Monday, October 3, 2005

Guest blogger Jane Gerold, Editorial Content Director of Automation World from the Emerson Process Users Conference. The Look of a Leader "You are our rudder. Without our rudder, we could not have the look of a leader." With those words, John Berra, President of Emerson Process Management, opened the 2005 Emerson Global Users Exchange in Orlando on Monday. The event is breaking attendance records, registering 1,800 attendees-more than 20 percent better than the 2004 event-and consumes most of the real estate at the huge Orlando World Center Marriott Resort. Scott Pendegrass, Control Systems Engineer at Lyondell Chemical Company, is chairman of the Users Exchange board of directors, and encouraged attendees to choose from the more than 300 presented papers to improve their skills and update knowledge. Emerson Process Management must be doing something right-or it may be many things right. Berra projected sales for fiscal year 2005, which ended on Sept. 30, to be almost $4.2 billion, based on a quarterly growth rate of nearly 14 percent over fiscal 2004, which is considerably higher than the industry average. Emerson backs up that top-line growth with a bottom-line that's at an all time high and a sales order growth of 15 percent, according to Berra. "We are the most financially stable company in the process automation market," he claimed. "We are as positive and optimistic about the future as we have ever been." While Berra can talk the talk, the keynote address given by Bob Wojewodka, technology manager for The Lubrizol Corp., highlighted a company that knows how to walk the walk. Wojewodka's excellent presentation focused on how Lubrizol, a $4 billion producer of specialty chemicals, undertook a migration modernization initiative that coupled business objectives to production plans. The goal was to have full vertical and horizontal integration of data from the shop floor through the business layer to achieve operational excellence. Lubrizol standardized on Emerson's Delta V and PlantWeb platforms and is deploying advanced control and asset management strategies. Data is integrated horizontally across platforms to run the plant better, and integrated vertically to connect the plant floor to the ERP system. The company has completed 30 projects in the last two years, and has 30 more scheduled over the next two years. --Jane Gerold, reporting from Orlando 7:32:40 PM    comment []

Still blogging from the Invensys Users Conference. I have had several meetings with Invensys Vice President Peter Martin. He holds a Ph.D. in industrial engineering and has done a lot of research on how to measure asset performance in manufacturing. One conversation led to an article in Automation World. The reason for bringing this up is that Mike Caliel, president of Invensys Process Systems made a very specific point of talking about the company's upcoming focus on Asset Performance Management. I think that this is a good strategy for Invensys, and a great service to the industry if all users learn how to use financial metrics for both managing plants for profit and for better justification of automation projects. 4:24:52 PM    comment []

I'm not blogging live from the Invensys Users Conference at the George Brown Convention Center in Houston today. I draw the line for $24.95 per day wireless Internet access. I'm upset with the $9.95 per day in my hotel room (where I am now). Mike Caliel, president of Invensys Process Systems led the keynote with an articulate finesse of the London-spurred financial difficulties of the past by noting the comeback that the company has made over the past two years. Certainly an auditorium filled with customers is a testament to that. Caliel said that the company is focused and energized, as well as building on the technology innovations of the past couple of years. Interesting to see that he is focusing the company on industry solutions, moving from a company of disparate and seemingly unrelated products. Good strategy. As guest keynoter Gordon Bethune, retired CEO of Continental Airlines, would add--the proof is in the implementation. 11:42:14 AM    comment []