Introduction

As the Covid-19 pandemic evolves into an endemic, companies are returning to work under “new normal” conditions. Some employees are back onsite, while others are working in a hybrid mode (onsite only part-time), and still others are working solely from a home office. More than ever before, this calls for remotely operated and controlled asset management systems to keep plant machinery running smoothly. In particular, the pandemic jolted the oil, gas and petrochemical industry into automating its processes and doing more things remotely, requiring fewer personnel.

The days of Excel spreadsheets and disparate, standalone systems that address part of the plant’s operations are definitely over. Team members now need to be in sync, sharing information across multiple locations and disciplines for effective collaboration and critical decision-making. Recent advancements in emerging technologies, like cloud computing, have helped to make the Digital Age a reality, with anytime, anywhere access to real-time data and safeguards to keep that data secure. This has paved the way for a comprehensive tool, or set of integrated tools, to combine engineering and maintenance tasks into a centralized application for optimal asset management.

Challenges

Cloud-based asset management software is a new way of working within the industry. The cloud is a server cluster that can dynamically allocate tasks. If one of the servers fails to work, the other servers automatically take over, and they will continue as nothing happened. On-site, it is done through redundancy and virtual machines, but this needs to be supported by the IT team.

Nowadays, cloud service providers can outsource these operations, such as Microsoft Azure. The cloud provider handles complex topics like cyber security and disaster recovery, which often cause problems in the organization.

Moving from an on-site to an online cloud-based system in a secure way also provides more accessibility for the employees. The information which only was available in the office is now accessible from home or mobile. But accessibility is not the only benefit of using a cloud system. Comparing it to a traditional on-premises system, there are a few significant advantages.

3 Advantages

Faster setup

It is a matter of minutes to set up a new environment with a cloud-based system. The difference here with an on promise virtual machine comes in the flexibility of resources. When a virtual environment on-premise runs out of space or becomes slow, new parts or entire new servers need to be ordered to resolve the issue. When more resources are required for a cloud environment, the cloud provider makes sure that spare capacity is monitored and available when needed. Applications that run in the cloud do not need client-side installation, making a start and maintenance of a project more accessible and quicker.

Lower IT-related costs

Cloud environments provide better up times through the dynamic allocation of the servers it runs on. If an on-premises server has a CPU failure, that server stops working and needs a replacement before the applications that are run on the server can be used again. With cloud environments, another server within the cloud will dynamically take over the tasks of the failing server.

Cloud environments managed by cloud providers have the added benefits of requiring less local IT resources and knowledge. Items like cyber security and server management are regular tasks for a cloud provider, and this might not be the case for a company with its own IT infrastructure. Moving from a local closed-off network towards an internet-enabled network brings a new list of challenges that need to be handled with great care.

Accessibility & Security

The door to remote access can be controlled and opened with centralized cyber security management. This means that information that was previously only available at the office is now useable from home or other locations which it previously was not. This can also provide suppliers with information to help fine-tune performance issues.

Maintainability

It is important to keep software up to date. Wishes from customers change, developers develop ideas develop, and third parties’ requirements increase. To satisfy all these changes, software needs to be continuously evolving. In a closed-off environment, this is challenging as the supplier cannot quickly provide updates. Supporting and troubleshooting is also a costly effort.

24/7 Monitoring

If the server goes down with an on-premises environment, local resources need to find out and get it running again. If the server goes down on the weekend, the software could be down for days at a time. Cloud-hosted systems reside on servers that are monitored around the clock. The servers are typically co-located in facilities that house other applications to spread monitoring costs across the entire customer base. Resources are available to ensure that applications keep running or are recovered quickly.

A digital toolbox

Manual and de-centralized data entry into disconnected systems needs to be replaced by a single “digital” toolbox, enabling asset management to be accomplished via analyzers more effectively and more efficiently. One, all-encompassing application—from analysis to maintenance—would allow technicians, engineers, operators, and managers to see everything and, importantly, to be on the same page for increased collaboration. With digital connectivity, this concept delivers information about equipment condition/health in real time for swift, proactive maintenance to be performed, thus, extending equipment life. A centralized, web service can be hosted from on-premises or via the cloud, depending on the choice of network architecture. Remote access can be provided by any available means, such as a remote-control center, to conduct equipment monitoring and control activities. The remote-control center also provides mobile access possibilities to the toolbox which provide on hand information and logging capabilities

What needs to be in the toolbox?

The key factor is consolidation! The following basic items comprise a consolidated digital toolbox for oil and gas operators:

Live data from the field

It all starts with needing to know the “live” status of the equipment in the field, especially when working at a distance (e.g. during Covid times). This includes process information, diagnostics, validation data, maintenance records, etc. Field operators need to look at data in its actual state, and then be able to escalate any problems that might require further analysis, maintenance, or even shutdown.

Tools to help find problems

Statistical process control mechanisms build calculations that trigger events and actions (alarms, emails, reports, validations, etc.), automate knowledge of SMEs to find root cause problems and define trigger parameters, such as KPIs, and track performance in time for historical reference and trending.

However, the automated tool cannot do it all; human intervention is needed to set the proper limits and to fully understand the root cause of a problem that might require onsite action by a trained technician. Prediction is as powerful as the person making the algorithm for the prediction.

Maintenance scheduling & tracking

Live data from the field opens opportunities to create maintenance tasks in a timely manner based on pre-defined triggers for desired levels, e.g. if downhole temperature is too low or too high, if pressure drops, or if fluid flow rate slows (indicating a filter may be plugged/needs replacement).

Reporting

reports to designated individuals. This alleviates the tedious task of creating the same routine reports, allowing users to schedule when a report is needed, what report template to use, and then automatically email it to management. The time it takes to manually set up each report can be put to better use by focusing on value-added work for the company.

Summary

The digital toolbox has proved itself in the field, as described above. The cast of tools is already there, but more tools have yet to be explored and added as this technology approach matures. Regardless of technological advancements, however, it will always tie back to subject matter experts putting their know-how into the tools, so it can become the best set of tools for technicians in the field. This involves a transfer of knowledge from boomers to the next generation––preserving accumulated experience from over the years in the toolbox!

While a plethora of services and software companies (e.g. SAP, Maximo, PI, and Hint, to name a few) are working in the same direction, they do not necessarily share the same vision. The recommended route is to ideally have everything in one digital toolbox and make it available as broadly as possible (web-accessible/networked) to support remote workers 24/7. It also has to be able to escalate issues to supervisors/managers in order to get technical help from experts and suppliers, if needed. The AML Information Management toolbox from Hint Global is a viable solution, ready to go.