ExxonMobil Case Study
Global Location System (GLS) Provides Detailed Tracking of High Value Mobile Assets
When hurricane Katrina slammed ashore in August of 2005, the third-strongest storm on record in the U.S spawned record winds and tidal surges that would eventually claim the lives of 1,836 people and cause more than $81 billion in damage to the Louisiana and Mississippi gulf coast.
In addition to the human toll, the storm wreaked severe damage on a number of industries, including the petroleum industry that is vital to the Gulf Coast region and the lifeline of the nation’s economy. The fact that there was no power to pump gasoline at retail stations held up the region’s recovery, as fuel proved to be a key commodity in the clean-up efforts. While gas production recovered fairly quickly, the lack of electricity at retail stations meant that cleanup equipment could not be fueled, which delayed the removal of trees and debris, the clearing of roads and the restoration of power grids.
At international oil and gas giant ExxonMobil, planners learned valuable lessons from hurricane Katrina. In the aftermath of that storm, ExxonMobil redoubled hurricane preparedness efforts at the company’s operating facilities. Those plans include the pre-positioning of emergency electrical generators at key locations throughout the region to provide power in the event of a hurricane or other disaster. To secure those expensive generators, and to ensure they can be located and deployed quickly in an emergency, the company wanted a proven, high-tech system to tag, track and manage those vital assets.
ExxonMobil found that solution in an RFID-based system from Xterprise.
The Challenge
ExxonMobil is the world’s largest fuels refiner, with refining operations in more than 26 countries and 42,000 retail service stations in more than 100 countries. The company explores for, produces and sells crude oil, natural gas and petroleum products worldwide, so ExxonMobil needs reliable production and transportation systems in good times and bad times, and even when Mother Nature does her worst.
In the aftermath of hurricane Katrina, ExxonMobil made plans to
pre-position emergency electricity generators to deal with power disruptions at critical operations, including pipelines, terminals, refineries and certain retail service stations. The company planned to store 50 mobile generations at safe locations, but close enough to provide power to terminals and pipeline operations after a major store. Another 90 mobile generators were stored at four storage facilities strategically located throughout the Gulf Coast, and could be rushed to retail service stations that had lost power.
Those generators were expensive and easy to move, and so naturally presented a significant security and asset management challenge to ExxonMobil. Xterprise had previously delivered RFID-based automated compliance and related engineering solutions to ExxonMobil. So when the petroleum industry leader wanted real-time monitoring and security tracking for its pre-positioned generators, it called on the specialists at Xterprise.
ExxonMobil wanted a system that would allow them to “see” those vital assets remotely, to monitor their location and status on a global basis, and to allow authorized users to simply and easily access this inventory of fixed assets.
A High Definition Solution
ExxonMobil initially considered a traditional monitoring approach, in which LoJack™ technology communicates with readers or antennas on cell phone towers to track in-motion assets. But the LoJack™ system works primarily with specially equipped police scanners, and it is activated only when an asset has been reported stolen. Also, because cell phone towers were likely to be damaged or destroyed in a powerful hurricane, ExxonMobil wanted a more rugged and survivable asset tracking system infrastructure.
The solution was a satellite-based solution from Xterprise.
To provide reliable asset monitoring and tracking for ExxonMobil’s pre-positioned electric generators, Xterprise proposed a satellite-based global locator system (GLS). The Xterprise solution incorporated GLS tags to be mounted on each mobile generator and the software applications needed to capture the GLS-created data and present that information in a clear, easy-to-understand User Interface. Xterprise also provided installation, training and support services for this advanced asset tracking solution.
A proven leader in RFID supply chain solutions, Xterprise delivers a new class of process and execution applications designed to support the High Definition Enterprise™. Xterprise solutions combine Microsoft technology, continuous improvement and lean supply chain expertise and advanced RFID technologies to deliver previously unachievable levels of timeliness, resolution, adaption and integration.
Xterprise put an active tag on generators stored in ExxonMobil warehouses, and installed readers to note when those assets left those storage facilities. Those readers were connected to the ExxonMobil Local Area Network (LAN) or to the Internet, and the data collected was fed into the Clarity EAM asset tracking system.
When a generator leaves the ExxonMobil warehouse network, a satellite uplink attached to the asset establishes a connection to an orbiting satellite. Those uplinks provide spatial location information for each generator while it is in transit and while it is installed and working at a remote site. Data sent via this satellite link is routed to the Clarity EAM™ system, and includes the latitude and longitude coordinates and time readings from each device.
The Clarity EAM™ system translates that data into topographical maps showing the location and movement of all ExxonMobil emergency generators. That means ExxonMobil has near-instantaneous information on where each and every one of these key assets are at any time of the day or night and in any weather condition.
The Results
According to ExxonMobil, the satellite-based solution from Xterprise allows the company to monitor and secure these critical emergency generators. In fact, the same solution architecture is now being considered to track rail cars and in-transit equipment and materials. By reducing asset loss, these Xterprise solutions help make ExxonMobil more efficient and profitable.
The good news is: a major hurricane has not made landfall on the U.S. Gulf Coast since the deployment of this satellite-based asset tracking system. But if the need should arise, ExxonMobil will be ready.
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