A typical downstream refinery has thousands of components, parts, and assets, each with unique maintenance requirements, operating tolerances, and lifespan. At the same time, aging infrastructure, severe weather, and changing regulatory requirements further complicate the role of Asset Integrity Managers and the Operations & Maintenance departments.

Transformers are critical assets, and any failure can have severe and long-lasting consequences. In the most extreme cases, a transformer failure caused by a lack of proper maintenance can result in widespread outages, costly repairs, and regulatory fines.

The oil & gas industry has always been willing to innovate. From the very beginning, leading organizations have developed new equipment, processes, and business strategies that have led to better performance, improved safety, and reduced emissions. But when it comes to new technology, many companies have been hesitant to fully embrace new solutions. Energy 4.0 represents the advances in hardware, software, and communications that have the potential to transform the oil & gas production process.

Visual and thermal sensors enable remote monitoring of high-value and critical substation assets. With better access to data, utilities can reduce operations and maintenance costs, optimize asset health and performance, and implement a condition-based maintenance strategy.

Continuous monitoring provides utilities with an early warning system to detect potential faults or issues before a serious failure occurs. Instead of relying solely on physical inspections, the Operations & Maintenance team can monitor high-value and critical assets across multiple substations and remote locations.

Electric utilities have long relied on physical inspections and scheduled maintenance programs when managing grid infrastructure. However, the periodic nature of these approaches allows potential faults to go undetected, sometimes for months at a time. This increases the likelihood of a catastrophic equipment failure that results in an outage and requires an emergency repair.

The electric utility industry is evolving. Aging equipment, extreme weather, labor shortages, and the growth of renewable energy sources are straining transmission and distribution infrastructure that was not designed to withstand current conditions.

Electric power utilities have a difficult task. Despite aging infrastructure, the rise of renewable energy, and a shortage of skilled workers, they must continue to get as much out of their existing assets as possible.

Upstream oil and gas companies play an important role in the global energy market. But as financial, regulatory, and public pressures increase, upstream oil and gas companies must find new ways to detect, diagnose, and repair leaks quickly and effectively.

Brad Bowness, CIO at Systems With Intelligence, shares his extensive career journey in the utility sector. He highlights the transition from consulting to in-house roles, noting significant industry disruptions.