It is said that “necessity is the mother of invention.” If this is true, then the pandemic has spawned a multitude of new needs because in my entire lifetime, I have never witnessed more innovations “being birthed” than during this past year. 

From new ways to approach remote work to transforming operations, producing ventilators instead of vehicles, new tech tools like wearable devices that keep factory workers socially distanced and apps that monitor building occupancy levels, the world has come together in new ways over the last year.  But what other breakthroughs have happened that we have not heard yet?  And what new challenges and hurdles have arisen? 

 

Accelerate Your Digitalization Journey at the ARC Industry Forum 

How will digital transformation help capital-intensive industries face any new challenges and hurdles in 2021? You might want to look for some answers at the upcoming 25th Annual ARC Industry Forum: Accelerating Digital Transformation in a Post-COVID World. The fact that this year’s forum, February 8-11, is virtual is just another example of how industry pivots in response to a global and economic crisis that challenges our industry and our customers. AspenTech is participating in this year’s ARC Industry Forum as a Gold Sponsor.

 

A Convergence of IT/OT Conversations

A critical theme of the ARC Forum in 2020 was the convergence of Information Technology (IT) and Operating Technology (OT) and how it is often impacts long-term action plans for organizations. For me, one of the most thought-provoking sessions last year highlighted actionable, innovative first steps in what can seem like a million-mile journey. 

In a recent blog, Five Factors to Consider in Industry 4.0's OT/IT Convergence, Bill Scudder discussed these steps and how fostering collaboration between the sometime-conflicting perspectives of OT and IT is essential to the implementation of Industry 4.0.

It’s the different ways various industries and functions come together to tackle these issues that I find most exciting! What other industry breakthroughs and resulting innovations will arise in 2021? Is your organization prepared to deal with the “newer normal?” 

 

Process Stability with APM 

Many AspenTech customers looked to our Asset Performance Management 4.0 (APM) solutions in 2020 to find innovative solutions to these new issues.  Consequently, we want to use our workshop session at this year’s ARC Forum to talk about real world actions taken with AspenTech’s APM Solutions and the opportunities that resulted, even in these times of uncertain futures.

While equipment reliability is key to availability and protection of precious profit margins, Chris Williams, AspenTech Director of Customer Success, APM and Bernt Hiddema, AspenTech Principal Solution Consultant, APM, will review how process stability is also a huge contributor in Zeroing in on Process Health: How to Increase Availability by 20+% in 3 Months with APM.

It’s no secret that how you run a process impacts phenomena such as fouling, but with so many “levers” to pull, where do you start? Chris and Bernt offer insight into the critical first steps taken by different organizations that not only resulted in millions saved, but laid the groundwork for future post-COVID digitalization growth.

So, while I look forward to this year’s ARC Industry Forum to hear about the long-term plans of customers for “Accelerating Digital Transformation in a Post-COVID World,” I am also excited to hear about those new innovations that have “been born” out of new necessities, as well as those ideas that have emerged since the beginning of the pandemic. Those ideas that may never have surfaced in a pre-COVID world.

 

I hope you’ll join me at this year’s ARC Industry Forum. Register now!