The asset management system is one of the key elements gaining focus in the digital manufacturing industry. With the digitization of the physical assets it is imperative that process manufacturing industries include asset performance management as a key component of digital manufacturing strategy. The ultimate aim of a successful asset management solution is to extend the lifecycle and efficiency of all the assets. There is constant pressure on the process industries to extend the asset lifecycle and maximize their efficiency.
Some of the challenges faced by the clients that drive the need for asset management systems are listed below:
- Access is required by the shop floor technicians to gain insight on the real-time information of the assets and understand the repair requirement in case it is needed.
- There is increasing requirement for the asset managers to work closely with their service providers to ensure system compliance with data computation and reporting requirements.
- There is a greater need for data with evolution of assets in the industrial sector. Sophisticated systems require real-time reporting systems which is a significant driver for the asset management systems globally.
- There is a lack of uniformity in the solutions offered by different standalone suppliers leading to the difficulty in integrating the solutions on different assets.
- Existence of legacy systems across different verticals in the process industries which further inhibits achieving uniformity on an overall level.
Asset management managers are required to continuously monitor some of the key indicators such as asset utilization, risk, and return on assets.
A significant amount of data is produced with the increase in the trend of connectivity and convergence. Sophisticated big data management is crucial for service analysis and monitoring of equipment. With the evolution of the analysis from reactive to predictive, and further, to prescriptive, the current asset management models are not capable of efficiently handling high-end data analysis in addition to the business support required alongside. The right model for these asset management solutions, therefore, disintegrates the business support services and corporate center and integrates them with high-end data analysis and technology.
Some of the industry verticals like the oil and gas OEMs worldwide are under intense pressure to gain profitability, grow their businesses despite the fluctuating oil and gas prices and eventually move towards energy independence. To achieve this they need to take advantage of the innovative remote and sensor-based condition monitoring offering real-time insights for the data.
The power generation equipment industry and aerospace industry are the the major end users apart from the automotive, transportation, and aerospace industries.
These industries are expected to manage massive amounts of data to keep equipment serviced in a timely manner, increase the useful life of critical machinery, keep the maintenance costs to a minimum, remotely fix troubled equipment, and maximize the cost efficiency of capital expenditures.
As per Frost and Sullivan’s analysis, the key decision makers in these end users are the system integrators and the consultants and can differ from plant to plant. At present, the North American region is the leader in development and adoption of asset management solutions. In Europe, the adoption of these systems has been significantly high, mainly because of the domination of automotive, transportation, and aerospace industries.
Some of the major market players in this region include Emerson, Yokogawa, GE, Schneider, and Rockwell Automation. The APAC region, on the other hand, is considered to be a heterogeneous market for technology development and wide-scale adoption. The adoption of asset management solutions is at medium intensity in this region as it is in the transition phase of infrastructural growth.
It is imperative for companies to discern customer requirements and market gaps across different geographies prior to designing solutions. Tools with real-time decision-making capabilities are most likely expected to experience the largest demand worldwide. Solution providers are also expected to redirect their efforts toward providing more enriched value additions to the customers where the scope of solutions offered goes beyond product development to providing continued operational as well as business excellence to the customer.
