Cloud-Based Production Technology Maximizes Assets
Cloud-based production technology will continue to grow as companies form partnerships in areas like oil & gas, packaging and food & beverage.
Case in point: ABB and Enovate Upstream will apply their complimentary digital platforms, ABB Ability Wellhead Manager and Enovate Upstream’s Digital Production, to create a fully automated and scalable, digital oilfield solution. The solution maximizes the value of assets by connecting operations with reservoir engineering through a cloud-based digital platform. The artificial intelligence (AI) production technology gives customers the opportunity to understand their production rates in real time to enable better decision-making while providing financial performance assessment and capital management.
The ADA AI Digital Ecosystem created by Enovate Upstream and ABB Ability Wellhead Manager are cloud-based platforms that when integrated provide oil and gas producers insight into onshore upstream production assets. This includes reservoir analysis, using a cloud-based supervisory control and data acquisition system (SCADA) and predictive analytics platform from anywhere, at anytime, on any device.
“Our collaboration with Enovate Upstream enhances our capabilities to assist customers in their digital transformation. Working together, we bring extra value to upstream customers for a total production and operations solution. Customers using our combined digital solution will have more insight into the reservoir data to make more informed decisions, ultimately driving operator effectiveness,” said Nathan Tungseth, ABB global segment manager, onshore oil and gas.
Integrated teams from Enovate Upstream and ABB are working side-by-side to rapidly advance innovation needed for growth, expansion, and customerfocused solutions across the entire oil and gas industry.
“Initial results from our team during the co-development with operators and early field implementation demonstrated the substantial value creation for cost optimization, production enhancement, workflow automation and decision-making outcomes,” said Camilo Mejia, CEO Enovate Upstream. “This collaboration demonstrates how our industry is embracing technology to improve efficiencies and support short- and long-term sustainability goals.”
As demand for digital automation continues to increase, ABB and Enovate Upstream are creating an opportunity to further advance the collective goal of digital transformation. The combined expertise of the two entities aligns core beliefs that collaboration and digitalization are necessary for project value improvements across the energy sector.
www.abb.com
Safety First
Safer controls, components, and automation will be on full display as the industry starts coming back together face-to-face for trade shows in 2022. Some recent examples:
Intelligent Motion Solutions for Material Handling
Combining intelligent controls with some of the highest-quality linear actuators available on the market, Columbus McKinnon Corporation, a designer and manufacturer of intelligent motion solutions, products and technologies for material handling, today announced the introduction of its Duff-Norton brand SPA Linear Actuator with Intelli-Motion technology.
The latest and most advanced Duff-Norton linear actuator, the SPA with Intelli-Motion is designed to provide reliable operation, enable precision motion control and simplify applications, especially those that can benefit from automation technology. The latest product to join Columbus McKinnon’s family of automation solutions, this intelligent actuator offers easy installation, configuration, and operation to ensure systems can get up and running quickly and perform reliably.
“Getting the most from a motion system means finding the right linear actuator, one that works efficiently, is durable, moves the load safely, and operates at the desired speed,” says Mark Yerse, senior global product manager and strategic marketing manager. “The SPA with Intelli-Motion can do all of that and more. It is robust enough to handle higher-duty cycle applications while providing precise, repeatable motions and feedback capabilities.”
www.columbusmckinnon.com
SICK Offers Safe, Solid-State Technology
The scanGrid2 safe multibeam scanner from SICK uses a novel and in-house developed solid-state LiDAR technology to increase the productivity of small autonomous and line-guided transport vehicles. Certified as a Type 2/SIL 1 safety sensor according to IEC 61496-3, the scanGrid2 can protect hazardous areas up to performance level c and works well for collision avoidance. An app and cloning function also ensure a high level of up time and fast fleet deployment.
SICK employed its novel and in-house developed solid-state LiDAR technology for the first time when developing its first scanGrid2 safe multibeam scanner.
“With this sensor, manufacturers of autonomous and line-guided autonomous vehicles gain a cost-effective safety solution that can boost the productivity of applications. Specifically, this means increasing the speed or payload of the vehicles, or being able to eliminate mechanical barriers like fences,” said Aaron Woytcke, market product manager of industrial safety at SICK USA.
