As has already been outlined by many of my colleagues in prior AspenTech blog posts, sustainability has become a top priority for industrial leaders on all fronts. For instance, institutional investors are applying sophisticated sustainability criteria to their investment decisions. Talented workers want to join companies that are serious about environmental stewardship, social fairness and ethical governance. Our customers are facing the dual challenge of meeting the increasing demand for resources – between 2020 & 2050, the population will grow by nearly 2bn people⁽¹⁾ – while addressing sustainability and profitability goals.   

In our final installment of this Industrial AI interview series between AspenTech SVP of Artificial Intelligence Heiko Claussen and Jim Harris, author of Blindsided!, the pair discuss Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG), and how AspenTech is supporting customers’ sustainability goals.  

AspenTech solutions are helping customers improve their operational efficiencies, thereby reducing carbon emissions and waste. For instance, consider the consequences of a bad vaccine batch at a pharmaceutical manufacturing plant. In addition to wasted ingredients, energy used to produce the batch was also wasted. Quality and efficiency improvements from right-the-first-time drug manufacturing minimizes waste and the need to retroactively eliminate poor products.

During his conversation with Jim, Heiko explains AI’s role in operational efficiency, in which processes and particular assets can be optimized in real-time in the loop. AspenTech also works with companies that may want to start with small enhancements that can have a huge impact on operational efficiency and sustainability initiatives, and then leverage data and modeling to scale to even larger improvements. 

Watch the full interview to hear more examples of how companies across the pharmaceutical, energy, chemical and other industries are leveraging Industrial AI to improve their sustainability position.  

 

 

 

⁽¹⁾ International Institute for Sustainable Development, SDG Knowledge Hub, Aug 2020