The adoption of AR in the oil and gas industry is in the introductory phase. AR can be integrated into various tasks being undertaken in the oil and gas industry. Oil and gas companies are increasingly collaborating with AR vendors, to develop customized tools. AR has the potential to become indispensable in oil and gas field activities due to its ability to deliver real-time information for taking prompt actions.

Scope

• It highlights various case studies of AR in oil and gas industry and its potential impact on oil and gas operations.
• It also discusses some of the prevailing trends relating to AR usage in the oil and gas industry.
• The report evaluates various of oil and gas companies which are adopting AR in their operations.

Reasons to Buy

• Impact of augmented reality in oil and gas industry
• Understand the key AR trends in the oil and gas industry
• Review of some of the case studies highlighting use of AR in oil and gas industry
• Identify and benchmark key oil and gas companies adopting AR

Key Topics Covered:

Executive Summary

• Impact on the oil and gas industry
• Case studies

Players

• Technology briefing

Trends

• Oil and gas trends
• Technology trends
• Media trends
• Macroeconomic trends
• Regulatory trends
• Industry analysis
• Market size and growth forecasts

AREA member Microsoft’s HoloLens has been significant in emphasising enterprise AR value. Key uses of AR applications include repair, maintenance, and equipment installation. Before the initial launch of HoloLens in 2016, Microsoft’s HoloLens Agency Readiness Program began. This involved AREA member Taqtile, an AR software developer.

CEO and Co-founder of Taqtile, Dirck Schou, has stated that 2.5 billion frontline workers use their hands on the job, and that this requires the help of AR technology. Taqtile’s goal was to “make everyone an expert” by implementing and scaling the HoloLens amongst frontline workers. Their use of the technology changes work and learning while maintaining safety. Taqtile’s enterprise platform, Manifest, captures and reuses knowledge for industrial workers in real time. Field-based experts can initially capture the knowledge, then engineers can refine, add to, or update it for field-based operators to access from Manifest, online and offline.

In addition to customers in the defense industry, Taqtile has many private sector customers, such as PBC Linear. The machine-bearing manufacturer has one of Northern Illinois’ largest machine shops, consisting of approximately 120 machinists. Due to a recent lack of vocational high school programs, a talent gap has formed. Therefore Beau Wileman, Manager of the “Factory of the Future” program at PBC, explored AR-based training with Taqtile’s technology.

Tim LeCrone, a long-standing manufacturing manager at PBC, has expressed enthusiasm about Taqtile. The process allows him to record himself teaching a typical task with 30 to 40 steps in about six hours, capable for training new employees. In six or seven months, PBC has created approximately 70 training templates with 30-40 steps each. This removes a great deal of stress from the user, as there are many tasks and order of operations to remember.

A recent engineering graduate at PBC, Sam Aluko, has used the Taqtile system to understand new machines. The technology enables him to go back through the steps if he doesn’t understand it properly, allowing him to learn at his own pace.

LeCrone claims that Taqtile and Manifest have improved quality of work, and enabled faster learning. Their talent issue has also largely been solved, as they now have a competitive advantage with using AR tech. New engineers enjoy working with AR, and are likely to stay in the job for longer. Supporting customers is another benefit of AR, as PBC are now occasionally supplying AR headsets along with products. This allows customers to create AR training modules themselves.

Using AR to maintain and diagnose machinery is now a much easier method of knowledge management. Industrial organisations can get up and running much faster than before with AR’s packaging of information.

Read the full article here. See Microsoft’s AREA member profile here, and Taqtile’s profile here.

L’Oréal have recently launched several AR projects, such as AR tech from ModiFace. This application connects customers with beauty experts for a tele-consultation, and also allows them to virtually try on makeup. HoloLens 2 was also utilised by L’Oréal last summer for troubleshooting and installing equipment with remote expert assistance. Users can see 3D images, instructions, and data in their real-world view. Digital objects can be manipulated using hand gestures, and headset-wearers can share their view via remote assistance software.

By 2025, the total AR market value is anticipated to grow to $140 billion, raised from around $10 billion in 2020. This includes:

• Hardware (including HoloLens and Glass)
• Software
• Content
• Advertising
• Platforms
• Licensing
• Connectivity

For AR smart glasses alone, total 2020 shipments reached around 1.8 million units, expected to increase to 27 million in 2025. This forecasted growth is attributed to long-term pandemic impact and technological advances.

In some sectors, increased AR demand is part of wider business digital transformation, alongside videoconferencing and cloud computing investments, as a result of the pandemic. CEO of AREA member Vuzix, Paul Travers, claims that this is only the beginning, and that they don’t see AR adoption slowing down. In the last quarter of 2020, Vuzix’s sales doubled compared to the same period in 2019, to over $4 million.

