Essential Digital Transformation for Process Manufacturing … · 2021. 5. 19. · specific PPM...

© C O P Y R I G H T 2 0 2 0 4 5 1 R E S E A R C H . A L L R I G H T S R E S E RV E D.

Essential Digital Transformation for Process Manufacturing Operations

C O M M I S S I O N E D B Y

M AY 2 0 2 0

A B O U T T H E AU T H O R

I A N H U G H E SS E N I O R A N A LY S T, I N T E R N E T O F T H I N G S

Ian Hughes is a Senior Analyst for the Internet of Things practice at 451 Research. He has 30 years of experience in emerging technology as a developer, architect and consultant through key technology trends.

Ian has 20 years of experience at IBM in cross-industry application development. This included automotive, global sporting events, retail and telecommunications.

2C O M M I S S I O N E D B Y E S C H B AC H

About this paperA Black & White paper is a study based on primary research survey data that assesses the market dynamics of a key enterprise technology segment through the lens of the “on the ground” experience and opinions of real practitioners — what they are doing, and why they are doing it.


B L AC K & W H I T E | E S S E N T I A L D I G I TA L T R A N S F O R M AT I O N F O R P R O C E S S M A N U FAC T U R I N G O P E R AT I O N S

IntroductionPlant Process Management (PPM) describes a system that allows manufacturing organizations to manage, monitor and optimize plant operations around work activities and production assets. A fully implemented PPM system provides a real-time view of work procedures and tasks. This also includes the recording and status of any incidents or outliers to normal plant operation.

Plants often run continuously, with regular shift changes of the workforce. It is essential that the current shift is aware of any issues that arise in the course of operation, so there is a critical need for communication at shift changes. It is here that, in an ad hoc or verbal communication process, important handover details can be missed. A lack of quality communication can have a direct impact on the ongoing safety of the workforce, as well as on plant efficiency and production quality.

In the drive toward Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) over the past few years, the greatest focus has been on instrumenting machinery. Now industrial enterprises need to instrument the people tasked with using and managing machinery in the overall process, too. A safe and efficient plant is best run by a workforce with contextual information about the physical processes taking place. The requirements met by PPM apply to any type of plant, regardless of the amount of IoT instrumentation, machine learning (ML) or predictive maintenance in place. Knowledge can be ingested and analyzed from any human contact point in a process.

As the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated, consistent capture of team-to-team communication has shifted for some from a nice-to-have capability to a must-have capability, as irregular work patterns emerge for individuals due to isolation and social distancing measures putting added pressure on safe operations.

Context

451 Research, part of S&P Global Market Intelligence, and eschbach set out to ask decision-makers representing the process industries, primarily in North America, where they are on their digital transformation journey for PPM. This effort included a custom survey and subsequent research analysis.

451 Research covers the entire lifecycle of Industry 4.0 transformation. This is a journey that typically begins with initial instrumentation of plants through IoT and then flows into understanding the data and gathering insights to improve processes. This is further enhanced with the application of predictive maintenance. Missing from this model of digital transformation is human experience as expressed in the capability of the workforce. There is the potential for a virtuous circle combining both human communication and machine data, which build on one another to create a knowledge-driven continuous improvement loop.

It should be noted that worker communication is an essential element in maintaining a safe and efficient plant environment, and that PPM is not dependent on any of these other IIoT digital transformations – but where those are in place, it provides significant benefits such as process optimization and continuous improvement across the board.



Executive Summary The Industry 4.0 movement is the global drive toward a digitally transformed, autonomous, efficient and safe industrial environment. The core principle is that all elements of an industrial process can benefit from more complete digitization, data collection, analysis and integrated sharing. To get there, the operational technology (OT) ecosystem will leverage technology from the IT ecosystem, and then must adapt it for application to complex cyber-physical situations.

One such area is in shift management, and shift handover, in the continuous process industries. Generally known as PPM, this relates to the workforce, production assets and processes in a plant and the enablement of a smooth transfer of operational information, continuously and at key points, such as shift changes. Because this does not require alterations to processes, but documents them more efficiently through application of the processes, it offers a low-risk and high-impact digital investment.

