数字化转型已成为任何处理操作保持竞争力的必要性。但是，随着能源公司努力寻找运营工厂或田野所需的人才，可用的数字技术可能特别有助于缩小技能差距。
从许多角度来看，这么多公司面临的老龄化劳动力是一个挑战。一个是即将退休的人中的庞大人数。Schneider Electric软件高级副总裁Tobias Scheele说：“您的公司的钟形曲线非常集中并且很高。”“现在，随着这条钟形曲线的退休年龄，让现场人员有资格操作这些重要设备的现场面临巨大的挑战。”
The problem is exacerbated by a younger generation that doesn’t perceive manufacturing as cool. “It’s not like working for one of these big fancy computer companies,” Scheele says, noting that oil and gas companies have the added challenge of not being perceived as environmentally friendly. “But if you look at the biggest investment being made in renewable energies, it’s from the big oil and gas companies. It’s still a challenge to get new talent on board.”
退休劳动力的这种障碍加上雇用新人才的困难并不会很快消失。但是，制造商有几个角度可以帮助解决劳动力问题。
Scheele说：“没有一个魔术子弹或魔术技术领域。”“这是一个完整的旅程。这是多个项目的组合：技术，概念，培训，意识和自动化也是其中的一部分。”
Scheele建议考虑一系列注意事项：
Further automate training.In continuous process industries, operators do not get much hands-on experience dealing with startups, shut downs or catastrophes. Making sure personnel are capable when these events do occur could require a complete rethinking of training, Scheele says. Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) technologies could provide full-blown training of how a startup or shut down needs to be performed—and be done from more convenient locations, including home, he says.
安全is always objective No. 1, Scheele emphasizes. “Anything around training and operations, there is this boundary you’re not allowed to violate, which is safety. You need to make sure people are always being trained in operating in a safe envelope,” he says. “That’s what the whole training simulation is about—how to react in a real crisis, which you hopefully never want to happen. Fire, explosion, spill, toxic gas… You can train operators in a VR environment. You see how operators react, and get them trained on how to react better.”
需要最少人工干预的设计资产。Scheele说，首先，这个概念应该集中在非常严峻的环境上，例如海上石油钻机，有毒化学物质的环境或极端偏远的位置。他说：“从设计的角度来看，要考虑到您根本不想进行任何人类干预。”“这是我如何将整个价值链数字化的点？我想在哪里拥有手动或自动阀？我如何设计整个植物，以便可以远程操作或无需人工干预？”
这也可以追溯到Scheele对VR培训的第一个建议，因为当人们必须去这些位置时，他们将不太熟悉环境。他指出：“他们不是每天都在那里，也许他们继续轮换旋转，他们已经六个月没有去过那里，但是他们仍然需要知道一切在哪里。”“这也可能有助于吸引一组新的运营人员。这是非常高科技的，非常吸引人。”
将供应链分解为运营决策。Ask questions such as: What type of raw materials do you have available to process? What is your output? Where is it going? What is the potential demand? Always taking into account the economic profit, Scheele says, but to take it to the next level, factor in the previous point of minimal human intervention. “If you know which raw material would require human intervention on site,” he says, “you can decide: Do I want to go that route or not?”
Look at upgrading existing assets.确定您的优先事项的位置 - 该网站值得升级最新的数字技术，并且应该等待。Scheele认为，拥有最佳说明，程序和方法的网站可能会看到数字化最大的好处。
进行数字化转型的第一步之一是承认这将是具有挑战性的。Scheele说：“这不仅仅是一个单位的旁观演出。”“最高的需要充分意识；它需要在董事会级别进行讨论和商定。”
It also should not just be about addressing the aging workforce issue. It’s about making sure a company stays in operation and maintains competitive advantages in the marketplace.
Scheele说，当大型集成石油公司考虑进一步的自动化操作时，他们还应该牢记未来的技术进步 - 指出机器人技术要高到足以处理远程操作，并在现场进行无人机进行视觉检查。
