SUPPORT
From the plant floor to the front office, manufacturers run on a tightly synchronized mix of OT and IT—CNC machines, PLCs, MES, SCADA, CAD/PLM tools, and ERP—all of it expected to work flawlessly in harsh environments and across shifts. That reality is why IT managed services for manufacturing firms can’t look like generic office support. You need uptime measured against production schedules, change windows aligned to shift handoffs, and cybersecurity that protects proprietary designs and supplier portals without slowing throughput.
The Walker Group understands that a missing workstation image can idle a cell, and a misconfigured VLAN can halt quality data collection across a line. Our approach begins with a plant-aware discovery: mapping OT assets and network segments, identifying single points of failure (from HMIs to access switches), establishing maintenance windows that won’t collide with takt time, and translating business goals—OEE, first-pass yield, scrap reduction—into service-level metrics the IT team is accountable for. With this foundation, we design resilient architectures that keep CAD engineers productive, machinists online, and executives confident that compliance and customer audits will pass without drama. That’s the performance bar manufacturers need, and it’s the one we set from day one.
Secure the crown jewels without slowing the line.
Manufacturers sit at the crossroads of IP risk and supply chain dependency. A single compromised vendor account can echo through purchase orders, EDI feeds, and logistics. IT managed services for manufacturing firms must therefore balance zero-trust principles with real-world usability on the floor. We start with identity: conditional access tied to role, device posture, and location; MFA that respects glove-handed workflows; and least-privilege policies that still let engineers compile a new post-processor when needed. Network controls include micro-segmentation between OT cells, east-west traffic inspection where feasible, and carefully brokered routes from plant historian to analytics platforms. Endpoint controls are tuned to avoid false positives on CNC controllers and PLC programming laptops, while still blocking known-bad patterns.
We fold in immutable backups and tested restores—because ransomware recovery time is the difference between a costly week and a painful quarter. Compliance is handled proactively: vendor questionnaires, customer audits, and frameworks like NIST 800-171 or CMMC are translated into practical controls and evidence collection that won’t drown your teams in paperwork. Security only works if it’s invisible during a shift; our designs aim for exactly that.
Our services include Managed IT Services, Network Support Services, Managed Help Desk, Backup and disaster Recovery—delivered through plant-aware processes that respect maintenance windows, shift schedules, and regulatory expectations.
Cost clarity, capacity planning, and clean handoffs
Budget holders want predictability; plant managers want capacity on demand. Managed services for manufacturing firms must satisfy both. We standardize asset lifecycles (procure, image, deploy, retire), publish hardware and software catalogs to speed approvals, and tag costs by cell, product line, or plant for clean chargebacks. Capacity planning goes beyond servers: we monitor Wi-Fi density in bays, track license utilization for CAD and simulation suites, and maintain spare pools for mission-critical devices so a failed HMI or barcode printer doesn’t stall a shift.
The support model is equally transparent: first-contact resolution targets, escalation timelines, and maintenance calendars are visible to supervisors, not just IT. When construction or retooling happens, IT shows up early—power, drops, cabinet cooling, and fiber paths are validated before machines roll in, avoiding the “week-one wobble” that steals production hours. Vendors and integrators get clear RACI charts, so every retrofit and robot cell addition lands cleanly with a signed-off acceptance test. Predictability becomes a habit, not a hope.
Why this partnership pays back fast
Manufacturers measure ROI in hours of uptime, percent of yield, and days on hand. it managed services for manufacturing firms earns its keep when engineering stops waiting on slow check-ins, when lines recover swiftly from small faults, and when audits become routine rather than fire drills. You’ll feel it in fewer after-hours calls, steadier throughput, and calmer launches of new parts and tooling. And you’ll see it in a cleaner cyber posture that satisfies customers and primes your bid list for bigger programs. If your current support can’t speak both IT and OT, or if every change risks a line stop, it’s time for a plant-literate approach that aligns technology with takt time and quality goals. The Walker Group brings that mindset to every engagement—combining pragmatism on the floor with disciplined governance in the background—so your teams spend more time building and less time rebooting.
FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions
What makes your approach different from generic outsourcing?
We build around plant rhythms—shift changes, maintenance windows, and quality gates—so updates and fixes never collide with production. Runbooks, staging, and rehearsed rollbacks keep downtime short and predictable.
How do you protect OT while still enabling analytics and remote support?
We segment per Purdue zones, broker narrowly scoped data flows, enforce strong identity controls, and use hardened jump hosts. Result: data for decision-making without exposing controllers unnecessarily.
Can you support multi-site operations with different equipment vintages?
Yes. We standardize core services while tailoring edge controls to each site’s mix of PLCs, CNCs, HMIs, and networks. Shared templates deliver consistency, while site-specific policies respect unique constraints.
How is ROI measured?
We tie outcomes to production KPIs—OEE, first-pass yield, mean time to restore, and audit readiness. Quarterly reviews map IT work to reduce scrap, faster changeovers, and fewer unplanned stops.
What if we’re mid-project on ERP, MES, or a new line install?
We integrate with existing vendors and SIs, provide clear RACI handoffs, and add governance to keep milestones on track—without introducing delays on the plant floor.
