Having worked as a submariner for much of my career, I know the value of effective asset management from the Defence perspective. It’s clear to me, that while it’s vital that we have real time information on our defence assets, it’s also important to be able to support our critical national infrastructure (CNI) with accurate and timely information. There are synergies between the two sectors in terms of the complexity and value of the physical assets involved – they are critical to society, and often under significant pressure. In fact, if you remove the labels ‘Defence’ and ‘CNI’, you will also find many similar challenges, which is why our approach can help organisations in both domains.
New threats and challenges
As shown in our recently released research report ‘The Asset Management Gap: Why CNI Transformation Can’t Wait’, unprecedented operational strain is causing more than three-quarters (76%) of decision makers in the global CNI space to prioritise significant transformation. More specifically, this transformation is designed to better manage physical assets via digital solutions in the face of both external and internal challenges.
An increased threat of cyber attacks, supply chain vulnerabilities, regulatory compliance and governance mandates, and a growing reliance on interconnected systems including AI, IOT, and cloud are all confirmed as significant external pressures in the report.
The research study, conducted by Censuswide on behalf of BAE Systems, surveyed 360 Senior IT Decision Makers, Senior Business Decision Makers and Engineers from CNI organisations globally to understand the challenges these organisations are currently facing.
Internally, a lack of interoperability between systems (33%) was the most frequent challenge listed among nine different concerns. Data fragmentation and data standardisation were also cited as immediate spinoff struggles, as well as a difficulty to ensure compliance without clear information and connected solutions.
Ultimately, the extent and severity of challenges at play - causing cost, supply chain, and security issues – led to more than half (57%) of respondents reporting they’re facing considerable pressure to ensure their operational systems and complex physical assets are reliable.
And make no mistake, the concern, the shift, and the needs at play are far from theoretical. Service continuity, national resilience, and public safety are all implicated should these entities not embark on a transformation that reverses these trends and puts decision makers back on the front foot.
A socially significant transformation
This reversal in practical terms means replacing legacy systems, fragmented data environments, and poor interoperability with a unification of disparate systems, the unlocking of more actionable insights, and more resilient and agile decision making as a default capability.
A high level starting point for this transformation is already seeing CNI assets being safeguarded and augmented by greater AI use (77%) and more data-driven access and connectivity (88%). From there, a host of different technologies including standards-based technologies, blockchain technologies, big data and advanced analytics, condition-based monitoring systems, cloud solutions, IoT, automation and robotics, and product lifecycle management (PLM) solutions are all contributing to more connected, autonomous, maintainable, and secure physical asset networks.
Learning from Defence
BAE Systems Digital Intelligence has long looked to boost the availability of complex defence assets through advanced digital solutions such as these, and the same key outcomes of reduced costs, more efficient supply chains, and improved decision making can be realised in the CNI space too.
A standout example is PropheSEA® from BAE Systems Digital Intelligence, which reflects the need for not just enabling technologies, but enabling partners for the CNI community moving forward.
PropheSEA helps to bridge fragmentation, enable interoperability, and support advanced analytics within high-assurance environments. All of which will prove critical as global CNI continues its transformation away from operational strain and national vulnerability, and towards more seamless, proactive, and digitised management of physical assets in the most socially significant of sectors.
The Asset Management Gap: Why CNI Transformation Can’t Wait
Download the report for more on this research, including the methodology and additional findings.