How Rockwood Composites Strengthened Cyber Security and Achieved Cyber Essentials
At A Glance
The Rockwood Group, known as Rockwood Composites, required a trusted IT partner to support its growing cyber security requirements and help achieve the standards increasingly demanded by customers operating in highly regulated sectors. As part of an ongoing managed IT support relationship, IT Champion helped strengthen security controls, improve device management, and support the organisation’s journey towards Cyber Essentials readiness.
The Challenge
Rockwood Composites manufactures complex composite structures for demanding industries, including organisations operating within highly regulated supply chains. As customer security requirements increased, the business needed to demonstrate stronger cyber security controls and improve processes across its IT environment.
The organisation already relied on a mix of on-premise infrastructure, Microsoft 365, SharePoint and business-critical systems. However, several security and compliance improvements were required to meet evolving expectations and support future Cyber Essentials certification activities.
Key priorities included:
- Improving device security and user accountability
- Strengthening access controls and policy management
- Reducing risks associated with legacy technologies
- Supporting Cyber Essentials compliance objectives
- Creating a more robust foundation for future growth and security initiatives
The Solution
As Rockwood’s Managed IT Support Partner, IT Champion worked closely with the business to implement a series of security-focused improvements and best-practice controls.
1. Improving security governance and accountability
To strengthen auditing and accountability, devices that had previously been accessed through shared user accounts were transitioned to individual user accounts. This provided greater visibility over access and activity while supporting compliance requirements.
2. Strengthening endpoint security
IT Champion implemented several measures designed to improve the security posture of Rockwood’s endpoint estate, including:
- Device encryption across company machines
- User lockout policies to reduce unauthorised access
- Removal of unnecessary local user accounts
- Elimination of insecure legacy protocols such as SMB1
3. Enabling centralised management and control
Workstations were joined to the domain, allowing policies and security controls to be managed consistently across the environment. This helped improve governance while creating a more scalable platform for future cyber security enhancements.
4. Building a long-term security roadmap
Alongside managed IT support, Rockwood adopted additional security services including Microsoft 365 Business Premium licensing, Microsoft Defender technologies, backup protection, and cyber security support designed to help the business continue improving resilience over time. Information supplied by IT Champion indicates the environment includes Microsoft 365, SharePoint, Defender for Business, Veeam backup and Barracuda Cloud-to-Cloud Backup services.
The Impact
Why It Worked
Following the implementation of these improvements, Rockwood was in a stronger position to meet increasing customer and supply chain security expectations.
Immediate outcomes
- Improved visibility and accountability across user devices
- More consistent security controls throughout the IT environment
- Reduced exposure from legacy systems and outdated protocols
- Enhanced protection of business data and endpoints
Strategic value
- Stronger foundations for Cyber Essentials compliance activities
- Greater confidence when responding to customer security requirements
- Improved resilience through layered security and backup solutions
- A clear path for ongoing cyber security improvements as business needs evolve
Rather than approaching cyber security as a one-off project, Rockwood benefited from a structured programme of practical improvements aligned to recognised best practice.
By combining Managed IT Support, security expertise, Microsoft technologies and ongoing strategic guidance, IT Champion helped the business take measurable steps towards a more secure and resilient IT environment.
“The security requirements from our customers continue to grow. Working with IT Champion has helped us improve our security posture, implement important controls and create a stronger foundation for the future.”
Kathryn Crouchen, Business Development Director
The Rockwood Group
Key Takeaway
Manufacturers operating within complex supply chains are increasingly expected to demonstrate robust cyber security controls.
Rockwood Composites shows how a phased, practical approach to security improvement can help organisations strengthen protection, support compliance objectives, and build greater confidence with customers and partners.
Industry sector
Engineering Services
Location
Head Office in Devon
Date
August 2026
Company size
11-50 employees
