Case Study: Outokumpu achieves 24/7 secure global stainless-steel production with Palo Alto Networks

Connected cybersecurity underpins 24/x7 global steel manufacturing at Outokumpu

Outokumpu, a global leader in sustainable stainless steel with 8,500 employees across nearly 30 countries and more than 2 million tonnes produced annually, needed to modernize its plant-floor operations without interrupting 24/7 manufacturing. The company faced a patchwork of fragmented network security, unreliable VPNs and rising OT/IoT exposure that undermined visibility, scalability and its cloud-first, zero-trust transformation goals.

Outokumpu standardized on a unified Palo Alto Networks portfolio—including ML-powered PA and VM next‑generation firewalls, Cloud-Delivered Security Services (Threat Prevention, URL Filtering, DNS Security, WildFire), Panorama and Prisma Access—to replace siloed controls and legacy VPNs. The deployment delivered centralized visibility and automated SOC workflows, secure direct-to-app access for 3,000+ hybrid users, improved production stability, lower operational costs and simpler, scalable protection across its global sites and supplier connections.

Outokumpu

Risto Mikola

Vice President, Head of IT Platforms