What is OT asset management?

OT asset management is keeping a current, structured record of the operational technology on a site: the PLCs, HMIs, drives, servo amplifiers, remote I/O and network devices that run production. For each device the record answers the questions an engineer asks when it fails. What is it? What program is it running? Where is the backup? What software, version and cable do I need to get online? Is it still made?

OT is not IT

IT is the equipment that handles information: laptops, servers, business software. Most businesses manage it carefully. They know what they own, who uses it and when licences expire.

OT is the equipment that controls physical processes. On a manufacturing site it is the automation behind every line, and it is usually far less well documented than the IT estate, even though it is the part that stops production when it fails.

The reasons are practical. OT changes slowly and lasts for decades. It is installed by different machine builders over the years, each with their own documentation. It is often maintained by a small number of engineers who carry most of the knowledge in their heads. That works until one of them leaves, or a controller fails and nobody can find the program.

What the record should hold

A useful OT asset record goes beyond a list of part numbers. For each device it holds:

• Identity: manufacturer, model, part number, serial number and firmware version.
• Where it is: site, machine and line, so the record matches the floor.
• The program: a backup of every PLC and HMI program, with each change stored as a new version.
• How to restore it: the programming software, the version that matches the firmware, and the cable needed to connect.
• Lifecycle status: whether the manufacturer still sells and supports the part, or has moved it to phase-out, cancellation or total discontinuation.
• Documents: manuals, drawings and certificates, kept with the device they belong to.
• Support: whether the device is covered by a support contract, and who to call.

The restore details matter more than they look. A backup without the right software version or the right cable can still leave a line down for hours.

Why a spreadsheet stops working

Most sites start with a spreadsheet, and for a while it does the job. It breaks down for the same reasons every time:

• Nobody owns it, so it falls out of date after the first engineering change.
• It records what a device is, but not the program that runs on it.
• It has no history. You can’t see what changed, when, or who changed it.
• It sits on one person’s laptop or a shared drive nobody can find during a breakdown.

An OT asset management platform keeps the record in one place, versions the programs, and logs every change against a named user.

Why it matters now

Three pressures are making this more urgent for UK manufacturers.

Obsolescence. A large share of installed automation is now in phase-out or discontinued. On one site ECS audited, 46% of 1,122 devices were already discontinued, cancelled or phasing out. You can only plan spares and migrations for kit you know you have.

Skills. Experienced controls engineers are retiring faster than they are being replaced. When the knowledge lives in one person, the record is the only thing that survives them leaving.

Audit and cyber resilience. Customers, insurers and certification bodies increasingly ask manufacturers to show they know what is on their network and can recover it. See OT asset governance for UK manufacturers for which rules apply.

How to get started

There are two routes. A team that already knows its estate can enter devices itself. For most sites, the faster route is a site audit: engineers walk every line, record every device, take the backups and check each part against its manufacturer’s lifecycle. That is what Capture does, and the result lands in Command Centre, where it stays current.