Conventional safety laser scanners are often not a suitable solution for these very simple and exceptionally cost-effective small vehicles for economic reasons. Users often choose between limiting the speed or payload of the vehicle or avoid operating them in unfenced areas to minimize the risks associated with the vehicles. The scanGrid2 now offers users new possibilities for successfully increasing the productivity of small autonomous and line-guided carts. Thanks to the rapid return on investment, switching to a safety sensor is now a viable option with initial installations showing productivity increases between 50 and 70%.
The scanGrid2 safely detects objects of a variety of sizes within the freely configurable protective field zones, can evaluate multiple fields, and can execute configurable monitoring cases. A warning field zone extending up to four meters beyond the safe working range can be employed for non-safety actions.
The solid-state LiDAR technology is based on the principle of time-of-flight measurement and eliminates all moving parts. Instead, the device uses only semiconductor elements in conjunction with geometrically arranged optics modules to span a protective field of 150 degrees. Within the defined protective field zone, scanGrid2 can solve Type 2 classified, performance level c safety requirements in the context of safety applications.
www.sick.com
Upgrading Cybersecurity Measures
FANUC America recently introduced an upgrade solution for legacy CNC machines running on operating systems older than Windows 10.
It’s incredibly important in 2021-2022 to consider implementing cybersecurity measures in conjunction with IIoT and digital factory solutions. One without the other at this point will only cause trouble down the road for technology implementation and new automation concepts. FANUC is offering retrofit control packagers to update older equipment and Emerson provides plenty of material to consider in developing your own cybersecurity package.
Retrofitting CNC Systems
FANUC America recently introduced an upgrade solution for legacy CNC machines running on operating systems older than Windows 10. The Panel i Replacement Program retrofits FANUC CNCs with a powerful industrial PC available with touch or non-touch LCD display, solid-state drives and Windows 10 IoT Enterprise.
FANUC CNCs running on obsolete operating systems, such as Windows 7, XP or older, are no longer supported by Microsoft and therefore not receiving their critical updates. If machines connect to an online network, this can leave sensitive manufacturing equipment open to major cybersecurity breaches.
“To stay competitive, you need real-time operational information from your CNC machines to make data-driven decisions,” says Jon Heddleson, general manager of factory automation for FANUC America. “But we realize there is a lot of legacy CNC equipment still in use today. To fill this critical cybersecurity need, this program allows FANUC CNC users to unlock IIoT advantages by connecting their machines to the business network in a safe and secure way.”
www.fanucamerica.com
Long-term security plan
The SPA with Intelli-Motion is designed to provide reliable operation, enable precision motion control and simplify applications.
Collaboration between IT and OT stakeholders is vital to implement new systems and services that help an organization digitally transform. In developing a cybersecurity strategy, IT and OT stakeholders must understand each other’s strengths and how to achieve business goals whilst maintaining the highest levels of security.
Each expertise brings something different to the table, with IT having a highly standardized process and OT having a more engineered solution. The goals of both stakeholders need to be reviewed and requirements established to avoid gaps and risk to operations. Automation suppliers can make secure deployment of systems more successful by providing a layered portfolio of security controls, procedures and services that enhance system security and help end users prioritize cybersecurity assessments.
Organizations must consider cybersecurity during the front-end engineering and design of a control system project. Too often cybersecurity defenses are added later, and this is more expensive and rarely as effective as building cybersecurity into the project. This is referred to as the ‘Shift Left’ concept. Secure by design, coupled with an appropriate cyber risk analysis, should include a review of security features and controls to ensure their effectiveness against the growing cyber threat landscape.
To support the business justification of a cybersecurity initiative, assessments can be used as a risk reduction metric that represents the progress of cyber initiatives implemented thus far and the potential protection afforded by deploying additional cyber protections.
If an attack does happen, the best way to overcome it is to have a well-documented and practiced incident response plan. In short, overcoming an attack does not go well without cybersecurity features, controls and a well-thought-out plan.
s1-live.emerson.com/en-us
