You’ve probably already decided that digitally transforming your operations is necessary as you face a shrinking workforce and tighter budget dollars. The productivity advantages of a full cloud software strategy implementation are many and well documented.

Like cars, snowflakes and superheroes, no two cloud computing service providers are exactly alike, nor are their customers. So, when picking a cloud software provider, it’s important to know if they can adapt or customize their system to exactly what you need (or don't need), or if you’re supposed to bend your procedures to someone’s limited, out-of-the-box configuration.

Here are some questions to ask before you decide:

1. Can the vendor’s system easily fit with the hardware you may already have?
2. Can the new system seamlessly integrate your historical data with the new input they’ll gather?
3. Are Project Managers available to handle all the details?
4. Will the vendor provide the reports you need, by format, frequency, user authorization and department needs?
5. Do they provide ongoing support?

The water management industry is an asset concentrated, rate-restricted industry requiring informed decision-making to effectively  balance increased safety with capital investment and operational expenses. Capital resources for the water industries can make it difficult to meet on-going challenges like aging infrastructure, declining revenues, retiring experienced workers, and regulations.

One way water companies can face these challenges is to find effective ways to utilize their current assets to increase return on investment and increase safety. Digitally transforming operations will rely on better use of existing data coupled with new sensors, information integration, and data analytics.

With technology supported by our experts, we offer comprehensive solutions to our customers' challenges. We have developed rod pump monitoring and control for an advanced solution using artificial intelligence with machine learning capabilities for Autonomous Rod Pump management.

What is an Autonomous Rod Pump? 

Autonomous Rod Pump is an Artificial Intelligence application (analytics engine) that identifies anomalies on rod pump applications. 

Autonomous refers to a state of equipment where it can perform the programmed operations under defined conditions without human input or guidance. When we talk about this type of equipment, we use the adjective, autonomous. 

In this ever-increasing digital world, people and companies rely more and more on the Cloud for data storage and integration. IIoT brings that missing piece where field data and process data can join the rest of your information on the Cloud.

Remember poring over page after page of perfectly normal well data, line by line, just looking for the occasional telltale anomaly that might indicate a problem requiring attention? Or copying and pasting lines of production data into a spreadsheet to track trends?

Oh, you remember that too well because—it was just this morning? So, you don’t have a way to distill all that data into a graph or chart so you can instantly spot spikes, valleys and trends?

Field Data Capture (FDC) is the gathering and analysis of manually entered or electronically uploaded data from field equipment. Oil and gas facilities have hundreds of metering points. Multiple departments within an organization require the data from these metering points.

Some of the field data is necessary to meet government reporting requirements. Data must be collected on time and accurately to reassure the recipients of the data’s validity.

Is your company still sending a pumper out to visually inspect every well? If so, I’m sure you’ve counted the miles and hours, not to mention the costs for fuel, tires and oil changes.

There are also safety issues involved with thousands of monthly miles driven just in case something might need attention. All of this is costing you more than you probably realize. That’s not to mention lost production from issues that occur long between trips.

Maybe you’ve thought about adding or switching to a software as a service (SaaS) platform to get alarms in place, but had heard some stories of how early alarm systems were unreliable, reacting to slight, transient spikes so often that they were soon ignored. That could lead to missing a real alarm.

There can be some misconceptions about how data is handled when outsourcing your Cloud Software. Given the advances in new technology and many circumstances affecting several industries, automating your operations, and outsourcing your SCADA to a cloud based platform can have many advantages. 

The key is to have the right partner so you are certain your data will be handled with care. Emerson's Zedi SaaS SCADA Solutions takes handling your data very seriously and provides advanced security for all our platform and software applications.

It is providing constant situational awareness with mobility tools to power enhanced collaboration. That means secure, on-demand access to information and expertise regardless of location, enabling action and collaboration through shared, relevant information.

Our Zedi Go Mobile App was designed for oil and gas producers. When you're in the field or out of the office, Zedi Go will keep you updated instantly and allow you to access your most recent production and operational data.

How often have you worked on a written assignment only to have an unexpected computer failure, and you lose all your information because it did not save? Once this happens, you either look for other ways to recover your work or get stuck starting from the beginning.  

When the unexpected happens, you want to pick up where you left off, especially when it comes to business operations. For this reason, it is essential to implement a Business Continuity Plan (BCP) and have the appropriate technology to support services in the event of unforeseen circumstances.