There is a lot of noise around the Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) and IEC 62443 right now. Most of what you read makes it sound like you need to completely overhaul your control systems or spend a fortune on complex enterprise software just to stay compliant.
If you are running a shop floor with legacy PLCs, drives, or older networks, that simply isn’t realistic. These machines work, they drive your production, and nobody is going to strip them out just to satisfy a new security standard.
At CDL, we take a much more practical view: you don’t need to replace your working machinery, you just need to ring-fence it.
Building a “Trusted Zone” with Hardware Off Our Shelves
Instead of pushing massive upgrades, we help engineers and plant managers build what IEC 62443 calls a Trusted Zone. The idea is simple: leave your existing control logic alone, but drop physical hardware into the cabinet to control who, and what, can talk to it.
Here is the exact kit we use to do it:
- Phoenix Contact mGuard Security Routers: This is your physical firewall and VPN gateway. It sits right in front of your control network, blocking unauthorised network traffic while letting external engineers log in via an encrypted connection when something needs fixing.
- Phoenix Contact FL Managed Switches: Unmanaged networks are a huge compliance risk. Swapping in managed switches lets us set up VLANs and port security instantly. It keeps machine traffic isolated so an issue on one part of the plant doesn’t spread across the entire network.
- Mitsubishi Electric GOT3000 Series HMIs (GT2708 / GT3070): Access control needs to happen on the shop floor, too. The GOT3000 series gives you password protection and role-based permissions directly on the panel. Operators get access to what they need, while maintenance settings stay locked down to authorised staff.
How We Help You Get It Done
We aren’t just shifting boxes; we know how this kit works together in real OT environments.
Whether you need a quick sanity check on your current network layout, advice on choosing the right mGuard router, or help specifying the right GOT3000 HMI for a panel build, we hold the stock and have the engineers on hand to walk you through it.
If you are looking at your current setup and wondering how you are going to meet CRA standards without breaking the bank, give us a call or drop us a message. We’ll help you map out a simple, hardware-led fix that gets your plant secure and compliant.
Want to talk through your shop floor layout? Get in touch with our team today.