Eschbach is a company that provides PPM and process optimization software and services for shift management, focused on, but not exclusive to, the process industries. The company commissioned 451 Research to conduct an independent survey designed to provide current insights into the state of play, gaps, expectations and awareness of PPM, as well as future needs for it in the marketplace. The survey gathered responses from 300 decision-makers in the process industry, across a split of IT and OT roles, with the majority representing companies based in the US and with over $1bn in revenue. Surveyed organizations range in size from 500 to over 100,000 employees, and operate in various vertical markets (see Figure 1).



Figure 1: Survey DemographicsSource: 451 Research, custom survey commissioned by eschbach, 4Q 2019Q. Please provide your best estimate of the total employees at your company (including all subsidiaries, divisions, and

branches worldwide). Base: All Respondents (n=300)Q. Which of the following best describes your organization’s vertical sector focus?Base: All Respondents (n=300)

10%

25%

21%

19%

17%

6%

2%

500-1,000 1,001-2,000

2,001-5,000 5,001-10,000

10,001-50,000 50,001-100,000

Over 100,000

28%

10%

24%

12%

17%

4%

2%

3%

Basic Chemicals Pesticide, Fertilizers etc

Pharma and Medicines Resin and Synthetics

Paint and Adhesives Petroleum Refineries

Lubricating Oil and Grease Other Petroleum



Key Findings • Process industry lags other verticals in digital transformation.

– Only 10% of the 300 survey respondents indicated that their organizations are in the execution stage of a companywide digital transformation strategy.

• The majority are collecting shift data via a manual process, or not at all.

– Routine digital capture of data only occurs at 41% of surveyed companies.

• Lack of best-of-breed solutions for PPM in use, but a high degree of interest.

– Only 1.6% of the 125 respondents who capture information digitally use a best-of-breed specific PPM solution, but 42% said they are very or somewhat interested in a packaged PPM solution.

• Safety is a key use case, alongside process optimization.

– Across all respondents, 86% identified one or more safety incidents caused by a communication breakdown within a plant, indicating a key use case for PPM.

– Process optimization was cited as the number two use case for shift data, by 52% of respondents.

• PPM is recognized as a centralized SaaS activity.

– A preference for a centralized software-as-a-service (SaaS) model with varying degrees of customization was cited by 57% of the industry decision-makers surveyed.

• PPM seen as an important data source for artificial intelligence (AI)

– A total of 56% of surveyed enterprises are using, or planning to use, PPM data as an input to AI processes in the next two years.



PPM State of PlayThe survey data clearly indicates an overall tardiness in embarking on digital transformation efforts in the process industries. With long-running and constant, complex operations combined with concerns around safety and management of change, this situation could be expected, and is consistent with our own understanding of market dynamics. This is due to a number of factors including cost, complexity, availability of the skills required to successfully transform, and cultural inertia. Only 10% of the 300 survey respondents said their organization is currently executing on a digital transformation strategy. By comparison, 451 Research’s Voice of the Enterprise: Digital Pulse 2019 survey of 675 enterprises across all major verticals found 46% of organizations in the execution phase.

Figure 2: Digital Transformation Status in Process IndustriesSource: 451 Research, custom survey commissioned by eschbach, 4Q 2019 Q. Which of the following best describes the status of your organization’s digital transformation strategy? Base: All respondents (n=300)

As illustrated in Figure 2, 11.7% of surveyed organizations have no digital transformation strategy at all – a slightly higher percentage than those that are already executing one. The largest block of organizations (some 41.7%) are in the evaluation phase, although issues related to the current COVID-19 pandemic are likely to accelerate implementation for some out of necessity, while others may choose to hunker down and delay any projects deemed disruptive in the short-term.

11.7% 36.6% 41.7% 10.0%

No strategy Consideration Evaluation Execution

10% of total respondents surveyed are at the execution stage of their digital transformation strategies.



Survey Findings

Various factors come into play regarding the key communication points in industrial plants, such as at shift handover. These include what data (if any) is captured to aid handover; how it is captured; and how it is handled. Beyond these factors, is there a willingness to take on a PPM-specific solution and an imperative to improve safety for the workforce? Software or automation to capture and share shift data was cited as being used by 41% of survey respondents. Of the remainder, 17% said they routinely capture data manually, while 38% indicated a manual but ad hoc capturing of data, either event-by-event or shift-by-shift. Just 4% of respondents said they do not formally capture or share any data.

