Not everyone and not every company visualizes the importance of innovation, automation, digitalization, and connectivity to operate their assets. Nowadays, technology and innovation are essential for every asset.
ALDO SANTILLÁN , ENERGY CAPITAL MAGAZINE
By Aldo Santillan – Managing Director & Editor in Chief, Energy Capital
A Milestone for Productive Growth
Even though it may seem obvious, not everyone and not every company visualizes the importance of innovation, automation, digitalization, and connectivity to operate their assets. Technology delivers benefits and development in many ways: cost reduction, efficiency, time-saving, failure prediction, and a large etcetera.
Nowadays, technology and innovation are essential for every asset; here are some examples of their benefits in some experts’ words:
Fred Wasden, Managing Member of OptilytiX, has said oil companies will face the challenge to move technology usage from invention to adaptability.
Chetan Desai, Digital Technology Vice President of Schlumberger, has shared that digitalization and automation are booming. Still, the challenge is to connect the digital thread to maximize an asset’s lifecycle. To improve efficiency, technology must be included from design and planning to production from the very beginning.
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Innovation solutions for your progress
In that sense, solutions like the digital twin, augmented reality, and virtual reality offer superlative control over an asset, maximizing its safety and extending its lifecycle.
Dave Hedge, IT Specialist and Computer Architect at ExxonMobil, has expressed these solutions protect the people in the process line, taking care of the environment simultaneously.
Kurt Berg, Controls and Systems Business unit Chief Engineer at Ethos Energy, has talked about the renewal of six LM6000 gas turbines at a project in Illinois.
Through new technology, his company reduced delivery times, eliminated hardware and software obsolescence, moved operations online, enabled workers’ access to the processes, increased energy production, achieved a quick return of investment, and boosted their digital capabilities.
More benefits
DCO Energy increased the energy production capacity of the University of Montclair. The company eliminated steam leaks and unified the cooling systems at the university’s combined heat, cooling, and power (CHCP) plants.
According to Frank DiCola, DCO Energy’s Executive Chairman and Partner, his company helped the university build an electric distribution micro-network by automating processes. This brought multiple economic benefits and sustainable power production for the institution.
Business Development Manager of Emulate3D, Ian McGregor, has said predicting future failures and monitoring an asset’s whole operation in real-time is possible.
Using state-of-the-art technology, augmented reality, virtual reality, and some other digital solutions like the digital twin, a company can increase its resilience, eliminate specific mistakes, allow traceability, and enable remote control of its processes and operations. In this way, firms can achieve energy efficiency and get closer to a circular economy approach
Technology and innovation: a simple and crucial decision
Technology simplifies processes, reduces costs, generates savings. It is efficient and simple, has said Blake Moret, CEO, and Chairman of Rockwell Automation.
With these solutions, the return of investment (ROI) accelerates each time; in 18 months or less, a plant can show the benefits of implementing these technologies.
In recent years, the Industrial Internet of Things has been a reality. With connectivity and innovation, Industry 4.0 has succeeded.
Suppose you have not implemented technology, automation, digital solutions, and connectivity in your assets. In that case, the question within your company should not be: should we do it? The question must be: what are we waiting for?
