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This Position reports to:
R&D Department Lead

Industrial control systems control and supervise our most important and critical infrastructures, such as power utilities, clean water plants and nuclear plants, as well as the manufacturing industries at the base of our economy. These systems are currently undergoing a transformation driven by the Industry 4.0 evolution, characterized by increased connectivity and flexibility.

As digital transformation accelerates, the cyber security landscape continues to evolve rapidly. Modern technologies bring unprecedented opportunities but also introduce new cyber threats. Companies in the operational technology (OT) space face specific challenges, as they must protect production and infrastructure and ensure uninterrupted service while integrating modern informational technology (IT) solutions. The convergence of IT and OT has expanded the attack surface, demanding an approach to security that stretches from assessments to implementing foundational security to real-time monitoring, threat intelligence, and incident response.

In distributed control systems, it is common for signal values originating from one controller, sensor, or field interface to be used within control loops running on other controllers. Historically, such data exchange has relied on proprietary or standardized protocols designed for low latency and high reliability, often without consideration for cybersecurity. This legacy approach is no longer sufficient. Signal and control data must now be transmitted using secure protocols that meet both performance and security requirements.

The objective of this thesis is to evaluate existing protocols for secure communication in industrial environments and to develop guidance and metrics addressing both performance and security characteristics. The focus will be on standardized industry protocols supporting peer-to-peer communication and publish/subscribe architectures.

Protocols to be assessed could include:

• Variants of OPC UA
  • Secure OPC UA pub/sub over UDP
  • Broker based OPC UA pub/sub
  • OPC UA client/server
• Data Distribution Service (DDS)
• MQTT
• CIP Ethernet/IP (ODVA)
• Others as relevant

The thesis will encompass both theoretical analysis and practical implementation, conducted in close collaboration and co-supervised by R&D personnel at ABB Process Automation. The findings may directly inform future product development initiatives.

This work will be conducted as part of the FLEXATION project, in collaboration between ABB AB and MDU.

Your background:

• Master student
• Software development skills in C# or C++

Details:

• Number of students: One or two
• Number of credits: 30 ECTS

Positions are filled continuously. Apply with your CV, academic transcripts, and a cover letter in English. Welcome to apply!

Join us. Be part of the team where progress happens, industries transform, and your work shapes the world. Run What Runs the World.

A Future Opportunity
Please note that this position is part of our talent pipeline and not an active job opening at this time. By applying, you express your interest in future career opportunities with ABB.

We value people from different backgrounds. Could this be your story? Apply today or visit www.abb.com to learn more about us and see the impact of our work across the globe.