WESCO & Rockwell Sell Cyber Security Services

Earlier in the week we shared some thoughts we, and Dick Friedman, had on selling services. While distributors can create services based upon their capabilities, there are manufacturers who team with their distributors to bring resources to customers. Such is the case between Rockwell Automation and WESCO’s EESCO division … and the partnership earned WESCO / EESCO Rockwell’s inaugural Distribution Innovation Award.

Preventing Plant Floor Cyber Incidents

The partnership, according to a joint WESCO / Rockwell press release, focused on supporting a manufacturer with their operational cybersecurity concerns.

“Wesco International , a leading provider of business-to-business distribution, logistics services and supply chain solutions, is pleased to announce that Rockwell Automation, the world’s largest company dedicated to industrial automation and digital transformation, has named Wesco’s EESCO division winner of the inaugural Distribution Innovation Award during the 2022 PartnerNetwork Conference for success in Services and Cyber Security.

The Rockwell Automation PartnerNetwork Innovation Awards honor the achievements of organizations that have successfully planned and executed innovative and transformational solutions in one or multiple areas of their business through the application of Rockwell and other partners’ digital and disruptive technologies.

In partnership with Rockwell’s Threat Detection Services including install and support of Cisco’s Cybervision, EESCO was recognized for successfully helping a manufacturer secure and prevent cyber incidents on their plant floor network. This included helping their IT department navigate the various technologies, devices and protocols required to provide protection from cyberattacks on the operational technology (OT) network.

By bringing all the key stakeholders together, EESCO was empowered to assess the full range of challenges – from network threats to navigating the many cybersecurity technologies – and methodically implement a control that secured the network to minimize loss of production and downtime in the event of a cyber threat. As a result, the customer’s IT team was able to:

• Identify and address vulnerabilities
• Gain greater insight into the plant floor networks
• Standardize infrastructure using Cisco
• Bridge the gap between IT and OT
• Provide better documentation and utilization information of the manufacturer’s assets
• Minimize cybersecurity threats to meet compliance goals

“This award recognizes and honors your achievements, and we are grateful to acknowledge your hard work and dedication to helping our customers bring The Connected Enterprise to life,” said Andrew Hastert, Director of Channel Partnerships at Rockwell Automation. “You exemplify why the Rockwell Automation PartnerNetwork is Better Together.”

“We are thrilled to be recognized by Rockwell Automation as the inaugural winner of the Distributor Innovation Award,” said Scott Martin, Vice President, EESCO. “By leveraging Rockwell’s Threat Detection services, we helped our customer gain critical operational insights into the plant floor network and identify vulnerabilities more quickly, minimizing the loss of production and downtime. We are proud of our partnership with Rockwell and look forward to continuing our successful collaboration for the benefit of customers worldwide.”

Services is a major initiative for Rockwell and its distributors. Rockwell distributors are using the Rockwell “playbook” to expand their services offerings to capture non-Rockwell-related opportunities and, in some instances, expanding these to their contractor divisions.

At the same time, perhaps it will push other manufacturers to identify joint service offerings.

Congratulations to EESCO for the award and Rockwell for recognizing innovation and selling services.