Asset Management Solutions uses predictive intelligence to improve availability and performance of production assets including mechanical equipment, electrical systems, process equipment, instruments, and valves.
Increasing economic efficiency is the most important task of industrial plants. Plant engineers have increased process efficiency through implementing process control systems and providing assistance to operators through monitoring and system condition analyzers.
However, increase in economic efficiency will be limited by simply focusing on advanced control schemes. Improvements in plant availability will have larger impact in increasing the economic efficiency of an operating plant. Improving the component availability can be achieved through early detection of anomalies, providing condition-based real-time maintenance.
Advancements in communication and software technologies are now enabling the integration of islands of automation for asset management systems to provide a plant wide view for the operator.
The role of the field device, especially the digital transmitter, changes dramatically in the transition to the field-based architecture. Formerly, the transmitter has provided a single piece of information to the process controller, the process variable. However, in the age of the networked transmitters, the role of the transmitters changes to that of a data server.
In a Fieldbus and HART based network, the transmitter is now able to provide diagnostics information on the health of the sensor, the health of the process and even on the health of other pieces of equipment connected to the process, e.g. the valve, the compressor etc.
The ability to provide a standard set of diagnostics from networked field devices is the foundation of an integrated Plant Asset Management System. An integrated AMS system provides the capability of advanced maintenance scheduling based on measured and predicted needs thus increased plant uptime and reduced maintenance cost.
Asset management can be defined as maintaining equipment properly to deliver maximum performance and service life at minimal cost.
Three major aspects of an asset management solution system can be described as:
Smart field devices: Information gathering and information dissemination about their operational status as well as the process.
Communication protocol: An open communication protocol which is capable of transmitting information from field devices control systems, regardless of the manufacturer, to the designated areas.
On-line Software: Dedicated software system that provides necessary tools to analyze and display information coming from various field devices to help the operators or maintenance personnel.
The table below lists companies providing Asset Management Software and Solutions:
