Through AI, automation equipment running at various sites can be monitored and managed remotely at least in part, by providing advance notice of devices that need maintenance or replacement. As an example, if one of the pairs of a fault tolerant controller shows signs of a problem, the AI system could predict that a couple of days in advance and alert users if it observes any health issues that could potentially result in unplanned downtime. The AI system can look at the entire system, understand the critical areas being controlled by the devices, and suggest for a temporary replacement of parts from the existing setup until new parts arrive.
Alongside the falling prices of crude oil, the COVID-19 pandemic has created a new set of challenges for industry. Most countries have implemented complete to partial lockdown, which prevents people from visiting the plant and performing monitoring and maintenance activities. Spares are in short supply, and it takes longer to order and receive replacements. Work-from-home has become the new norm. In such scenarios, maintaining the automation equipment at 100% availability is a challenge.
In this whitepaper, we explore the key challenges faced in monitoring an automation platform and the new challenges and solutions that have surfaced due to the recent pandemic.