Among the 125 organizations that do capture data digitally, PPM-specific solutions were implemented by only 1.6%, with a diverse range of other software used across multiple system types. These include the use of certain features of corporate content management or business applications, personal productivity and group collaboration suites, and self-built custom software. However, when asked about their level of interest in a packaged PPM solution to capture shift data to help ensure safety compliance, as well as report observed production equipment anomalies and/or changes to raw material, 42% of respondents were either ‘very interested’ or ‘somewhat interested,’ while 43% were ‘neutral,’ and 15% were ‘not too interested.’ Zero respondents indicated ‘no interest at all.’

In terms of deployment model, the survey revealed that most enterprises are interested in a SaaS approach to implementing PPM, helping to centralize and standardize the deployment across the organization. A majority of respondents – 57% – said they view a SaaS offering with some customization as the most useful option vs. private on-premises plant applications. This reveals a shift from just a few years ago: today there is a clear and growing acceptance of cloud-delivered software solutions for OT tasks.

Our research also explored the balance of power and attitudes among the OT and IT groups within organizations – we thumbnail these dynamics as ‘OT/IT convergence.’ There is a need for all elements of an organization to work together with a shared understanding that different drivers and cultural changes are essential to any successful digital transformation – a need that is accelerated by significant threats such as the current COVID-19 pandemic.

Our survey found clear disconnects between IT and OT, with nearly half of OT respondents indicating that they rarely work together with their IT counterparts. Meanwhile, only 18.9% of IT leaders believe they cooperate closely with OT (see Figure 3). These groups also have different perspectives on the core challenge in shift management. IT views the inability to consume or share captured data as the main issue, while OT cites the inability to reconcile shift data with machine logs.



Figure 3: IT and OT Leadership – Different PerceptionsSource: 451 Research, custom survey commissioned by eschbach, 4Q 2019 Base: All Respondents (IT: n=190; OT: n=110)

OT and IT have different perspectives and priorities in digital transformation, but safety is cited as the top use case for shift data in both groups, followed closely by process optimization. A significant majority of survey respondents – 86% – indicated that one or more safety incidents recorded in the past year were related to a lack of communication. The range of uses for captured shift data among OT and IT respondents is illustrated in Figure 4.

18.9%

35.8%

Working Relationship with OT Counterpart Working Relationship with IT Counterpart

of OT respondents believe they rarely work together with their IT counterparts

of IT respondents believe they cooperate closely with their OT counterparts

identify that the inability to consume or share captured data is the greatest challenge they face in terms of shift management

state that the inability to reconcile shift data with machine logs is the greatest challenge they face in terms of shift management

Shift Management ChallengesShift Management Challenges

34.1%

48.2%

ITCareabouts

OTCareabouts



Figure 4: How Shift Data Is Currently Used in Process IndustriesSource: 451 Research, custom survey commissioned by eschbach, 4Q 2019 Base: All Respondents (IT: n=81; OT: n=44)

Safety is set to remain a top concern going forward. When all respondents were asked which use cases would rank highest in priority in the future, a majority – 55% averaged across IT and OT – cited safety as one of their top three requirements to be addressed by PPM (see Figure 5). And we can expect additional requirements for worker safety to be mandated in terms of COVID-19 protection, addressing concerns such as social distance and medical status. Organizations are now challenged with maintaining production targets while also managing the impact of the pandemic across customers, suppliers and employees.

54% of IT and OT cite recording of safety incidents as top use case

51%55%

Process optimization

42%34%

Regulatory compliance and audit

36%48%

Improved asset management, waste reduction, and avoiding rework

31%36%

Worker engagement and collaboration

36%41%

This data is combined with OEE (equipment logs) for holistic understanding of shift/plant performance

54%55%

Record safety incidents

IT OT



Figure 5: Safety Requirements a Top Priority for PPMSource: 451 Research, custom survey commissioned by eschbach, 4Q 2019 Q. Please rank the following potential positive outcomes of PPM investment from most important to least important when

considering your firm’s needs.Base: All Respondents (n=300)

Top-ranked priorities for PPM investment

1. Capture and share best practices for worker safety

2. Platform to record real-time incidents for reporting and corrective action processing

3. Enables enshrinement of best practices to a digital system of record

4. Broader collaboration and communication among production teams and managers

5. Platform to provide interactive production loss accounting

Our study yielded other key data points around the experiences and views of both OT and IT stakeholders – including their various needs and preferences. Some of the key takeaways of the survey for each of these groups is illustrated in Figure 6.

