India is significant growth market for Bentley Systems

  • Interviews
  • Aug 01,18
The engineering information technologies space has witnessed enormous changes in the last decade or so. For example, while 3D plant design systems were used only for large complex projects ten years back, today these are used in all projects.
India is significant growth market for Bentley Systems

The engineering information technologies space has witnessed enormous changes in the last decade or so. For example, while 3D plant design systems were used only for large complex projects ten years back, today these are used in all projects. Engineering technology (ET) significantly helps with convergence of IT & Operational Technology (OT) by providing the digital context, components and workflows to turn the mass of data into actionable intelligence, says Anne-Marie Walters, Global Marketing Director, Bentley Systems. In the conversation with Rakesh Rao, Walters, who was in India recently to attend ARC event in Bangalore, says that Indian companies are among the best in the world in adopting 3D for designing and engineering of all types of plants especially on smaller projects.
 
How is the present engineering world is different compared to in the past (may be 10 years ago)? What are the factors triggering these changes?
I started working with Bentley 14 years ago and have been engaged with engineering information technologies in the process industries now for more than 30 years. Over the past 10 years, I have seen the use of 3D plant design systems being used in all projects. Ten years ago, it was only used for large complex projects.
 
The use of these 3D models now to support construction for 4D (time) and 5D (cost) and the emergence of advanced work packing to drive engineering from construction and significantly reduce project schedules is another advancement. 
 
Finally, we have seen the valuable data generated during design being handed over for the benefit of operations and maintenance (O&M) especially through information transfer based on open standards. Many users have been able to successfully extract key information from closed and complex plant design solutions into asset management systems using iModels. Engineering data, beyond drawings, is a critical input to operational and maintenance decision making supporting moves to risk based maintenance and inspections. We are now seeing O&M information coming back into design and engineering to improve asset performance. Whereas engineering used to drive decision, construction and operations outcomes are driving engineering.
 
How is Bentley Systems catering to the needs of process, power and enterprises? 
Bentley provides a comprehensive suite of applications that span the lifecycle of the process, power and manufacturing industries from covering multidiscipline engineering design, through construction management to asset lifecycle information management, reliability and operational analytics for operations and maintenance. Leveraging a connected data environment, all Bentley applications share and leverage engineering information so that plant information is kept up to date and trusted for all stakeholders. This enables our users to reduce costs, compress project schedules, maintain regulatory compliance, optimise performance and improve safety for both projects and operations.
 
What was the rationale behind acquiring Synchro Software? Will this acquisition aid Bentley Systems' growth in India?
Bentley’s users of ConstructSIM has gained tremendous success and ROI through advanced work packaging (AWP) and 4D/5D approaches during the construction for the complex projects of the oil, gas & chemicals industries. ConstructSIM though is designed for very complex projects. Synchro has delivered similar benefits to all types of projects, large and small, and by incorporating Synchro 4D construction modeling through the ProjectWise connected data environment (CDE), infrastructure project delivery can now benefit from unprecedented digital workflow advancements.
 
For the first time, change synchronisation can assure that BIM (building information modeling) deliverables are updated for changes which occur during construction, aligning the as-designed, as-constructed, and as-operated digital engineering models to improve both project performance and asset performance. And, in particular for civil infrastructure projects, constructioneering digital workflows can automate direct relationships between the project’s digital engineering models, the continuously-surveyed digital context of site conditions before and during construction, and positioning devices controlling construction equipment and feeding back as-built conditions.
 
Why there is growing interest in asset management solutions in the process (including power) industries?
Ensuring you have accurate, complete engineering information is critical to the safe and efficient operation of a plant. Asset information management solutions ensure data is always up to date, change is managed and information is accessible to anyone who needs it. It is estimated that a person can spend up to 40 per cent of their time looking for the right information.
 
Having a good asset information management solution saves this time allowing the person to do their job rather than look and verify information. Also, increasingly, with the focus on big data and the possibilities for things like prescriptive maintenance and operational analytics can offer, having a solid asset information base is critical to good decision making and informing actionable intelligence.
 
According to you, what are emerging trends that will have profound impact on the future of engineering software industry
The biggest impact on the engineering software industry is the trend towards apps providing specific functionality for a task. Engineering software is typically delivered as heavy weight desktop applications linked to a central server for co-ordination. Increasingly portals are coming into the market that provide access data stored in the cloud for review and management users. We expect apps on our connected devices for things like emails, personal banking, communications, etc. Engineers will expect apps for specific functionality and this will have a huge impact on engineering software vendors Bentley with its CONNECT editions of its applications are already well down this path.
 
How is digitalization helping in integration of IT and OT?
Some people say digitalization is the convergence of OT and IT. At Bentley, we believe ET (engineering technology) significantly helps with OT/IT convergence by providing the digital context, components and workflows to turn the mass of data into actionable intelligence, ie what assets you actually have, what they are capable or designed to do, and what you really need to do. ET supports decision making.
 
Industry 4.0 is changing the manufacturing landscape. What opportunities are you looking at in this scenario?
Industry 4.0 is all about sensors on everything and increasing intelligence at the device level (this is also termed as OT). Bentley applications (especially the AssetWise suite) leverage the data that is coming from the shop floor devices to track performance in real-time and support decision making as described above. Working with Siemens especially, we are discovering new ways to innovate and deliver new solutions that help our users deliver new services.
 
You have travelled the world. Where does Indian process (including power) industries stand compared to other emerging countries in terms of present level of technology adoption & future potential?
Indian companies among the best in the world in adopting 3D for designing and engineering of all types of plants especially on smaller projects. However, using this information beyond engineering into construction and operations & maintenance is not widely adopted. It could be because owners are asking for drawing deliverables and are not aware of the potential benefits of data. 
 
Having said that I am encouraged by what the smaller oil companies based in India are doing order to manage costs since the price of oil remains low. Indian oil companies are trying to be innovative and I was impressed with what I saw at the ARC Forum this year with IT managers presenting alongside engineering and project managers, tackling issues together. You do not see this often in other parts of the world.
 
How do you see the potential of India for the growth?
India is a significant growth market for Bentley Systems. The number of infrastructure projects that are being executed today is pretty significant and each of these projects is mandating the use of digital technology to enable the delivery. 
 
Owners today have become conscientious of ensuring that their contractors are creating and transferring data in a digital handover that will help during the operation & maintenance phase of the asset. This has been a major shift in mindset that is driving the Indian market. Bentley’s Connected Data Environment that supports digital workflows and aligns with BIM/AIM standards continues to remain a major enabler allowing owners and contractors to collaborate seamlessly on projects and attain significant benefits in terms of time and cost savings. 
 

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