and information transmission systems and computers. Monitoring and control systems make dedicated connections to three distinct parts. The first connection is substation where it performs measuring, monitoring, controlling, and digitizing (Maglaras, et al., 2014). The second connection is control room where it deals with collecting, storing, displaying, and processing substation data. The third connection is dispatcher center where it performs storing and displaying of incoming data.

Central computer SCADA systems located at hydroelectric power plant provide power monitoring control and management through the use of the RS485 bus. The systems make use of Master-Slave architecture that implements the IEC1107 protocol. A Modbus system is usually applied in facilitating RTU operations and ASCII protocols. SCADA systems include the process of taking measurements of volumes of water levels, temperatures, pressure and attribute parameters of the hydro electric power generator. Data and information collected is displayed through an interactive user interface referred to as the man –machine interaction interface. 

        

   Security controls based on results from “Industrial Control System Processes Employed” and “Profile ICS Devices”:

SCADA systems should be installed in C4ISR, and their design must be protected against shock effects. The systems must be free from high pressure and dangerous effects of weapons and heavy equipment. According to NIST detailed research must be performed to support the safety of devices. Spoiling that may result from effects of motion, and acceleration must be eliminated by designing structure of SCADA system in a most secure way. Mounting of SCADA systems should be considered and taken into evaluation before installing systems on the particular point. SCADA system should \be mounted on shock isolation platforms. SCADA system should be secured from destruction by dust, dirt, water, chemical, acids, and other corrosive detergents. Any material or environments should not contaminate SCADA system they must be enclosed in a safety environment. Proper precautions must be observed to avoid compromising other attached equipment at the expense of SCADA system. Conduit pipes, tubing, and wiring should not compromise unclosing integrity (Choi, et al., 2013).

Apply ICS Security Best Practices

SCADA system should be secured in a well-protected area free from any contamination. Security parameters should be enforced to ensure that both inside and outside attacks, risks, threats and problems are protected. HMI interfaces where the user access entire system must be protected using strong authentication, verification, and validation protocols. Passwords, personal identification pin, and biometric measures should be applied during login into the system. Administrators should implement multiple levels of access with different rights and freedom to access them system. Equipment that exists on pull and junction boxes must be secured using locking mechanisms. Doors and entry points should be installed with monitoring equipment to ensure that a record is taken for any attempt to access the system. Tampering detecting devices should be fixed to provide information on various bleached areas where intruders attempted to break into the system. Conduits exits and entry points should be secured from any possibility of finding access to insert chemicals and other harmful chemical substances. Polluting gaseous chemicals, fluids, and solid substances should be easily detected by the system and be secured from affecting the system (Fan, et al., 2005).  

Unmediated Risks Analysis

Unremediated risks and chosen risk strategy: Accepted risk, avoided risk, mitigated risk, shared risk, transferred risk, include the following

1.    Successful unauthorized access in form of hacking or intrusion into the system

2.    Problems involving eavesdropping and recording or transmitted data

3.    Data and information interception, alteration a retransmission

4.    Attacks from malware like viruses, worms, Trajan causing  denial of  services in the entire  system

Vulnerability in Continuous Monitoring Strategy

a.    The  Nessus - Bandolier modules allow defense mechanism by avoiding network connections. It allows other networks outside the premises to be hidden from viewing internal network.

b.    Metasploit – ICS exploits allow automatic physical disconnection while systems are idle or not in use. Approach breaks dial-up connections involving vendor services when attacks are detected c.     Snort applies security methods where the system uses channels that have limited or minimal vulnerability loopholes. For example use of fiber optic cables which cannot be intercepted without losing signals at receiving end d.    Nmap – Identify ICS “friendly” scans as well as providing alarming when no controls are permitted at the end points. The status of transmission is delivered as well as the report of scanned vulnerability reports.

      The tools discussed are standard tools that enhance and facilitate better performance in SCADA system. The tools make development and implementation of SCADA system effective during enforcement of security. Acceptable systems are created with the development of SCADA system. The tools specify common criteria of implementation during development and implementation of entire SCADA system (Alcaraz, et al., 2011).

Create script rules for base lining each ICS system

Modern technology has increasingly imposed more emphasis on development and manufacturing of software. The company should consider installing standardized software that has been verified from manufacturers. For installed software company should ensure there is good implementation of documentation of software. Software Management and Documentation System should be applied on software that control system at the central control unit. Software controlling the monitoring of flow and rising of voltage should have several replications to prevent the event of crashing. SCADA system administrators should enforce the following

1.     Control and administration management should enforce rules on individuals who should access SCADA system and define the actions that should be performed by each.

2.    Administrators should maintain inventory history of entire software and hardware components. A historical history  should exist to facilitate acknowledgment of configuration settings and maintaining references for future references and maintenance

3.    The system administrators should maintain a record of all modified data and information. All configurations, settings and management operations should be documented. SCADA system should be set in a way that it should keep audits on the individuals who modified records, time of modification, what was changed, and location placed after changes.

4.    Data and information backup strategies should be applied to the system. Catastrophic disasters should be supported through ensuring that all forms of critical information are well recorded on backup repository system. 

   

        Reference

Alcaraz, C., Lopez, J., Zhou, J., & Roman, R. (2011). Secure SCADA framework for the protection of energy control systems. Concurrency and Computation: Practice and Experience, 23, 12, 1431-1442.

Choi, D., Jeong, H., Won, D., & Kim, S. (2013). Hybrid key management architecture for robust SCADA systems. Journal of Information Science and Engineering, 29, 2, 281-298.

Fan, R., Toker, O., & Cheded, L. (2005). Java plus XML: a powerful new combination for SCADA systems. Computing and Control Engineering, 16, 5, 27-30

Maglaras, L. A., Jiang, J., & Cruz, T. (2014). Integrated OCSVM mechanism for intrusion detection in SCADA systems. Electronics Letters, 50, 25, 1935-1936.

Shahzad, A., Musa, S., Aborujilah, A., & Irfan, M. (2014). The SCADA review: System components, architecture, protocols and future security trends.American Journal of Applied Sciences, 11, 8, 1418-1425.

Tolentino, R. S., & Kim, T.-H. (2010). Review: Distributed system network architecture for securing SCADA system. International Journal of Smart Home, 4, 1, 13-22.

Sherry Roberts is the author of this paper. A senior editor at MeldaResearch.Com in custom nursing essay writing services services if you need a similar paper you can place your order for college essay writing services.