How the rise of digital work will transform the chemicals industry

Posted: October 09, 2022

This year’s continuing energy crisis has reaffirmed the central and critical role of oil and gas in today’s energy mix and our daily lives. Energy supply crunches, particularly of natural gas, have had larger impacts, raising business costs significantly and disrupting supply chains of critical heavy industries such as manufacturing and steel. In Europe, these shortages are having a knock-on effect on the wider economy. These shortages come at a time when oil and gas companies are already facing numerous challenges, including market volatility, aging energy infrastructure, supply shortages, wage inflation, and turnover. Meanwhile, the energy transition accelerates. To navigate uncertainty, oil and gas companies are turning to digital technologies.

The oil and gas industry is no stranger to digital transformation. However, the World Economic Forum estimates that digitization can still unlock over $1 trillion of value for oil and gas. Unfortunately, Accenture research shows that a large part of the industry is struggling to see the expected returns or changes from its digital transformation efforts. Why? The oil and gas industry, and the wider energy sector, are not easy to digitize. Numerous stakeholders, including service companies, EPC, contracting firms, and others, create natural interdependencies that require many people to buy into a common vision. In addition, frequent commodity price changes make companies reluctant to commit the significant investment needed to properly implement IT initiatives.

Realizing value from digital infrastructure initiatives requires a holistic approach—and hinges on developing a new way of work where agility and connectivity are encouraged. Once companies get stakeholder buy-in and empower workers, adoption and collaboration become much easier. By giving employees the visibility they need, companies can capture knowledge from across the workforce, share best practices, and drive value from well to refinery. Some of the top companies in the world are already leveraging digital tools to do just that, including Shell, BP, DCP Midstream, and even national oil companies such as Petroleum Development Oman (PDO). These leaders are using cloud computing, digital twins, enterprise visualization, and others to drive efficiency and thrive in a changing energy environment.

Our white paper, Overcoming the odds: Accelerating digital transformation in the oil and gas industry, highlights how digital tools and technologies can help companies increase efficiency, agility, and profitability in uncertain markets. It will also outline some key digital initiatives your organization can take to thrive in a new future, and design a new, more collaborative way to work.

Are you ready to transform the way your teams work and start to unlock value? Download the white paper to learn more.