Role of Asset Management in the Utilities Industry

Global digital adoption forces companies to manage their data and maintain security through effective asset management solutions.

FREMONT, CA: Research shows that the global accumulation of IT assets as companies adopt digital solutions is affecting the utility industry. Power companies should have frameworks for managing digital and physical assets as they move to use more renewable energy sources. Managing and integrating newer, more diverse assets with an aging set of existing assets will be more challenging. Increasing security, resilience, and reliability while switching to cleaner energy sources is challenging. This will require companies to develop comprehensive digital strategies that include robust data governance and cybersecurity rather than traditional asset management.

Asset management: Most electricity providers still need to take a holistic approach to digital transformation. Many tools and technologies have been developed to manage digital assets as they have increased. Smart sensors are used to gather metrics, communications technologies are used to transfer data more quickly, and artificial intelligence is used to predict future behavior. Digital technologies manage assets effectively and realistically. Enhanced asset management can boost operational efficiencies, save costs, extend the life of assets, improve reliability, and enhance safety.

Framework for Asset Management: Prioritizing digital asset management is challenging. The threat of hurricanes and natural disasters is growing, and public health and supply challenges are mounting. Assets are aging, cyber threats are rising, physical threats are becoming more prevalent, and regulatory oversight and mandates are increasing. Renewable energy sources are becoming more widely used, resulting in new technologies that complicate the management of IT assets. Technology can help maintain IT assets used in power generation, especially as more providers integrate cleaner energy sources, such as wind and solar.

Power Grid: Managing IT assets is essential to maintaining digital assets and ensuring the power grid's reliability. The power transmission and distribution system presents challenging management hurdles, and mismanagement of the power grid results in considerable losses for the utility industry. Advanced monitoring and inspection technologies help ensure reliability, enhance resilience, and reduce costs through digital asset management.