55% of total respondents rated the ability to capture and share best practices for worker safety (1-3)

18%

19%

21%

14%

18%

19%

1 2 3

52%

57%

Total

OT

IT



Figure 6: Summary of Needs Identified by OT and IT StakeholdersSource: 451 Research, custom survey commissioned by eschbach, 4Q 2019 Base: All Respondents (IT: n=190; OT: n=110)

Looking to the future and the integration of emerging technologies (related to continued digital transformation and codependent), the study explored which new technology initiatives were already underway or planned in the short and medium term. The survey found that 79% of process industry respondents are either using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) for predictive maintenance, or are planning to use AI/ML in the next two years.

This result is consistent with other industries, with advanced analytics emerging as perhaps the most important enabler in transforming business and operational data into business outcomes. Some 60% of respondents reported that they are busy retrofitting or planning to retrofit IoT sensors to existing equipment in the next couple of years, and 56% are using or planning to use PPM data as an input to AI processes in the next two years. PPM is an important digital data source to integrate with machine instrumentation (typically in brownfield installations), and then into the application of analysis through AI and ML, as shown in Figure 7. People, and their experience and knowledge, are an instrumentation point already on the shop floor.

1.6%

64.0%

Few best of breed solutions Interest in PPM

IT and OT combined respondents interested or very interested in PPM. Another 42% neutral so can be convinced.

PPM best of breed solutions cited by respondents. The majority are split across personal productivity, existing applications and self build.

When capturing shift handover data say its not easily shareable or not effectively reconciled with machine logs.

of respondents see collaboration between IT and OT at enterprise cross plant level with a further 17.7% at individual plant levels

Combined IT OT responsibility expectedCurrent data capture not effective

46.9%

86.0%Identify one or more safety incidents caused by communication breakdown

Prefer a SaaS model delivered from an outside partner’s cloud with low or high customization potential.

SaaS is preferred modelSafety issues

56.4%

42.0%

ITStakeholders

OTStakeholders



Figure 7: Emerging Technology Focus for Digital InitiativesSource: 451 Research, custom survey commissioned by eschbach, 4Q 2019 Q. What specific digital initiatives are currently underway or in active consideration?Base: All Respondents (n=300)

19%

18%

15%

13%

11%

10%

10%

9%

9%

60%

34%

28%

47%

35%

28%

34%

47%

35%

21%

48%

57%

39%

54%

62%

56%

44%

56%

Analyzing machine data in real-time for predictive maintenance using ML algorithms

3D-printing/additive manufacture

Wearable sensors on workers to enhance safety, ensure compliance

Retrofitting sensors to industrial equipment in use for monitoring

Use of augmented reality applications on plant floor for maintenance or training

Digital twins

Use of video analytics to analyse processes and employee actions

Using historical observations collected from multiple sources with PPM as input to AI to predict the plant

condition or to improve process efficiency

Autonomous robotics

Currently using Likely to be using in next 2 years No current or future plans



PPM Use Case ExampleTo complement the survey results, it is worth considering an idealized use case to demonstrate situations that can arise through a lack of formal capture of shift data and knowledge.

Consider a US processing plant running 24/7 with two shifts per day (although it could equally apply to the 3 x 8-hour shift pattern common in Europe). The plant is not yet heavily instrumented with connected sensors but does have significant embedded inspection instrumentation in the machinery to measure temperature, pressure, flow rates and product quality. A constant stream of raw materials flow through a process that includes filtration, mixing, temperature and pressure changes, creating a flow of end products. The company has an ad hoc, manual system of recording shift handover information, and the operation teams meet to discuss issues and status as part of the regular handover process.