Additionally, Microsoft experienced a “44-fold rise” in HoloLens 2 remote assistance usage between January and December of 2020. Charlie Han, Principal Program Manager of Microsoft HoloLens, has stated that growth has increased rapidly in auto and semiconductor manufacturing for remote guidance on installations and complex tasks.

Last summer, Mercedes-Benz USA trained over 1200 automotive technicians on how to operate HoloLens 2 at all 383 US dealerships. Vice President of Customer Services at Mercedes-Benz USA, Christian Treiber, has said that previously, technicians could wait days for field service engineers to travel to them for help. Using the HoloLens 2 headset, 60% of complex problems can be solved within 24 hours. Technicians can now connect with specialists immediately, and share the same view to solve problems efficiently.

Since 2019, Mercedes-Benz had plans to deploy HoloLens 2 headsets to dealerships, but the increased value of the technology due to the pandemic accelerated this. However, Treiber acknowledges that it will be around three years before AR headsets are as widely accepted as other tools

Read the full article here.

A wide range of findings were included in the report, revealing leadership attitudes about AR, such as business needs and benefits, important capabilities, pace of adoption, expected investments, and challenges.

Key results from the survey include:

• 56% of participants reported growing AR applications, with 10% fully integrated
• 60% of organisations anticipate increasing AR investments at a significant rate
• From 2019 to 2020, Librestream saw customer AR license grow by 838%
• Over 40% of respondents said that the most important remote assistance features of AR are: device-agnostic software, low-bandwidth features, diagnostic tool support, and usage statistic analytics
• 45% of organisations associate AR as a selling point in third-party contractor negotiations
• 40% associate AR with improved technician productivity
• 38% associate AR with improved cost savings and ROI
• 37% associate AR with improved worker safety
• 34% associate AR with shorter training timelines

Jereme Pitts, COO of Librestream, is quoted to have said that despite remote assistance technology not being new, organisations are no longer using these tools for simple communication. Instead, they are harnessing the full power of AR-enables remote assistance platforms. This enhances service ROI, improves productivity, and even creates new revenue streams. The results demonstrate that AR should be deployed on an “enterprise-wide basis be executives”.

However, the most challenging factors of developing an AR strategy are perceived as follows:

• 53% consider collecting and implementing technician feedback to be the biggest challenge
• 50% consider managing the scaling of technology after a pilot
• 45% consider change management and training

Digital Content and Research Manager of WBR, Chris Rand, has stated that the results show the importance that organisations are acknowledging of AR integration into field services. The technology is being adopted at a fast rate, to solve a range of requirements.

The survey was carried out by WBR and commissioned by Librestream, and consisted of phone interviews with 100 US service organisation leaders in industries including:

• Manufacturing
• Energy
• Medical
• Automotive
• Aerospace
• Heavy equipment

Read the full article here, and download the full survey results here.

There are still some issues with perception and experience of working with the technology, with struggles for acceptance of VR in the workplace. However, Zain Jaffer, founder and CEO of Zain Ventures, believes that COVID-19 has accelerated the move towards immersive virtual experiences in the enterprise. He states that the adoption increase is a result of the following aspects:

• Affordability – VR hardware is now more affordable. Other technologies such as AI and machine learning allow for ease of VR software technology integration with minimal cost.
• Reducing ‘in person’ activity – VR has promising applications for team-building: training, upskilling, and re-skilling operations. The technology is considered equivalent to face-to-face training. VR training comes at a lower overall cost, and also reduces training time, which enables employees to spend more time on other necessary tasks.
• Intra-company engagement – VR boosts creativity and aids collaboration during remote work. Teams can visualise projects and share more detailed versions. Three-dimensional technology facilitates a better interface; companies using 3D instead of 2D achieve a 40% higher sales conversion rate.

Use Cases in Retail

CEO of Vertebrae, Vince Cacace, has been involved with the rise of AR over the last 10 years. He has stated that AR has received a large boost from the retail sector, especially with physical shops closing during the pandemic. As the technology improves, and as smartphone cameras detect greater distance and depth, it will become easier to place virtual objects in physical environments using AR.

Cacace is quoted to have said that 3D and AR technology can now benefit smaller brands and products, where it was initially used for large scale items.

Connecting Workers

Since COVID-19, AR and VR have changed the way people interact. It allows for people to connect with each other and collaborate in meetings. Employees from any part of the world can work on projects together and discuss ideas. Company designers can create 3D models and view them in VR to visualise scale and adapt it.

For travel applications, VR also allows customers to view desired hotels. This encourages bookings, in turn boosting revenue.

