US giant Emerson pilots Pervasive Sensing on Jurong Island

Singapore

BIG data has arrived on the shores of Jurong Island, and could generate up to US$150 million a year in energy savings for companies in the petrochemical hub if plans by US multinational company Emerson succeed.

The engineering and technology firm is looking to roll out its data analytics technology - trademarked Pervasive Sensing - in Singapore to help petrochemical companies modernise their plants. Emerson will integrate complex machinery with networked sensors and software, and analyse data from these in real time, enabling the companies to optimise their operations.

"Modernising plants with our Pervasive Sensing technologies provides a second layer of automation that brings real-time data beyond the control room," said Emerson president Edward Monser.

Some manufacturing plants today still have a significant number of basic tasks such as data collection that must be completed annually. In the long periods between the checks on this data, a company can lose significant amounts of energy, and equipment may fail, Mr Monser explained.

"Data previously collected annually can now be collected hourly, or once per minute, or sometimes even faster. This allows energy loss and equipment failure to be captured and arrested in real time."

In Singapore, Emerson has started a pilot project with chemical firm Denka by using its technology to monitor steam traps, which are mechanical devices with movable parts that operate under demanding conditions. This has already led to "considerable reductions" in energy cost and carbon emissions, Mr Monser told The Business Times by email.

For the project, Emerson helped to analyse 61 of 300 steam traps at Denka's plant. It found 15 per cent of them not working properly and, as a result, blowing steam at an estimated cost of S$29,245 a year and emitting 62 tonnes of carbon dioxide a year.

This, extrapolated over all 300 steam traps, would translate into S$144,000 a year in energy loss and over 300 tonnes of additional carbon emissions for this plant alone, said Mr Monser, noting "Emerson's technology allows these issues to be detected and addressed early".

Emerson is also working with the Economic Development Board (EDB) on other pilot projects "which we expect will materialise shortly".

By using assumptions based on industry standards - that 13 per cent of steam is lost through leaking steam traps and some 4,000 tonnes of steam is produced hourly by two large steam producers and several users - as well as a natural gas price of US$15 per mmbtu, Emerson estimates that total energy savings across the many plants on Jurong Island could add up to US$150 million a year.

Emerson this year celebrates its 50th year in Singapore, and today sites its regional headquarters for the Emerson Process Management business out of the city-state, with "significant investments" in manufacturing, research and development, and service facilities. Other business groups, such as Emerson Network Power and Emerson Industrial Automation, also have a presence here.

The group has in the past five years invested US$70 million in Singapore, said Mr Monser. Last year alone, it made two investments totalling US$21 million: the Singapore Analytical Manufacturing and Integration Centre, which manufactures analytical and combustion sensors among other things; and the Pervasive Sensing Centre of Excellence, which Mr Monser said has strengthened the Republic's capabilities in system integration, data analytics and advanced manufacturing.

In his view, Emerson's Pervasive Sensing solutions dovetails with Singapore's ambition to become a "smart nation", which includes making Singapore's industrial sector more competitive in spite of energy cost pressures. "The Industrial Internet trend allows companies to integrate complex physical machinery with networked sensors and software to analyse data in real time and use this information to optimise operations."

The analytics software that Emerson provides distils the massive flow of raw data into information that its experts then analyse, to identify the best solutions for customers to keep systems working and energy use efficient.

Singapore's excellent infrastructure from power and water to transportation is a "natural fit" with Emerson's technology-driven services and vision, Mr Monser said. "Singapore is actively encouraging smart and forward-looking manufacturing and technologies - which is what Emerson does, and that's why we are here."

"Singapore has built a strong infrastructure foundation that supports good mobile network coverage, broadband Internet and cloud data centres. Such capacity is necessary for the demands of high-technology endeavours such as our Pervasive Sensing technologies, which are a global game changer in terms of the Industrial Internet of Things."

On top of that, Singapore offers "a depth of engineering and manufacturing talent" and remains committed to advancements in science and technology education, he said, explaining why the Fortune 500 company - which in June received the Distinguished Partner in Progress Award from the government - remains committed to this market.

Emerson plans to roll out its data analytics technologies in three phases. The first, which has already started with the Denka project, involves pilot projects to help modernise plants for customers across industries such as refining, chemicals and pharmaceuticals on Jurong Island. "Emerson will be working with these customers with the intent of reinforcing Jurong Island's reputation as the location for some of the safest, most productive and energy-efficient industrial facilities in the world," said Mr Monser.

After that, Emerson will expand it to the rest of Singapore. In the final phase, it will then move to other markets beyond the city-state.

Besides steam trap monitoring, future pilot projects Emerson could engage in include relief valve leak detection, heat exchanger monitoring, and automatic data collection for energy management.

With the world's attention increasingly focused on global warming and reducing carbon emissions, the process management industry can help to support the vision that governments have to pursue competitive and sustainable development by enabling efficient use of energy and providing cost-effective industrial monitoring and better access to emissions data and management.

"As the strain on natural resources increases, we all share a duty to responsibly and efficiently use energy and to reduce activities that harm the environment . . . In the process industry, modernising with a second layer of automation is key to productivity and energy efficiency, and I truly believe industrial companies and governments understand this," said Mr Monser.