Category: Energy & Utilities

What is Digital Transformation in Energy & Utilities Industry?

According to a recent study, up to 80% of energy and utility IT expenditure is allotted to implementing software integration and data provision to automate operations like menial or repetitive tasks. Less than 20% of IT expense is used to provide innovative energy services. Sadly, a higher pace of advancement and a greater focus on digital strategies are required to be in the market and succeed. For enterprises in order to stay competitive in an industry bombarded by cutting-edge technology, new business models and a wider scope of innovation should be the topmost priority for energy and utility companies.

This turmoil is already visible in the industries globally. Several energy and utility startups have converted their businesses’ ecosystem by integrating unique and cutting-edge solutions to markets that are longing for change. Why is this happening and what are the indications for energy& utility companies and their future success? We have answered all your questions regarding Energy 4.0 and Digital Transformation in Energy & Utilities Industry in this document.

In most energy & utility companies, most of the IT effort is spent on maintaining integration and assuring data can work with crucial business systems. Whenever a new feature or asset is included in the system, the whole integration has to be repeated again and again for future change. It does not take an expert to see that this task is a gigantic waste of time, money, and energy. The resources allocated on continuous reintegration can be spent more efficiently on the technology research and development or updating the current business apps instead.

How can the energy and utility industry embrace digital transformation?

1. Concentrate on Artificial intelligence and Automation:

Artificial intelligence (AI) and automation are the two most important factors that can help energy and utility enterprises innovate and stay ahead of the competition curve. A Gartner survey suggests that 37% of companies started using AI in processes, while global spending in AI is anticipated to cross $77 billion in the coming years. Another Gartner survey also says that AI will drive most of the business decisions by 2022. Similarly, organizations should invest in AI and automation as they cannot afford to lose resources to tedious work.

In the energy and utility sector, this means automating data provisioning and integration so that IT teams can concentrate on strategic work like developing products and services that help companies advance digitally.

2. Make work fun for the technology department:

Today, developers need modern tools that help them with their responsibilities. A study conducted by GitLab found that 81% of participants in the technology sector say having the latest development tools is necessary. Another study by Stack Overflow further asserts the benefits of using modern tools in development work. What is the purpose of providing IT teams latest tools they need, one might wonder?

Young and enthusiastic IT professionals are hungry for proving themselves in the market and want to work with modern technologies such as AI, ML, and data analytics. Modern tools will not only look good on their resume but will also keep them motivated and enhance productivity. These tools also help IT teams significantly with higher-level development tasks.

3. IT teams can eliminate data provision tasks:

In order to achieve successful advancements, internal operations and processes should be changed by automating repetitive tasks and helping developers with the tools they require to work more efficiently. Why should energy & utility enterprises spend plenty of their resources on data provisioning when modern platforms can complete their tasks for them? Using these modern tools, your IT teams can work on a higher level and develop innovative solutions while they deal with data provisioning in the back. This converts work into fun for your IT teams.

Conclusion:

From AI to ML to remote sensing and robotics, digital technologies are capable of making the energy and utility sector more connected, sustainable, efficient. However, while the digital surge for oil and gas is inevitably shifting to AI and technology-driven landscape is also raising fears and questions over security and privacy risks. By building hybrid IT solutions for oil and gas, power plat, multi-state pipeline, and regional utility companies, KCS has gained a colossal amount of knowledge regarding the unique technological issues faced by the energy industry. Our team has successfully delivered projects to some of the utility giants globally that manufacture product required to power the towns and cities in which we live and work.