How Exxon Mobil and Industrial Tech Giants are Leading the Open Process Automation Revolution
What is Open Process Automation?
Open Process Automation (OPA) is a new paradigm for industrial automation that aims to break the barriers of proprietary and legacy systems and enable interoperability, portability, and innovation across different vendors, platforms, and applications. OPA is based on open standards, such as the IEC 61499 standard for distributed control systems, and a vendor-agnostic architecture that allows plug-and-play integration of components and devices from multiple sources. OPA also leverages the latest technologies, such as cloud computing, edge computing, artificial intelligence, and machine learning, to enhance the performance, efficiency, and flexibility of industrial processes.
Why is Exxon Mobil interested in OPA?
Exxon Mobil is one of the world’s largest energy companies, with operations in over 200 countries and territories. The company produces and supplies oil, natural gas, petrochemicals, and other products to meet the global demand for energy. Exxon Mobil is also committed to innovation and sustainability, investing in research and development, new technologies, and low-carbon solutions.
Exxon Mobil sees OPA as a strategic opportunity to transform its industrial automation systems and achieve its business goals. The company believes that OPA can help it improve its operational excellence, reduce its capital and operating costs, increase its agility and scalability, and accelerate its digital transformation. Exxon Mobil also hopes that OPA can enable it to leverage its own intellectual property and expertise in advanced control and optimization, as well as benefit from the innovation and collaboration of the OPA ecosystem.
How is Exxon Mobil collaborating with other industry leaders on OPA?
Exxon Mobil is not only a user, but also a driver and a leader of the OPA movement. The company has been actively involved in the Open Process Automation Forum (OPAF), a consortium of end-users, suppliers, system integrators, standards organizations, and academia, that was established in 2017 to develop and promote the OPA standards and specifications. Exxon Mobil has also partnered with several industry leaders, such as Schneider Electric, Intel, Dell, VMware, and Yokogawa, to conduct field trials and pilot projects of OPA systems in its production facilities.
One of the most notable examples of Exxon Mobil’s collaboration with other industry leaders on OPA is the field trial that was announced in November 2021 at the NAMUR General Assembly, a conference of process automation professionals in Germany. The field trial, which is expected to be engineered and started up during 2022-23, will involve the installation of an OPA system in one of Exxon Mobil’s noncritical production facilities. The OPA system will consist of components and devices from different vendors, such as Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure Automation Expert, Intel’s processors, Dell’s servers, VMware’s virtualization software, and Yokogawa’s field instruments. The field trial will also leverage the UniversalAutomation.Org (UAO) runtime, an open-source implementation of the IEC 61499 standard, that was donated by Schneider Electric and is managed by an independent association. The field trial will aim to demonstrate the feasibility, functionality, and benefits of OPA, as well as identify and address the technical and commercial challenges and gaps.
What are the benefits and challenges of OPA?
OPA promises to bring many benefits to the industrial automation sector, such as:
- Increased performance and efficiency: OPA can enable faster and more accurate control and optimization of industrial processes, as well as better utilization of resources and energy.
- Reduced costs and risks: OPA can lower the capital and operating expenses of industrial automation systems, as well as mitigate the risks of obsolescence, vendor lock-in, and cybersecurity threats.
- Enhanced flexibility and scalability: OPA can allow for easier and cheaper integration, modification, and expansion of industrial automation systems, as well as support for diverse and dynamic applications and environments.
- Accelerated innovation and collaboration: OPA can foster a more open and competitive market for industrial automation solutions, as well as stimulate the development and adoption of new technologies and best practices.
However, OPA also faces many challenges and barriers, such as:
- Technical complexity and uncertainty: OPA involves a high level of technical complexity and uncertainty, as it requires the integration and interoperability of heterogeneous and distributed components and devices, as well as the adoption and implementation of new standards and technologies.
- Commercial readiness and viability: OPA is still in its early stages of development and deployment, and it lacks the commercial readiness and viability that are needed to convince and attract the end-users and suppliers of industrial automation systems.
- Cultural and organizational resistance: OPA represents a radical change from the traditional and established ways of doing industrial automation, and it may encounter cultural and organizational resistance from the stakeholders who are used to or benefit from the status quo.
What is the future of OPA?
OPA is a visionary and ambitious initiative that aims to revolutionize the industrial automation sector. However, it is also a complex and challenging endeavor that requires the collaboration and commitment of multiple and diverse actors. The future of OPA depends on the ability and willingness of the end-users, suppliers, system integrators, standards organizations, and academia, to work together and overcome the technical, commercial, and cultural obstacles that stand in the way of OPA’s realization and adoption. Exxon Mobil and other industry leaders are playing a key role in advancing and promoting OPA, but they cannot do it alone. They need the support and participation of the entire industrial automation community, as well as the regulators and policymakers, to make OPA a reality and a success.
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