GridSecCon, 2019, introduced new opportunities for AMAROK™ to help critical-public-infrastructure customers meet compliance regulations and national standards for perimeter security.
The objectives of the annual conference, held this year in Atlanta, GA, from October 22-25, were to:
- Promote reliability of the bulk power system through training and education
- Deliver cutting-edge discussions on critical infrastructure security threats, vulnerabilities, and lessons learned
- Inform industry with security best-practice discussions on reliability concerns and risk mitigation as well as cyber and physical security threat awareness
GridSecCon 2019 gathered “cyber and physical security experts from industry and government to share emerging security trends, policy advancements, and lessons learned related to the electricity industry.”
And AMAROK did not linger on the edges of this opportunity. As a Resale Specialist, along with Tod Gallion as Add-on Specialist, we plugged into the mainstream of potential customers and presented ourselves as the Ultimate Perimeter Security Solution.
Seems a bit ironic that we would tap into new customer bases that provide electricity to millions, but they need us because we can help the public-infrastructure segment comply with CIP standards, which are non-negotiable.
What CIP standard are you going to help me adhere to? was a question that we heard repeatedly.
CIP, or Critical Infrastructure Protection, is a national safety program that sets guidelines for the preparedness and responsiveness of critical public infrastructures in the event of a serious incident. Examples of critical public infrastructures include transportation, utilities, telecommunication, and government facilities.
We owe a shout out to Trey Kirkpatrick of ABZ Incorporated, who offered us invaluable information and guidance. Trey helped us decipher the CIP standards, and he directed us to those that best align with our product offerings and the requirements of our potential customers in the critical-public-infrastructure segment.
Trey even arranged a video conference the following week and aided us in isolating potential markets and customers.
One particular vertical that we will focus on is Transmission Stations and Substations. These customers are required to, in the words of CIP Standard 014-12, “protect Transmission stations and Transmission substations, and their associated primary control centers” from “physical attack.”
With that goes a whole host of steps that covers 37 pages of compliance regulations and procedures.
But there’s more: We are able to segment and prioritize our target customers in the Transmission Station and Substation market. Our focus will be on power stations or municipalities that are building new or are looking to upgrade an existing infrastructure. Also, the companies that build and procure the equipment for utilities, or, some cases, the generators that own the equipment.
And these are just the initial steps in pursuing the bulk power market, which has customers located throughout the United States, encompassing all kinds of energy-producing sources, including wind, solar, renewable energy, and generating facilities.
We look forward to GridSecCon 2020!
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