Emerson leads the way in sustainable industrial automation

As the world increasingly embraces the transformative power of automation and AI, Emerson, a global technology and engineering leader, is at the forefront of driving sustainable solutions for industries.

In a recent interview, Anil Ajith, vice president of strategic sales and global projects for the Middle East and Africa at Emerson, shared his insights on the company's vision and the future of industrial automation.

"Industrial AI, as we call it, is accelerating in a way that it benefits the industry and the entire planet," Ajith stated. "Emerson is very much on the right track, as we ensure that the world is safer, smarter and more sustainable."

At the heart of Emerson's approach is the belief that the right data and the right technology can unlock unprecedented efficiency and reliability for industrial operations.

Ajith emphasised the importance of having a robust data fabric and advanced analytics to provide actionable insights for process optimization.

“Having the right data and having the right technology gives you efficiency and reliability, and then you enhance it based on how you can compute that data. With AI you can prolong the life of an asset, or ensure that you are able to operate their assets to its optimum.”

Intelligent software

Emerson's vision of "Boundless Automation" takes this concept even further, aiming to create an enterprise-wide automation platform that is scalable, intelligent, and sustainable.

Ajith explained that this approach involves a software-defined, less hardware-dependent approach, enabling greater flexibility and scalability.

“Boundless helps you to get to that scale. And you're quantifying it from the intelligent field to the cloud. So bringing it all together to ensure that scalability factor is there.”

The Middle East market, particularly in countries like Saudi Arabia and the UAE, has been receptive to Emerson's technological advancements. Ajith acknowledged that while there are initial challenges, such as the fear of change and the need for proof of concept, the region is steadily embracing these transformative technologies.

Emerson's commitment to sustainability is also evident in its "greening by" initiative, which focuses on reducing the carbon footprint of its own operations and enabling its customers to achieve their sustainability goals. This includes technologies for carbon capture, energy management, and emissions reduction.

“Emerson is a pioneer in carbon capture, especially providing technologies that can accelerate carbon capture projects in our plants, in our facilities…We have technologies that can measure how much of emissions are going into the atmosphere. We can measure that and give that analytics back to the client to ensure that their facility is low carbon or zero carbon.”