Asset management :: Topics

Open asset management with FDT: the core of a ‘smart’ process plant
Field Device Type (FDT) technology remains one of the automation industry’s best-kept secrets. In spite of this, it is rapidly gaining market acceptance by simplifying the digital communication between a plant’s field devices and its control environment. It is at the heart of a ‘smart’ plant’s IT infrastructure and can deliver major cost savings to the plant’s operations.
Socially interactive devices: Have you talked to your device lately?
As well as being a source of information, the internet allows people to interact on a social level. Social internet-based environments have many powerful applications that can be utilised to service equipment in the industrial sector.
Creating an effective plant lubrication program
The goal of every lubrication program should be to ensure that all equipment receives and maintains the proper levels of lubrication such that no equipment fails due to inadequate or improper lubrication.
How to find energy savings in process plants
Process plants can make significant reductions in energy usage, with appropriate focus. Using the techniques presented here it is typical to see energy savings from 0.5% to 2% of total energy cost, with some plants seeing as much as 20% reduction. These techniques can be applied with little capital investment.
Why use software for calibration management?
Every plant has some sort of system in place for managing calibration operations and data, but the different methods for doing it vary greatly in terms of cost, quality, efficiency and accuracy of data.
Optimising service: cutting the costs of equipment ownership
Irrespective of whether you are a professional service provider, a manufacturer, an educator or a retailer, technology-based equipment plays a significant role in your ability to produce and supply services or goods to your customer. It logically follows, therefore, that failure of technology, plant or equipment in your business will impact upon your ability to supply — either in absolute terms, or by impacting on quality — with a consequent increase in costs to your business, erosion of profitability and loss of credibility with your customer.
Realise the benefits of Design, Operate, Maintain thinking today
Design, Operate, Maintain (DOM), the term coined by industry analysts ARC Advisory Group, gives us a vocabulary to talk about some of the key concepts in asset management and in industrial maintenance, repair and operation. Industrial facility designers and those that operate and maintain those facilities need to work together closely if plant efficiency and business profitability are to improve over time.
Where did all the people go? — the new case for condition monitoring
Not so long ago the main reason companies monitored equipment condition was to reduce direct maintenance expenses. Condition monitoring and its logical extension, condition-based maintenance, served them well by identifying impending failures early enough to avoid costly repairs and reducing downtime by only performing maintenance when required.
Global asset sustainability — the key to a greener organisation
Science, business and government organisations are starting to support the fact that reducing greenhouse gas is an inevitable and integral component of doing business. Environmental awareness, particularly as related to excess greenhouse gases, has seen a surge of visibility from the international and domestic business communities. Thus, businesses worldwide are turning their focus to increased environmental awareness through reduction of resource consumption, particularly of fossil fuels, which is the leading cause of excess greenhouse gases.
The case for condition-based maintenance
Keeping physical assets in proper working order is essential to any organisation. Today, most maintenance is still performed either according to a set calendar schedule or according to that most ancient of operating procedures: “if it breaks, fix it”. But in a modern, data-intensive industrial environment we can do much better, and take plant performance to the next level with condition-based maintenance (CBM).
Closed-loop reliability-centred maintenance
"How effective is your maintenance strategy?" is a question often posed to engineers and one which is mostly very difficult to answer with any degree of certainty. It's a critical consideration: the wrong decision can cause costly mistakes
Maintaining profitable assets
It is widely acknowledged that effective maintenance strategies and practices have a direct impact on process efficiency and productivity and therefore on bottom line profitability. Yet maintenance is still often seen as a cost, rather than an investment

