News


From the editor's desk: Emerson Certainty guides Brussels Exchange

May 2016 News

“Our world just got turned upside down,” are the words Emerson Process Management boss Steve Sonnenberg chose to open the keynote address at this year’s Emerson EMEA User Group Exchange in Brussels.

For the immediate future, the new reality is an automation market shaped by the low oil price and sharply lower investment in upstream oil and gas projects. “This brings with it both new threats and new opportunities,” Sonnenberg explained to delegates. “The only sure way to deliver results in such a challenging new business environment is for process manufacturers continuously to achieve performance that places them in the top quartile.”

It is here that Emerson sees the opportunity with its Project Certainty as the enabler. Project Certainty is a new way of thinking – rather than a service – that incorporates many of the company’s existing technology offerings and some new ones still in the pipeline. It has its roots in a survey which showed that more than 65% of capital projects over a billion dollars fail, in the sense that either they came in more than 25% over budget or they are more than 50% late, or both. For smaller projects, around 500 million dollars, more than 35% fail.

To compete globally, organisations must invest in projects that improve operations and maximise profitability. However, for top quartile performance, it is essential to keep both capital and ongoing operating costs at a minimum.

Increased complexity is the problem that project managers wrestle with as they struggle to control the three critical elements of cost, risk and schedule. Reliability is the headache of the production people as they battle to cope through the first few years of problems associated with an inadequately commissioned facility. Emerson’s Project Certainty catalyses solutions for both of these through its principles of eliminating cost, reducing complexity and accommodating change.

The key is early engagement. “If our customers involve us right from project conception, then we can deploy the ideas of Project Certainty in ways that will take the automation component right off the critical path,” emphasised Sonnenberg.

It hinges on pre-emptive engineering and design studies to define the project outcomes together with the high-impact strategies needed to meet these goals. Despite traditionally accounting for only about 4% of overall project investment, automation has the unique ability to eliminate cost, reduce complexity and accommodate late-stage project changes, beyond just the automation discipline. The benefits are a reduction in overall project spending, as well as significantly less volatility in budget variance.

The core technologies in the Project Certainty toolbox include electronic marshalling, industrial wireless, pervasive sensing, virtualisation, smart field acceptance testing and the implementation of a single point of project truth.

Electronic marshalling, based on Emerson’s CHARMs technology, eliminates up to 75% of the work required to bring a measurement from the field to control room. These adaptable devices replace the need for intricate individual connections, allowing all of the plant devices to be moved or changed with ease, in response to any late modifications in the automation architecture. Industrial wireless provides the flexibility to add new sensing points at the last minute, without the need to dig up or alter any previously laid cable infrastructure. Virtualisation divorces the software from the hardware, allowing full functional testing of the code, well before the installation of any of the hardware on site. Appropriate combination of these three elements significantly reduces the complexity of any automation project.

Rethinking the ideas associated with two traditional money-gobbling elements is the way to slash project expenditure. A probing reliability analysis conducted as part of the initial engineering design work can substantially reduce the total spares requirement. This way, only the critical components are kept as inventory, supported by suitable breakdown agreements with key suppliers. The pièce de résistance though is the ability to perform remote field acceptance testing and generate all the required documentation from a single point of project truth. According to Emerson, this can reduce commissioning time by up to 82%.

Elevating its customers into the first quartile of efficient manufacturing is the Emerson end game. Project Certainty is the enabler, and the pay-offs reflect in the bottom line through large capital projects completed on time on budget, and plant operation at maximum reliability from day one. It is stability in a topsy-turvy world, but first you must embrace the idea that the only way to survive now is to do things better.

Steven Meyer

Editor: SA Instrumentation & Control

[email protected]



Credit(s)



Share this article:
Share via emailShare via LinkedInPrint this page

Further reading:

Reinstatement opportunity for ECSA registration
News
In 2023 the Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA) announced a special opportunity for engineers in South Africa to reinstate their registration status if it had been cancelled. This exclusive offer is available until the end of August 2024.

Read more...
Festo 100th Anniversary: Celebrating a century-long legacy of innovation and commitment
News
Festo has officially begun celebrating 100 years of groundbreaking technology, commitment and enduring partnerships. To kick off this historic milestone celebration, their Customer Innovation Day and ThankYou Party series brought together customers, partners and employees to reflect on their journey and look ahead to an

Read more...
Bearings International fosters dynamic customer partnerships
News
Bearings International has consistently set the benchmarks in innovation and excellence as a leading distributor of bearings, power transmission and interconnected mechanical consumables that sustainably facilitate and optimise operations for mining and industrial customers across Southern Africa.

Read more...
Innomotics and Danfoss Drives strengthen partnership to deliver comprehensive motor and drive solutions
News
Innomotics and Danfoss Drives have announced the next phase of their strategic, non-exclusive partnership. This collaboration is designed to meet the growing demand for comprehensive motor and drive solutions, ensuring customers receive high-quality, efficient and compatible products

Read more...
Africa’s industrial revolution accelerates
News
As Africa undergoes a rapid industrial transformation, AATF Connect 2025 emerges as the premier platform to showcase innovation, drive collaboration, and spark discussions that will shape the continent’s industrial future.

Read more...
From the editor's desk: A good servant and a bad master
Technews Publishing (SA Instrumentation & Control) News
In our new AI-generated world it was inevitable that the Nobel Committee would have noticed. And last November two pioneers of artificial intelligence, John Hopfield and Geoffrey Hinton, won the Nobel Prize ...

Read more...
Festo 100th Anniversary: Celebrating a century-long legacy of innovation and commitment
Festo South Africa News
Festo has officially begun celebrating 100 years of groundbreaking technology, commitment and enduring partnerships. To kick off this historic milestone celebration, their Customer Innovation Day and ThankYou Party series brought together customers, partners and employees to reflect on their journey and look ahead to an exciting future.

Read more...
German Chancellor visits Beckhoff at Hannover Messe
Beckhoff Automation News
As part of the traditional Hannover Messe opening tour, Federal Chancellor of Germany, Olaf Scholz visited German company, Beckhoff Automation. Hans Beckhoff, managing director and owner of Beckhoff Automation, presented his company and its comprehensive expertise in the field of software and AI.

Read more...
Iritron celebrates 25 years of excellence
Iritron News
When Iritron, a leading provider of engineering and industrial solutions was founded in 2000, it was on the principles of exceptional service and lasting part-nerships. Today, Iritron has grown from a small team of four into a company of over 120 employees, serving clients across South Africa and beyond.

Read more...
A racing partnership
SKF South Africa News
In one of motorsport’s most demanding arenas, a partnership forged in engineering precision and high-performance ambition has proven its worth. SKF, a global leader in bearing technology and innovation, celebrated a remarkable milestone in partnership with SVR Toyota GAZOO Racing, taking second position overall at the 2025 Dakar Rally.

Read more...