Repost, with comments: Smart Water networks and the evolution of the water industry

http://www.metering.com/smart-water-networks-and-the-evolution-of-the-water-industry/

This article from Metering.com discusses the growing need for water distribution and improved management capabilities. As the population increases, and more remote areas are developed, smart water distribution will be key to cost-effectively and efficiently bring water services to these customers.

Invensys| Schneider Electric has partnered with leading engineering constructor firms to bring technology-based solutions to solve some of the pressing issues in water management. CH2M Hill is one of those companies.  They offer a cloud-based historian solution from Wonderware, Historian Online, coupled with Wonderware Smart Glance, a mobile reporting application, to collect, analyze, visualize and monitoring Key Performance Indicators for smart grid networks.

This solution will be detailed at an upcoming conference: The Automation Conference-- where on May 21, 2014 Dr. Raja Kadiyala of CH2M Hill will share their strategies and program for managing the smart water grid using the Wonderware Historian Online and SmartGlance solutions.  Join us!

PRIME Magazine, Spring 2014: Enterprise Social

Page 36 of PRIME Magazine's Spring 2014 issue features commentary from Invensys' Saadi Kermani on SmartGlance, a mobile application for remote monitoring and Key Performance Indicator analysis. As the enterprise becomes more "social," applications such as SmartGlance enable collaboration and operational fine tuning, as needed, where ever you are.  It's a productivity tool that supports all major platforms for true cross-enterprise applicability.

Cloud for Industry Eye Opener Seminar: An Excellent Time Was Had By All

Microsoft has 9 data centers worldwide for Azure hosting

We just kicked off the first of 3 FREE Eye Opener Seminars on the Cloud for Industry: Proof Points.  A packed room heard Jason Short/Microsoft, Paul Shelton & Saadi Kermani/Invensys and Mike West/Saugatuck Technologies speak on the readiness of the cloud, the applicability to industrial automation, proof points of use, and products available today.

Repost: 10 Cloud Solutions For Common Business Challenges, with comments

https://www.openforum.com/articles/10-cloud-solutions-for-common-business-challenges/?extlink=of-syndication-sb-p

Eye Opener Seminars

The cloud is becoming a pervasive delivery mechanism for software.  It offers cost-effective, easy to use, on-demand capabilities for scalability and usability.  The industrial automation industry has been slowly introduced to the cloud (Invensys was a leader in bringing cloud-based apps to market, partnering with Microsoft for their Azure platform) and after two years we are seeing not only interest, but demand, in solutions hosted on the cloud.

Why the cloud?  Firstly, because it's scalable.  You can start with one user, or a plant, and then scale on a cost-per-use basis.  Secondly, it's portable.  You bring your application with you, so productivity and uptime are enhanced.  Thirdly, it's light.  A browser is all you need.  And lastly, it's adaptable--it adjusts to your needs, you pay for only what you use, so access and performance are ensured.

Invensys now offers multiple cloud-based apps. Some are client-based, such as the Wonderware Workflow Mobile Client, others are fully cloud-enabled, such as the smart-device enabled reporting capabilities of SmartGlance.  Both offer as-you-need-it capabilities to bring either work tasks (Workflow) or reporting (SmartGlance) to users in an easy-to-use format.  Historian in the cloud and other applications will follow, as will services capabilities for application monitoring.

The cloud is now "real" and offers value to both the office worker, as well as the industrial worker.  More applications will leverage the cloud's "elasticity" and scalability, and it's the users that are the beneficiaries of this technology, as well as it should be.

Coca-Cola Swaziland uses Wonderware Solutions to Optimize Energy Usage and Reduce Costs

Recognizing the need for an effective energy management strategy, Coca-Cola Swaziland (Conco Ltd.) decided to investigate further and what they found surprised everyone.

While there are many definitions for energy management, they mostly focus on two aspects; maximizing profits or minimizing costs through lower energy consumption. However, it’s rare to see actual practical examples of how one actually goes about achieving these desirable goals and that’s because the solution is a great deal more complex than switching off something when it’s not in use.

