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A Trusted Advisor Cements Their Value During Project Startups
Engineering projects may take extended periods of time to develop and physically install, often with macro progress being tough to gauge on a day-to-day basis. These efforts come to a head with a flurry of activity in the final hours before “go live”. Tradesmen flutter about making final adjustments to installed bulk hardware and intricate instruments, electricians frantically make and test terminations, and supervising engineers and integrators follow about ensuring that checklist items are noted and addressed. These activities can resemble an orchestral presentation that might span multiple shifts for days and weeks on end. It is at this time that the systems integrator proves their value and clients learn that having a true trusted advisor is critically important to success.
There was a time where simple catch all language could be inserted into automation project contracts and a client could fairly expect an integrator to ensure that a system was complete. Language like “systems integrator must include all miscellaneous items required to make a complete system” would be included in specifications. This verbiage would cover small things like signal conditioning hardware and loop tuning labor and/or tools and it was reasonable to expect that the integrator could include “everything”. The definition of complete has changed considerably over the last decade. Factories today are far more complex, and the plant automation systems are interwoven into every part of many organizations. Protection language like those mentioned before would be wholly inadequate in covering the breadth of items that intermingle with the controls today. Furthermore, attempts to bind project contracts with far-reaching, boilerplate language would leave enormous gaps in functionality that would render most systems a shell of what is truly possible with modern technology.
ECS Solutions, Inc., (ECS) has built their firm on the guiding principle of trusted advisors and they provide a higher level of connectivity and guidance for their clients. Via longstanding relationships, ECS regularly shepherds organizations and facilities through extended, multi-phase projects. These partnerships frequently transcend the tenure of individuals within a client organization. This connectivity and continuity with ECS allow their clients to protect their investment in technology and ensure that a dedicated team of technical professionals is involved with input and guidance as new innovations are released and implemented within a site.
In addition to the Engineering Directors within ECS, who act as relationship coordinators with their closest customers, the company has structured itself to match the roles within projects and client sites to best support the effort. Programming specialists and user experience (UX) experts immerse themselves in the client’s desired operation so that the resultant system will perform up to operators’ expectations. Electrical specialists and project managers delve into the physical installation and provide support where higher end testing and validation is required. IT programming personnel at ECS bridge across both the engineering and IT teams to ensure that connectivity occurs at both the hardware and software levels while monitoring existing servers and networks for disruption. The linkage between factory floor automation and plant manufacturing systems (MES), enterprise planning (ERP), and logistics for both incoming ingredients and finished goods is often the basis for justification for projects from the outset and must be ensured. Cyber security experts ensure that everything is completed while maintaining the integrity of protective layers and protocols.
A relationship with any truly trusted advisor evolves organically. Confidence builds between the participants as the external advisor leverages their agnostic perspective to identify barriers and evaluate a range of potential solutions. They regularly contemplate the impact of items not even under consideration within the confines of a specific project. “A trusted advisor in the field of systems integration (SI) will be an insurance policy on projects”, states Randy Otto, president of ECS. “A high-quality SI on site can be the glue between the process design team, installation contractors, electricians, outside vendors, and more”, he continues. “Execution becomes less about what someone has captured in contracts and more about what it takes to truly bring complex, large-scale projects to fruition”.
ECS works to empower their entire team and that of the client. The ECS team learns that there are truly no “programming only” projects; all staff must develop the capacity to bring more to startups. As an extension, ECS recommends that clients have their personnel inserted into the project teams and efforts. “The more we can work with the client’s staff, effectively training them as a system is launched, the more they can handle items on their own following the completion of project activities. This is empowering for the client staff and reflects a different attitude from a vendor than one who wants to maximize customer containment”, concludes Otto.
This approach to both projects and relationships has served ECS and their clients quite well for decades. Clients regularly share that their experiences with the ECS team is different and reflects a lower level of risk and higher value than other integrator relationships. At ECS this result is pleasing as it directly reflects the mindset and values of the entire company and is evidence that the methods and mindset that they have cultivated have had the desired impact on those who have entrusted them to bring solutions.
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