As the first 12-hour day shift progresses, an engineer, David, notices a slight fluctuation in pressure in one part of the process, but it is still well within tolerance. At shift handover, it is not enough of a fluctuation to note on the whiteboard, but during a conversation on the way out of the handover meeting, he mentions it to his peer Pat, who is about to start his night shift. Pat agrees to keep an eye on it. During this 12-hour night shift, no noticeable fluctuation occurs as far as Pat can see.

As the following day shift begins work, Pat makes no mention of the original fluctuation at the handover meeting – in part because David, who originally noted the concern, is not working today. Now none of the engineers on this day shift have any evidence or gut feel that anything might be operating incorrectly. As the shift begins, several systems start to exhibit fluctuations, the root cause is not yet known, and as things worsen production is halted while lengthy investigations begin.

Had a PPM system been in place, the first shift engineer, David, would have been able to make a note of the pressure concerns. The night shift that Pat works on would have full transparency on that issue, as well as any additional concerns from other engineers. They would potentially catch the problem before it worsened. Even if that early resolution did not happen, the following day shift would have an information trail leading to the potential root cause of the problem much sooner, possibly averting a full shutdown and loss of production time. Despite the absence of David, the day shift would still have the information they needed.

Taken to the next level, consider that the same plant has been upgraded with a fleet of connected industrial IoT sensors feeding into a predictive maintenance system. The initial slight fluctuation in pressure would be identified by the system – but, being within tolerance, it would not yet trigger any action. Going into the 12-hour night shift, nothing is yet triggering the process management algorithm, but by the second day shift, it would start to register the growing combined impact of multiple data points varying and offer an alert – and thus protect production with an early diagnosis.

However, if a PPM system were in place, David’s concern during the first 12-hour shift would act as an input to the predictive maintenance algorithm. A digitally recorded fluctuation combined with a human engineer’s concern bumps up the validity of the data significantly. This then provides early warning remedial actions for the night shift, as opposed to waiting until degradation is worse the



following day. In addition, due to it being a machine-learning approach, at any time in the future when a similar incident occurs, as an engineer notices the problem mid-shift and digitally records it during an inspection round, warnings and work orders can be issued for even earlier preventative maintenance.

With PPM, machines and humans are now working in harmony, while augmenting and increasing each other’s overall intelligence. Workers’ experiences and observations of any industrial process or system, and their communication with one another, are worthy data points that are on par with, or possibly even more significant than, data generated by any equipment instrumentation.

Conclusions The 451 Take

PPM is about more than managing shift handovers, but these critical transitions are a key focal point for essential human communication to keep the core processes running well. Knowledge management and maintaining the integrity of any knowledge capital are essential when continuous processes are in place. The need to maintain production at its optimal state, holding the ‘magic recipe,’ should not be impacted by workforce members handing over to one another.

The process industries may be behind the curve on the digital transformation journey, but their focus on worker safety appears to be a unifying driver for change. Without repeatable procedures in place when any human communication occurs, there is a potential gap left open for incidents to occur. Multimillion-dollar installations of equipment and resources are run and maintained by a human workforce. The correct tooling and equipment, including those enabling clear communication of details, should be in place. It is possible to digitally transform operations with PPM, without a full IIoT rollout. Replacing whiteboards, ad hoc conversations and checklist sheets with an OT-focused system, run in an IT-friendly way, can be a pragmatic and impactful start to transformation.

For general process optimization and to maintain a high level of overall equipment effectiveness (OEE), plant operations can be improved through the application of IIoT instrumentation and AI/ML analysis. If the human workforce in the system is not well informed, much of that benefit can be lost, and PPM becomes the next step in the journey.

The transformation of human communication activities such as shift handover and maintenance status we would consider an imperative at any time. But this is especially critical amid the sweeping changes we are seeing in workforce demographics as older workers retire and are not replaced as quickly as they leave, thus not handing over years of experience – the so-called ‘Great Crew Change.’ Beyond that, the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the potential for future ones, highlights the need to reduce exposure to ad hoc systems for critical communications. Work patterns are in flux with isolation and lockdowns, and it is not possible to expect familiarity among groups of shift workers and their shared experience to provide consistency.



