What are AVEVA’s plans for growth and expansion in India over the next three-five years?

AVEVA is working towards the development of Infrastructure 4.0 in India in 2022 and beyond. Looking at how accelerated urbanization across the country, and impending risks of climate change are affecting existing systems simultaneously, it is necessary for a transformation in infrastructure operations within cities. Updating and modernizing utilities, transport systems and communication networks to be smarter, secure and more resilient is vital in the face of these challenges.

Implementing technologies such as cloud, the industrial internet of things (IIoT), and artificial intelligence (AI) allows infrastructure operators, stakeholders, and city planners to make greener, better-informed decisions and respond quickly to potential disruptions, becoming proactive rather than reactive in their operations. A technologized infrastructure also increases sustainability and stability in interdependent service networks. Consequently, this improves the quality of life for the citizens, while mitigating the environmental impact of industrialization.

What sets AVEVA apart from its competitors?

A value we can pride ourselves on is our belief that there are no limitations to technological advancement, or restrictions on who can accomplish them. Digital transformation is attainable at all levels, especially when there is an opportunity to provide tailor-made solutions for each individual case. At AVEVA, we work with megacities such as London, as well as smaller municipalities with populations of 50,000 and below, that are looking to leverage technology to improve their sustainability and resilience.

Sustainability is always at the core of our operations, be it from supporting our customer’s goals through our software, to implementing the same practices within our own AVEVA ecosystem. Our commitments to fighting climate change include joining the Race To Zero campaign, and achieving net-zero emissions across our operations (Scopes 1 and 2) by 2030 and committing to 1.5°C aligned Green House Gas (GHG) emission reduction targets across all operations in line with SBTi criteria. We have also joined 2030 Vision, a World Economic Forum initiative that seeks to fast-track technology to advance the global goals and accelerate sustainability-related R&D efforts.

What is the contribution that AVEVA has made to Indian Oil Corporation Ltd? 

AVEVA was chosen by IOCL last year to roll out their enterprise-wide unified supply chain refinery production scheduling in India. As a key initiative under the banner of its digitalization project i-DRIVE, Indian Oil aspires to transform its scheduling work process across nine refineries and one petrochemical complex by implementing the Refinery Production Scheduler. AVEVA is honoured to be associated with IOCL through Accenture for their enterprise-wide Integrated Planning project.

Post implementation of both Refinery Production Scheduling and integrated Planning Project, IOCL will have end-to-end visibility into their value chain, enabling improved efficiency and quick decision-making, eventually leading to improved profitability. AVEVA Unified Supply Chain solution allows IOCL to digitalize its refinery and naphtha cracker scheduling workflow, and optimize blend scheduling to meet daily product dispatch plans.

As S.M. Vaidya, Chairman, Indian Oil Corp Limited, said, “Streamlining crude feedstocks with plant scheduling is a particular challenge for our industry, intensified by operational challenges brought on by the pandemic. By implementing AVEVA technology, we shall enhance efficiency by using a digital system-driven scheduling approach for consistent and value-focused operations. Most importantly, the new relationship will allow our energy professionals to focus on the business through enhanced decision support.”

Indian Oil has been actively using AVEVA’s simulation software for steady-state simulation and debottlenecking studies for many years. AVEVA 3D plant design technology has been used to design the various IOCL refinery plants over the years. AVEVA Information Management software has also been implemented in refineries to contextually view their refinery 3D models, 2D data like P&ID (Piping and Instrumentation Diagram ) and 1D documents like datasheets. The system enables quick access to different types of engineering and design documents.

IOCL has also implemented AVEVA’s Production Accounting solution across refineries, to improve operations’ reliability, material accounting of raw material, inventory, and products, and identifying faulty instruments, which results in an overall improved bottom line. We also have a pilot implementation of Real-Time Optimization software in a couple of process units at IOCL, looking to maximize operating profit while satisfying all regulatory requirements.

AVEVA is truly honoured to be a technology partner of IOCL, working closely to take the steps toward real-time plant optimization to enable a digital future.

What are other key initiatives AVEVA has driven in India?

The Nava Raipur Smart City used a combination of AVEVA solution to construct a world-class greenfield smart city. To form the city’s infrastructural backbone, in particular, AVEVA experts connected the city’s eight primary operational systems into an integrated command and control center (ICCC) powered by AVEVA Unified Operation Center. This generated real-time insight into and supported the management of critical infrastructure systems across the city, enabling authorities to match supply and demand for crucial civic services including water, street-lighting, electrical and sewerage services with greater accuracy. This also cut emergency response times by 60% on an average. During recent lockdowns, the ICCC combined with the Smart City portal and app made it easier for municipal authorities to communicate with the general population and respond to the needs of affected citizens, supporting the containment process.

Another example is Deccan Fine Chemicals, a key supplier to the Global Top 5 agrochemical companies. Deccan operates four highly-automated, multipurpose chemical manufacturing plants in India and frequent changes to production lines were creating unnecessary downtime, cash flow issues, and excess inventory problems for the company. Using the AVEVA PI System to manage this, Deccan was able to gain deeper insight into assets, inventory, and production processes. The system also enhanced their predictive ability. During the first phase of the process, Deccan identified $10 million worth of excess inventory, streamlined the company’s holdings of raw materials, saved roughly $500,000 a month in process improvements, and freed up $3 million in reductions to vendor advances through better cash flow management.

As a global leader in industrial software, that is supporting the digital transformation of industrial companies across the globe, delivering value is only half of the story. Now, driving forth environmental performance has become another equally important driver in setting the industrial apart. AVEVA’s software increase energy efficiency, help reduce waste, boost circularity throughout engineering and operations, to maximize sustainable performance.