Companies in hazardous industries are embracing digitalisation as a means of achieving ‘operational excellence’ (OE) but the fast pace of innovation and resistance to change could block widespread adoption, a survey has found.
Software developer Petrotechnics’ Operational Excellence Index survey sought to gauge attitudes to digital transformation and OE among professionals in the oil, gas and petrochemicals sector.
The concept of operational excellence emerged in the hazardous industries a few years ago. It is defined as the pursuit of world-class performance in which an integrated view of operations allows the most effective operational decisions, based on risk, cost and productivity. to be made consistently.
More than 73% of respondents believed that the advancement of Industry 4.0 technologies is accelerating the ability to deliver sustainable OE. Such technologies include the industrial internet of things, smart sensors, digital twins, machine learning, artificial intelligence and cloud solutions.
Meanwhile 83% agreed that digitalisation enables a single, shared view of operational reality, leading to greater levels of transparency, efficiency, and performance.
More effective KPIs and metrics (51%) and improved prioritisation and planning (49%) were the two areas where digitalisation is considered to be providing the most benefit. In addition 65% of respondents were either deploying or planning to deploy predictive analytics.
However, some expressed concern that the industry may not be able to keep pace with the rapid rate of digital transformation. Key challenges highlighted include steep learning curves (19%), too much data (18%), and disengaged workforces (14%).
“Newer applications and technologies have the potential to disrupt long-standing models of operation,” commented Petrotechnics vice-president for product management and marketing Scott Lehmann.
“We know this can make people hesitant, worried and resistant to change. But in reality, digitalisation is meant to enhance, not replace, the human element of decision-making.”
He added: “The question of OE adoption isn’t if, but when. For each organisation, the answer lies in its ability to embrace technology as an enabler of a collaborative operational culture.”
Petrotechnics is the developer of operational excellence software platform Proscient.