Asset management is obtaining greater relevance in enhancing operational efficiencies for oil and gas companies. In view of the increasing competition and narrowing margins among oil and gas companies, asset management is obtaining greater relevance in enhancing operational efficiencies.
Regular monitoring helps companies determine two things about an asset. First, its physical condition, so it is possible to know if it is running well or headed for a breakdown ─ hopefully before there is a failure that can interrupt production.
Second, it can determine how an asset is performing and doing its job within the larger process. Both monitoring methods, used effectively, deliver financial returns to justify their cost.
How does a company turn this data into information able to support decision making? The question has two possible answers:
- In-house project with on-premise data collection and analysis
- Cloud-based monitoring with subscription-based analysis.
Let’s examine these two approaches and determine if the situation must be one or the other.
Doing it in-house:
Until recently, the in-house approach was really the only choice, and for many processing facilities, it is still preferred. The difference between today and even five years ago is the number of tools available to make such a program easier to deploy and use.
Cloud-based monitoring:
Internet access adds new options for implementing a monitoring program. First and foremost, it is no longer necessary to do all the work in-house. Parts or all of it can be issued to subject-matter experts outside the organization on a subscription-based contract.
The service provider uses specialists to perform the analytical services and deliver recommended actions, including recommending work orders for individual maintenance tasks. The provider even can staff technicians at the company’s site to carry out the hands-on service work.
While real-time information is available from the service provider to any authorized individuals within the company via mobile devices or a portal, there will also be periodic summary reports. Providers with extensive experience can offer observations on how the company is performing on a given metric compared with industry benchmarks. Since all the software and data storage are managed by the provider, there is no maintenance required by the end user, and the solution is scalable.
Asset management can effectively address all core priorities of oil and gas companies – improving operational efficiencies; protecting the environment and its ecosystems; and health and safety of the workers. Operational efficiency is one of the primary driving forces behind the increasing wave of investment within this technology application.
Acknowledgments
Parveen Industries Private Limited would like to acknowledge that our authors have referred various articles, white papers, scientific studies and research work for the compilation of this blog.