ExperTune’s PlantTriage control system monitoring software
ExperTune’s PlantTriage control system monitoring software now has several additional tools to provide more specific performance metrics and diagnostics for each control loop component: the instrument, the valve and the controller.
Honeywell Field Advisor software
Honeywell has released Field Advisor software. Based on technology acquired from Shell Global Solutions in December 2009, the software helps plants to reduce costly emergency work and unplanned shutdowns by allowing mobile operators to more easily rectify problems in the field, before they escalate and result in equipment failure.
Wonderware IntelaTrac 4.0 workforce management system
Invensys Operations Management has announced the availability of an updated version of its Wonderware IntelaTrac mobile workforce management and decision-support system.
Invensys Avantis.PRO enterprise asset management software
Invensys Operations Management has announced that its Avantis.PRO enterprise asset management (EAM) software is now more tightly integrated with Microsoft Dynamics AX enterprise resource planning (ERP) software. The integration of these software packages is claimed to provide a powerful, easy-to-use solution that ensures financial and enterprise-planning decisions are made using timely, reliable information about the health and operation of all assets within a manufacturing facility or organisation.
ExperTune PlantTriage version 9
ExperTune’s PlantTriage version 9 now allows an engineer or technician to tune over 50 control loops a day. PlantTriage identifies loops to be tuned and gives the best PID values and before-and-after simulations quickly confirm the settings.
Proficy SmartStart Manufacturing Energy Management Solution
GE Fanuc Intelligent Platforms has announced the availability of the Proficy SmartStart Manufacturing Energy Management Solution, a packaged software and services solution that offers a low-risk approach to energy savings within manufacturing. Providing insight into energy usage, the application is designed to help users reduce energy costs, improve production planning, identify sources of energy waste and drive energy management best practices, while correlating energy costs with manufacturing production.
Wonderware Corporate Energy Management Application
Invensys Operations Management has introduced the Wonderware Corporate Energy Management Application, designed to enable manufacturing and industrial automation customers to implement an energy management program and achieve sustainability goals.
Internet-based remote asset management system
Camvnet (Control and Monitoring Via the Net) is an internet-based remote asset management system with process control applications.
Eco-footprint management tool
IFS has launched its Eco-footprint Management tool to provide organisations with control and transparency on the environmental impact of their operations. The tool offers customers an enterprise standard methodology to help them control costs and meet the need to prepare for compliance with environmental legislation.
Plant interaction hotspot tool
ExperTune’s PlantTriage software now includes a tool that graphically highlights plant interactions. Using the Interaction Hot Spots tool, engineers can quickly pinpoint the root cause of process interactions. Engineers can resolve these upsets to improve quality, energy, production rate and process uptime.
Asset management software
FactoryTalk AssetCentre is an asset management software package which enables users to securely and centrally manage ever-changing process automation production environments.
Condition monitoring system
The Vibromac 107 is designed to provide continuous condition monitoring. An upgrade from previous versions, the system allows the user increased plant availability, through the monitoring of many operational conditions involved in screening and feeding of material.
Production analysis software
Proficy DataMart reaches deep within manufacturing operations across a business to provide a single, unifying view into operational performance. Its data cubing technology layers on top of the Proficy Plant Applications suite of software modules.
Analysis software
Wonderware has released the SuiteVoyager 2.5 web-based analysis software for production and performance management. The software enables companies to improve production and performance through dynamic analysis and reporting of key performance and production indicators to make proactive decisions that improve profitability and efficiency.
Motor condition monitor
The Motor Condition Monitor (MCM) by Artesis is an award-winning* software and hardware-based product that has been developed using model-based monitoring technology for predictive maintenance of electric motors and motor based machinery.

Siemens acquires innotec
With the acquisition of German company innotec, Siemens will now be able to offer clients an inegrated software solution covering plant planning, production and modernisation.
Rockwell Automation to acquire Incuity Software
Rockwell Automation has announced that it has reached an agreement to acquire Incuity Software, a privately held company that is a leading supplier of enterprise manufacturing intelligence software.
An end to the paperwork chaos
The paperless information society has been with us for years, yet anyone needing information about a plant or machinery still has to root through heaps of paper documents. A retrieval system provides archived knowledge on demand.
SAP and IBM join forces
SAP Australia and IBM Australia today announced an agreement that will see IBM and its Business Partner network take SAP all-in-one industry-specific ERP solutions to the local mid-market.
Plant safety and asset availability driving asset management strategy
A formal, strategic, integrated systems approach can help reduce cost, provide higher security and lower risk, according to new research.
GE Fanuc announces go-to-market agreement with Wipro Technologies
GE Fanuc Automation has announced that it has entered into a solution provider go-to-market agreement with Wipro Technologies, the global IT services business of Wipro Limited. The two companies will work together globally to better serve manufacturing enterprises in the automotive, pharmaceutical, food and beverage, and consumer packaged goods industries with product management solutions.

Online support saves OneSteel time and money
As part of its Solution Enhancement Support Program (SESP), OneSteel implemented a secure, online connection to Honeywell’s global technical assistance centre (TAC) support team enabling faster and more accurate problem identification and resolution.

Asset management

Feature (12)

Product (15)

News (6)

Case Study (1)

Site Services

WFonline Community

TechTarget ANZ Network