ABB announced that launched ABB Ability, its portfolio of digital solutions. ABB Ability aims to create solutions and services that solve business problems and produce tangible business opportunities.
In particular, the portfolio helps users in utilities, industry, transport and infrastructure, to develop new processes and advance existing ones by optimizing planning and controls for real-time operations. The results can then be fed into control systems to improve key metrics such as factory uptime, speed and yield.
“As a pioneering technology leader in digital solutions, with an installed base of more than 70 million connected devices and 70,000 control systems, ABB is uniquely positioned to support its customers’ digital transformation,” said ABB CEO Ulrich Spiesshofer. “With ABB Ability, we are combining ABB’s entire portfolio of digital solutions and services. We are creating additional customer value by bringing together ABB’s domain expertise, advanced connectivity and the latest digital technologies. With this, our customers can achieve unprecedented improvements in operational performance and productivity.”
Digital offerings, provided by ABB Ability, include performance management solutions for asset-intensive industries; control systems for process industries; remote monitoring services for robots, motors and machinery; and control solutions for buildings, electric-vehicle charging networks and offshore platforms. Some of the offerings address energy management for data centers and navigation optimization for maritime shipping fleets, among others.
ABB Ability’s digital solutions and services are being developed and built on Microsoft’s leading Azure cloud platform, based on a strategic partnership with the software company.
“Building our solutions on the Azure platform means we can take advantage of all of its capabilities and add value with our domain-specific offering,” said ABB Chief Digital Officer Guido Jouret.
Among the new ABB Ability innovations showcased in Houston are:
- ABB Ability System 800xA – Select I/O, a new addition to System 800xA, is a redundant, Ethernet-based, single-channel I/O system. It supports ABB’s next-generation project execution model, Intelligent Projects, which offers a range of efficiency improvements for automation projects. It uses standardized cabinets that allow installers to digitally marshal signals instead of using labor-intensive marshalling panels. Loop checks can be done before the rest of the system is delivered, minimizing the impact of late changes and allowing for project tasks to be executed in parallel.
- ABB Ability Asset Health Center – Available since January 2017, it uses predictive and prescriptive analytics and customized models to identify and prioritize emerging maintenance needs, based on probability of failure and asset criticality.
- ABB Ability Collaborative Operations – This helps experts to work together across organization boundaries, using the same data and analytics platforms. It focuses on such outcomes as improving productivity, reducing equipment failures, lowering the cost of asset maintenance and transforming overall business performance. This is done while maximizing security and protecting data, people and assets at every level of integration.
- ABB Ability Digital Substation – The digital substation incorporates fiber optic current sensors and disconnecting circuit breakers to reduce maintenance requirements and the need for miles of conventional cabling. ABB Ability also combines the latest electrical gear with digital sensors and cloud computing, so that grid operators can make decisions based on comprehensive, up-to-the-moment information, while predictive algorithms can improve maintenance practices and asset management.
- ABB Ability Smart Sensor – Unveiled last year, it connects low-voltage electric motors to the Industrial Internet, allowing them to be monitored continuously. The solution, which can be easily affixed to a motor, transmits data on vibration, temperature, loads and power consumption to the cloud. Alerts are generated as soon as any of the parameters deviates from the norm, allowing the operator to take preventive action before the motor malfunctions. Early indications are that the smart sensor solution leads to a reduction in downtime of motors by up to 70 percent and extends their lifespan by up to 30 percent. Acting on the data to optimize the motor’s performance reduces energy consumption by as much as 10 percent.
Other solutions associated with ABB Ability are ABB Ability Asset Insight, ABB Ability Ellipse Enterprise Asset Management software, and the ABB Ability Data Center Automation infrastructure management software. These solutions aim to leverage the power of the digital revolution by enabling reduced maintenance costs, longer asset life, more efficient operations, reduced environmental impacts and improved worker safety.
ABB Ability launch is illustrated in the following video:
Source & Image credit: ABB
