ABB Lifecycle Services Solutions Expanding

Summary

ARC Advisory Group research indicates that services continue to be the fastest growing segment of the automation industry. Traditionally, a supplier's approach to service has been primarily transactional in nature. Many end users would enter into annual contracts with suppliers for reactive services to help them deal with situations as they surface. This approach ties up assets until the problem is solved; reducing efficiency and possibly impacting production.

ABB has developed what appears to be a well-thought out, needs-based plan to address the lifecycle service requirements of its customers. This applies both to users who just want to maintain the assets they have in place, and to those who aim to squeeze maximum value from their automation assets.

Recently, ABB briefed ARC Advisory Group on the company's latest service offerings. Key findings include:

• ABB is designing its branded services offerings to focus on each customer's most important value drivers and provide the appropriate level of service to meet those pain points.
• Different end users and different industries have varying service needs. Automation suppliers must align service portfolios to their customers' operations and maintenance strategies to offer value. ABB is confident that, through industry specificity, it creates greater value for its broad customer base.
• ABB is capturing its collective industry and product knowledge and making it available as standardized, software-supported services to help alleviate the loss of expertise endemic throughout industry.

Automation Suppliers Offer More Services

End users have been outsourcing execution of automation projects to suppliers for decades. However, due to staff downsizing and lost expertise, today's end users now also increasingly look to external resources for lifecycle services. Suppliers have stepped in to fill the "services gap" by offering services at all phases in the automation lifecycle, from the CAPEX-based project phase through the OPEX-based operating phase. These services allow end users to run a leaner organization while maintaining access to expertise as needed.

ABB Expands Scalable Services

All too often, automation suppliers leave it entirely up to the end user to select the services they want from a long (and sometimes confusing) "laundry list" of available services. With this in mind, ABB has developed and refined a lifecycle value manager tool, ServicePoint, to address the entire lifecycle of an automation system. The tool enables end users to determine the services they require in an analytical, pragmatic manner. According to ABB, its ServicePoint application uses a framework to map the company's large service portfolio to client needs, supported by extensive direct customer research and statistically valid algorithms. This provides its clients with a better understanding of the company's service offerings and, more importantly, helps users map the available services to their specific goals, requirements and preferences.

Services Segmentation

An automation system installed at a 30-year old petroleum refinery in Western Europe scheduled for shuttering has different service requirements than does an automation system installed in a newly constructed chemical plant in Asia. Recognizing these unique differences, ABB has segmented the company's offerings into core, advanced, and strategic services. This segmentation helps both ABB and its customers discuss and derive the more appropriate lifecycle services plan by allowing the customer to choose the services that best meet its needs.

Core services include on-demand field service support, spare parts support, evolution and upgrade services, training, and some limited remote support services. These core services allow end users to engage ABB in a traditional transactional way.

At the next level, advanced services and software are aimed at maximizing system performance and optimizing process performance. According to ABB, these services provide end users better insight into their systems and proactive expert advice.

Strategic service concentrates on delivering business results through a partnership with the end user to identify opportunities and implement services for continuous improvement at various steps along the customer's value chain. Strategic services are generally long-term, performance-based agreements intended to reduce total lifecycle costs.

The company is also launching a new approach to service agreements. ABB categorizes its services according to customer segments that expect rapid response to increase uptime, lifecycle management to plan for system evolution, performance improvement to increase asset performance, and operational efficiency to drive productivity. This allows the company to work with each end user to provide pertinent services to meet their needs in a standardized and straightforward manner. The company calls these industry and product specific service agreements "ABB Industry Care."

Branded Services

ABB now offers several new branded productized services. The ServicePro Service Management System is currently on its fourth iteration. According to ABB, ServicePro brings together global best service practices and lifecycle support information based on its worldwide industry experience. This software-supported service includes diagnosing extended downtime, fortifying "weak" maintenance strategies, system and process optimization, and developing an appropriate maintenance schedule. ABB reports that over 4,100 sites currently employ the service in almost 60 countries.

The company's ServicePort enables secure delivery of remote advanced diagnostics with a focus on increasing asset performance. Over time, system performance and value tends to degrade. ServicePort allows end users to monitor and diagnose performance problems, implement remedies, and sustain improvement. This technology platform provides secure access to diagnostics, fast access to ABB experts, and reduces the time and costs for on-site service. ServicePort is hosted locally at the site and provides a single access point for service "channels" which are described as being similar to cable TV channels where end users subscribe to the channels of services they want or need. Examples include a loop performance channel, QCS performance channels, cyber security channel, 800xA performance channel, Harmony performance channel, mine hoist performance channel, and LV drives performance channel.

Integrated Service Ecosystem

While ServicePoint, ServicePro and ServicePort can operate as stand-alone applications, ABB believes that significant incremental value can be derived by integrating these applications. Factory manufacturing data, maintenance recommendations, spare parts requirements, service events, maintenance histories, and system performance data are shared by the applications to provide a comprehensive approach to specify and deliver the right services. This integration also allows service data to be synchronized globally across customer sites to identify trends and manage asset fleets.

Core Lifecycle Services for Systems

In a related briefing, an ABB executive provided ARC with additional details on the company's core lifecycle services for automation systems.

ABB recently added the System 800xA Health Check to the previously introduced series of benchmark and fingerprint type services. The company describes this service as a detailed, comprehensive inspection and status evaluation of an 800xA system. Its purpose is to maintain high system availability. Reports are stored and made available to the "My Control System" lifecycle management platform. In 2015, the company expects to integrate My Control System into its common customer platform, "My ABB." In addition to the more traditional local way of handling services, the benchmark and fingerprint services can be deployed by a remote solution called ServiceWatch. For on-site monitoring, the benchmark and fingerprint services can also utilize ServicePort.

Responding to the increasing cyber security risks, ABB recommends a defense-in-depth approach with multiple layers of protection placed throughout the control system to shield systems and data from threats. Current security updates on site are a key factor to reach the next level of cyber security. ABB has introduced a Security Update Services for System 800xA in which its Patch and Antivirus Upstream Servers distribute qualified and approved security updates automatically to customer sites.

Automation Sentinel, a subscription-based program, allows end users to monitor their control system versions and software status. According to the company, this enables the users to keep their current control systems up to date, while maintaining a flexible path forward to new technology and software. With the newest release of Automation Sentinel, ABB will introduce the new Maintain Basic subscription level to serve those customers that do not want any software maintenance or software updates distribution in their control systems lifecycle management program.

The company's third-party evolution programs are designed to help customers leverage much of their investments in existing automation assets by making it relatively simple and cost-effective for ABB clients to enhance current and legacy systems from all leading DCS vendors with ABB System 800xA functionality.

Conclusion

With ABB's expanded service offerings, the company clearly demonstrates that it is one of the leading service suppliers and the industry needs to take note. The automation market is a mature market saturated with capable equipment. Differentiation on a technical level is becoming more difficult. Service has often been overlooked and is ripe for innovation. Indeed, service tends to be an overlooked differentiator when choosing an automation supplier and end users would do well to consider service offerings as part of supplier evaluations.

While several suppliers have developed competitive service offerings recently, ABB clearly has developed a particularly well-thought-out, customer-centric services offering. ABB has continued developing and delivering its service offerings to match specific customer needs in a variety of industries.

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Keywords: ABB, Lifecycle Services, Remote Monitoring, ServicePort, ServicePoint, ServicePro, ServiceApps, Automation Sentinel.