Coca-Cola Swaziland  selected a range of software solutions from the Invensys Wonderware stable to help them manage energy consumption and costs. These solutions included the System Platform based on ArchestrA technology, Historian and Client, InTouch SCADA / HMI, Information Server, SmartGlance for mobile reporting and Wonderware’s Corporate Energy Management (CEM) package.
Read the entire story of their success here.

Repost: Mobile Tops Desktop for Social Sharing

http://www.emarketer.com/Article/Mobile-Tops-Desktop-Social-Sharing/1010091

Interesting study: more social sharing is done with mobile devices than with PC's.  This to me means a couple of things: people don't have the time to read, or process long articles, they like "sound bites" and a mobile device is perfect for that; they use any spare time to browse and share; and we, as marketers, have the responsibility to present information succinctly, and in formats that can take advantage of the mobile format.

For industrial automation products, this is a growing market segment: mobility. Providing not only the applications that take advantage of the portable form factor, but present information, and allow you to interact with the software, in a natural and intuitive manner.  In the past few years, we've seen products such as our SmartGlance mobile reporting, and IntelaTrac mobile work force management software, be widely adopted by industries such as food and beverage, oil and gas, and refining.  It helps people with productivity, collaboration, and information management, without being behind a desk.  It maps the way people work, which is a good thing.

Repost: Consumer App Wave Floods Business

http://mobileenterprise.edgl.com/top-stories/consumer-app-wave-floods-business87152?referaltype=newsletter

The impact of mobile on a workforce cannot be denied--getting information at the hands of workers, when they need it, in a format that's easy to digest, is driving the development of both IT policies and application consideration.  Invensys was one of the first industrial automation suppliers to offer  mobile-enabled reporting through its SmartGlance app.  Since then, we've followed with Workflow, Intelligence, and Operator Training. They all have a similar strategy--utilize the mobile form factor to provide key information to the user in a graphically rich form factor.

Is your company supporting your mobile needs? We're happy to help.

Top 5 Automation Applications Your Business Can’t Live Without

There’s a plethora of industrial software applications now available from a variety of vendors, both small, point-solutions based companies to the larger, all-in-one industrial automation vendors.  They offer everything from development environments through IT solutions.  But if you look at your critical needs, it comes down to using 5 applications:

Repost: Device Shipments Up 6% To 2.4B In 2013, Driven By Android Smartphones, Tablets Amid More PC Decline

http://techcrunch.com/2013/06/24/it-device-sales-to-rise-6-to-2-4b-in-2013-driven-by-android-tablets-smartphones-pcs-continue-decline/

If we as an industry aren't paying attention to the tremendous growth seen in the mobile device market, we'll miss one of the most important platform changes since the PC took hold.

In 2013, over 2.3 billion units are anticipated to be shipped.  By 2014, Gartner projects over 2.5 billion units--that's equal to 32% of the world's population!  Mobile access to data has now become part of our everyday life--from shopping to entertainment to work tasks.  The blending of our private and public lives centers on these devices that travel with us 24 x 7.

From an industrial software perspective, it's exciting and challenging. New formats mean reaching new customers, that may not have the legacy associated with PC-based systems.  So it gives us a chance to provide richer, more graphical applications.  The challenge, of course, is that it requires new products, to take advantage of the form factor and expected performance in a mobile device--intuitive, report-ready, simple to operate.

We've already seen startups such as Sarla (SmartGlance) and Transpara offering mobile device-enabled reporting.  But there's so much more!  MES, EMI,  HMI, the list goes on--all are using mobile as an important form factor to reach the increasingly mobile worker. 

Just Released: Wonderware Mobile Reporting Connector for SmartGlance

Wonderware Mobile Reporting Connector for SmartGlance

Updated software improves ease of use and configuration

Wonderware is pleased to announce a new Mobile Reporting Connector for its popular smart device-enabled reporting application, SmartGlance.  New features include enhanced security, such as SSO (Single Sign On), enriched reporting, and an expanded feature set for better ease of use.