Any systemic change, large scale or incremental, needs to be executed in a way that empowers OT workers and provides obvious benefits in the form of heightened safety and improvements in how they utilize plant assets. Whereas a few years ago there were widespread concerns about data sovereignty across IIoT in manufacturing in general, the ability to solve an enterprise-wide problem with an IT-friendly SaaS solution that integrates with other systems is now becoming more accepted. While there may be subtle differences in machinery from plant to plant, the overall processes and safety requirements for enterprises are largely similar. The ability to meet these requirements benefits from each plant in an enterprise being informed by the actions of the others. This reinforces the need to look at a PPM solution as a corporate-level investment, as opposed to a plant-by-plant one.

Recommendations for Continuous Process Industry Leaders• If not already underway, begin the digital transformation of key processes, including shift

handover. This represents a key safety imperative and an ongoing competitive one for OEE.

• Prioritize worker safety in the investment case for PPM. Evaluate which safety incidents, including how serious and how many, have been a result of communication failure, and prioritize those points of communication to digitally capture information. Plant workers will appreciate the investment in their safety and be more likely to accept process changes with enhanced safety as a key outcome.

• Involve the workforce from the start in designing or improving any processes with PPM. Inclusion begets a shared sense of responsibility and enhanced engagement, especially when additional tasks must be completed.

• Consider the resilience of operations if/when another pandemic or existential threat impacts the industrial world. COVID-19 has tested our mettle, so how can we fortify our ability to navigate the next crisis? PPM could help with this footing.

C O N T E N T P R OV I D E D B Y:

eschbach North America

31 St. James Avenue Boston, MA 02116 United States

+1 (617) 618-5261

www.eschbach.com

[email protected]

eschbach GmbH

Schaffhauser Str. 97 79713 Bad Saeckingen Germany

+49 (0)7761 55959-0



Organizations in the process industry should carefully consider the following regarding digitization programs for their workforce:

• Knowledge gaps and communication silos, which inhibit safety as well as process reliability.

• Whether bespoke and office collaboration tools adequately address the needs of revolving 24/7 operations and environments with hazardous working conditions.

• How a fragmented application landscape complicates the handover processes between production teams and individual operations staff.

• The benefits of having data contextualized by human operators for training data used in supervised machine learning.

• How to retain the valuable knowledge of your long-term employees to address new workforce demographics.

eschbach works with clients to engage their workforce with better plant process collaboration and communication. Our Shiftconnector platform helps organizations in the transition to digital-first operations, leveraging knowledge management techniques to preserve the investment in the intellectual capital of their people.

http://www.eschbach.com

mailto:[email protected]

About 451 Research451 Research is a leading information technology research and advisory com-pany focusing on technology innovation and market disruption. More than 100 analysts and consultants provide essential insight to more than 1,000 cli-ent organizations globally through a combination of syndicated research and data, advisory and go-to-market services, and live events. Founded in 2000, 451 Research is a part of S&P Global Market Intelligence.

© 2020 451 Research, LLC and/or its Affiliates. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction and distribution of this publication, in whole or in part, in any form without prior written permission is forbidden. The terms of use regarding distribution, both internally and externally, shall be governed by the terms laid out in your Service Agreement with 451 Research and/or its Affiliates. The information contained herein has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. 451 Research disclaims all warranties as to the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of such information. Although 451 Research may discuss legal issues related to the information technology business, 451 Research does not pro-vide legal advice or services and their research should not be construed or used as such.

451 Research shall have no liability for errors, omissions or inadequacies in the informa-tion contained herein or for interpretations thereof. The reader assumes sole respon-sibility for the selection of these materials to achieve its intended results. The opinions expressed herein are subject to change without notice.

N E W YO R K

55 Water StreetNew York, NY 10041 +1 212 505 3030

S A N F R A N C I S C O

One California Street, 31st FloorSan Francisco, CA 94111+1 212 505 3030

LO N D O N

20 Canada SquareCanary WharfLondon E14 5LH, UK +44 (0) 203 929 5700

B O S TO N

75-101 Federal Street Boston, MA 02110 +1 617 598 7200

Date post:	22-Aug-2021
Category:	Documents
Upload:	others
View:	3 times
Download:	0 times

Essential Digital Transformation for Process Manufacturing … · 2021. 5. 19. · specific PPM...

Documents