The Internet of Everything (IoE)-bringing together previously unconnected people, processes, data and things-opens a world of possibilities in terms of creating new capabilities, richer experiences and unparalleled economic opportunity for organizations, individuals, and nations. Cisco predicts that 50+ billion devices will be connected by 2020. The ramifications are enormous and varied, including how manufacturing plants operate.

The exchange between information technology (IT) and operations technology (OT) is increasing as the industrial plant floor and corporate enterprise become more connected. The convergence of IT and OT is expanding IP Networking and Ethernet connectivity on the industrial plant floor. Understandably, World Bank Studies estimate that 220,000 new engineers are required every year from 2014 to 2022 to connect the unconnected. In addition, there are 300,000 Control Engineers that need to be re-skilled in the industry.

As part of Cisco's ongoing commitment to equip IT and networking professionals with the knowledge and skills essential to fulfill evolving industry job roles, we have launched the new CCNA Industrial certification. It's an expansion, due to high demand, of the IT/OT track we began last year with the release of our Industrial Networking Specialist Certification.

Cisco collaborated closely with Rockwell Automation, a company with significant expertise in the industrial automation space, to develop a program to help control-system and traditional network engineers better understand the technologies needed to manage a hyperconnected industrial enterprise. This complements and extends our existing collaboration on products, services, validated architectures, and educational resources to jointly address IT and OT network convergence.

The CCNA Industrial Education curriculum is a lab-based training and certification product that is designed for Operations Professionals, Control Engineers and IT Network engineers working in manufacturing that prepares them with the knowledge and skills necessary to build, manage and operate converged industrial networks.

Leveraging Industry Standard Protocols and best practices, employers can be confident that certification holders are fluent in converging multi-platform industrial environments using the most popular industry standard protocols, ensuring current infrastructure is maximized while developing the platform for flexibility to support future business outcomes.

For more information, see the news release here. Thanks for reading.