Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 25
Special Focus Process Controls, Instrumentation
and Automation
T. FISKE and G. ANDERSON, Yokogawa,
Sugar Land, Texas
Integrated remote operations drive
collaboration and autonomy
Sensors, equipment and devices are
becoming more intelligent, opening the
door for autonomous operations, which
is the ability for machines and processes
to run while self-diagnosing and handling
problems. When successful, the profit potential
is clear. These benefits are gaining
the attention of many process manufacturers;
however, autonomous operation
cannot be attained overnight.
As process manufacturers adapt to new
methods of operating, they can transition
toward autonomous operations over time
and achieve higher efficiency, safer practices
and improved sustainability (FIG. 1).
This is made possible with increased integration
throughout an enterprise, supported
by advances in robotics, artificial
intelligence/machine-learning (AI/ML),
analytics and cloud technology, among
others. The trend to operate facilities remotely
from integrated operations centers
(IOCs) is greatly enhanced by industrial
autonomy and autonomous operations.
IOCs are centralized business workspaces
that provide an integrated view of an organization's
people, processes and technologies
to facilitate multidisciplinary
collaboration and achieve new levels of
operational excellence (quality, safety and
throughput) and industrial autonomy.
This shift toward remote operations
via IOCs enables process manufacturers
to collocate multidisciplinary teams-
such as operations, engineering, management
and sales-in a common space
that can be used to improve operational
efficiency and decision-making, enhance
asset reliability, reduce risks, lower costs
and help maintain institutional knowledge.
The concept originated in the oil
and gas industry, with its numerous dispersed
assets and field sites; however, in
the age of digitalization, integrated operations
have never been more relevant to all
process manufacturers.
Integrated operation is more than
just remote operation. It is common
for process manufacturers to simply
move their operations away from a primary
processing facility or the field, and
to then refer to the new operation center
as " integrated. " However, initiatives that
only centralize control are more accurately
referred to as " remote " operations
because very little changes in terms of
business processes.
The benefits of remote operations include
centralized operational functions
for multiple plants and assets located at a
single hub. This makes staff management
and scheduling more cost effective and
improves personnel safety. But if process
manufacturers stop here, they will limit
performance improvement, and operators
can lose situational awareness by their removal
from the facility.
By going a step beyond remote to IOCs,
process manufacturers can benefit from
the creation of value-focused, cross-disciplinary
teams, enabling transformational
changes to traditional ways of working.
Environments with multiple functional
teams facilitate better brainstorming and
lead to increased situational awareness
and better process optimization insights,
with improved information sharing speed,
efficiency and effectiveness (FIG. 2).
This helps subject matter experts focus
on overall plant conditions, looking
beyond their single areas of expertise.
An integrated view and approach to a
process manufacturer's people, processes
and technologies provide the freedom to
expand workflows across multiple teams,
without extensive time required to transfer
assignments among various departments
because silos are removed, thus
improving knowledge sharing.
Robots, drones and AI/ML. The use of
robots and drones can accelerate a process
manufacturer's transition to unattended
FIG. 1. There are several steps and levels on the journey toward autonomous operations,
which is the transition from industrial automation to industrial autonomy.
Hydrocarbon Processing | NOVEMBER 2022 25
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022
Industry Perspectives
Editorial Comment
Construction
Innovations
Digital Technologies
Optimization of ethylene in the processing of hydrocarbons
Shift focus to more open control technology
Integrated remote operations drive collaboration and autonomy
Reliability analysis of analyzers bridges the gap between assessing and addressing risk
Implement advanced level control techniques to improve crude distillation unit stabilizer performance
Leading capital projects in a VUCA environment
Trip your turbine troubles: Optimize the reliability of steam-driven turbines
Development of novel epoxy closed-cell foam for personnel and corrosion protection—Part 2
Obsolescence management in a manufacturing unit
Decarbonizing your fired heaters with hydrogen fuel
Mechanical design challenges in high-temperature electric heaters
Why sulfur plants fail: An in-depth study of sulfur recovery unit failures—Part 2
Advertiser Index
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 1
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 2
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 3
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - Industry Perspectives
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 5
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 6
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - Editorial Comment
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 8
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 9
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - Construction
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 11
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - Innovations
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 11B
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 12
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - Digital Technologies
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 14
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 15
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 16
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - Optimization of ethylene in the processing of hydrocarbons
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 18
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 19
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 20
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - Shift focus to more open control technology
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 22
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 23
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 24
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - Integrated remote operations drive collaboration and autonomy
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 26
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 27
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 28
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 29
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 30
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - Reliability analysis of analyzers bridges the gap between assessing and addressing risk
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 32
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 33
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - Implement advanced level control techniques to improve crude distillation unit stabilizer performance
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 35
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 36
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - Leading capital projects in a VUCA environment
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 38
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - Trip your turbine troubles: Optimize the reliability of steam-driven turbines
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 40
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 41
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 42
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 43
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 44
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 45
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 46
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - Development of novel epoxy closed-cell foam for personnel and corrosion protection—Part 2
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 48
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 49
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 50
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - Obsolescence management in a manufacturing unit
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 50B
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - Decarbonizing your fired heaters with hydrogen fuel
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 52
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 53
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 54
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - Mechanical design challenges in high-temperature electric heaters
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 56
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 57
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 58
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 59
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 60
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - Why sulfur plants fail: An in-depth study of sulfur recovery unit failures—Part 2
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 62
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 63
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 64
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 65
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - Advertiser Index
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 67
Hydrocarbon Processing - November 2022 - 68
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https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/gulfpub/petrochemical_2018_v2
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https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/gulfpub/hpimarket_2019_v2
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