The entire press release can be found here: http://iom.invensys.com/EN/Pages/IOM_NewsDetail.aspx?NewsID=558

IDC: Tablet shipments up 142% in Q1: What Does That Mean for Automation?

http://www.btobonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130503/WEB07/305039997/idc-tablet-shipments-up-142-in-q1&utm_source=daily&utm_medium=email&utm_content=editorial&utm_campaign=daily

 

We ran this ad a few months ago to demonstrate the adoption of mobile devices as a viewing agent on the plant floor.  Over the past year, the use for viewing, monitoring, and responding to tasks using mobile devices has surged.  The concern for BYOD (bringing your own device) in the plant has been replaced with an organized approach to procuring applications, from the business systems to the control systems, that can leverage the mobile platform.  Everything from databases to operations management applications are now running on mobile devices.

It's no surprise that the tablet would show greater growth--its ease of viewing and ability to present more information/data on the surface makes it a natural progression from the smaller form factor of the smart phone.  And since the majority of these devices are simply presentation layers, versus process control, the concern for remote access and security is diminished. 

We anticipate a continuing drive toward mobile devices for clients.  Invensys already has mobile support for Wonderware Intelligence, SimSci Esscor's EYESIM Immersive Virtual Reality training software; SmartGlance mobile reporting, Avantis Enterprise Asset Management, Wonderware Workflow...the list goes on.  It's in direct response to our customers that are looking for easier, more cost-effective ways of using our software. 

We'd like to hear from you--are you using innovative ways to integrate mobile technology into your plants?  Email me at maryanne.steidinger@invensys.com.

SmartGlance-iPad Mini Giveaway !!

 

• Subscribe now & get an iPad Mini


• Offer valid till end of june


• On minimum 10 Device pack.


• Till supplies last.


• To learn more, contact us at sales@smartglance.com

Apps, Cloud Top Mobile Priorities (Yankee Group)

http://mobileenterprise.edgl.com/top-stories/cloud-enables-enterprise-apps86081?referaltype=newsletter

Yankee Group tells us that mobile is becoming an IT platform of choice for both user interface as well as infrastructure.  Certainly, we at Invensys have been taking advantage of this platform for well over two years now.  Starting with our core mobile-workforce enabled product, IntelaTrac, we've developed reporting, training and maintenance applications from SmartGlance, Intelligence, SimSci-Esscor EYESIM and Avantis to have mobile components.  The boost in workforce productivity is evident, but even more so, it's the training, the familiarity in user interface and the intuitiveness of the device that are pushing development of these applications forward.

What about your company?  Are you taking advantage of these new form factors? We'd like to hear from you!

SmartGlance now supports intrinsically safe devices!

by Saadi Kermani, Invensys Product Manager
Are you a user that requires mobile devices to operate under harsh conditions, or do you need to comply with strict electrical component safety regulations? 

SmartGlance now supports many varieties of instrinsically safe devices:

• MIL-STD-810G Tested
• IP68 dustproof and waterproof
• Intrinsically Safe (ATEX for EU)
• CSA Class 1 Division 2 compliant
• NEMA Enclosures

Repost: Mobile users deposit more than $40B in checks via smartphones, tablets

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/mobile-users-deposit-over-40-billion-in-checks-via-mobile-mitek

When we first started talking about the cloud, we looked at the adoption of smart phones and tablets to do the simple, every day tasks that people have--and certainly, doing banking is an indication of the willingness of people to use new technology in labor-saving ways. 

ARC World Forum: A Great Time for Industry

Invensys was proud to participate in the 17th Annual ARC Advisory Group World Industry Forum, February 11-14 in Orlando, FL.  I personally was involved in three sessions: a cloud in manufacturing session (along with our customer from General Mills, who spoke on their use of SmartGlance mobile reporting); a session on operator training simulation, with our customer from the Salt River Project, and a session on social media.

Pinto Prognostications 2013 | Automation World

Some interesting  predictions from industry notable Jim Pinto.  Certainly, Invensys' foray into smart device-enabled mobile solutions (such as SmartGlance), cloud computing (tiered Historian, mobile reporting, and cloud-enabled BPM) are tangible deliverables that reinforce Jim's position. Pinto Prognostications 2013 | Automation World