Training Remotely

VR functions as a digital workplace, acting as a training tool for new employees and remote workers. The immersive nature of the technology overcomes lack of engagement by removing distractions and providing instant feedback to the trainee. VR modules can use animations or video recordings to simulate scenarios for managers to practise in. Employees can also use VR for repeated practise due to lack of required supervision, which improves confidence.

According to Derek Belch, CEO of Strivr, the collaboration aspect of AR and VR may become essential to the digital workplace.

Read the full article here.

Here are the benefits discussed in the article:

1. Speed: real-time feedback leads to minimum machine downtime.

Quick responses to shop floor issues are required in many industries. Using smart glasses, experts can help in real-time by giving advice, zooming in on details, and asking certain tasks of the on-site operator. The real-time aspect of this allow for problem diagnosis, two people working on the same problem, and different solutions to be tried out. This in turn means minimum machine downtime and process delay, and shorter intervention time. As well as faster problem-solving, time is also gained from removing travel, as the expert no longer has to commute.

2. Efficiency: improved availability, performance and quality of industrial activities.

A key objective in any manufacturing company is improving productivity, especially those that adhere to strict principles. Smart glasses for remote assistance has been shown to improve business’s performance, availability, and quality rates:

• Performance – Performance rate represents speed losses. Overall productivity is supported by information accessibility, enabling workers to complete tasks correctly first time and efficiently resolve issues. Reducing rework needed has a positive impact on performance; correct machine setup is also vital for production speed.
• Availability – Availability rate represents downtime losses. By using smart glasses for remote assistance, technicians can improve quality and speed of maintenance and repair work. Complex changeovers and setups can be done quicker and with fewer mistakes, which limits the number of adjustments needed.
• Quality rates – Quality rate represents quality losses. Quality defects, complaints, claims, and returns can all result from lack of compliance with work procedures. Digital work instructions support standardised work, which reduced rework by improving first time setups and production activities.

3. Health and Safety: having both hands free to focus on the job.

Embedded cameras capture the wearer’s perspective during remote assistance, therefore the expert can share the exact same view. Hands-free operation also allows for greater safety. During complex maintenance tasks, technicians can focus on the job better with available hands and eyes fixed on the job.

4. Training and Knowledge Sharing: smart glasses shorten training time.

Due to retirement, a widening skills gap, and economic expansion, manufacturers are facing a skilled worker shortage. The most important positions (e.g. skilled operators, control engineers, technicians) also require the most training. Exacerbated by the pandemic, companies are struggling to train workers quickly enough. Smart glasses enable remote training with shorter training times, and a guarantee of getting work done correctly the first time. Knowledge can also be shared with younger workers or students using the technology.

Remote assistance using smart glasses has many benefits across a range of industries due to its numerous features. These advantages demonstrate the importance of digital transformation for enterprises.

Read the full article here, and see Iristick’s AREA member profile here.

Industry 4.0 has accelerated digital transformation strategies within businesses. Considerations that companies need to make with this include improvements and safety for workers. Wearable computing is said to have helped with this.

Augmented Reality is finally being recognised as having a critical role in digital transformation. Use cases mentioned in the article include:

• Training
• Simulation
• Oil & Gas workers
• Offshore work

AR wearables allow for full situational awareness, which is especially important in hazardous work environments. It enables workers to operate hands-free and without obstruction.

Other technologies, such as 5G, are also said to be on the rise for industrial deployment. Companies are rapidly digitising to maintain, and even optimise, essential operations. Wearable computing has become a necessity for workers to operate safely, and it also reduced the number of employees required for on-site work. This empowers workers to connect with experts and colleagues, ensuring business continuity. For example, experts can be contacted remotely and give guidance to on-site workers via a live video and audio feed. Time, cost, and environmental impact are all reduced as a result.

Safety is a priority for hazardous on-site environments such as those involving dangerous chemicals, radiation, and extreme temperatures. Wearable technology enables:

• Improved workforce capability
• Improved operational efficiency
• Optimal safety

The hands-free nature of wearable technology is vital for safety. For example, voice recognition allows wearables to operate in noisy industrial settings.

However, some challenges of deploying wearable tech are acknowledged in the article:

• Time-consuming setup and allowance for adjustments
• Understanding how to utilise the technology
• Change management

Despite these barriers, new use cases for the technology are constantly surfacing. One example is Vestas Wind Systems AS, a manufacturer and servicer of wind turbines. It deployed AR technology for its new product development platform, and was able to address the changing wind industry workforce. In the next decade, 30% of employees are set to retire, so wearable tech will help to facilitate knowledge transfer for new employees.

The increase of Industry 4.0 and IoT applications that integrate AR will fuel further adoption of wearable tech. Advancements in cloud services and widespread distribution of 5G will also accelerate digital transformation plans in the enterprise. Wearable technology is anticipated to become more commonplace in the industry, even becoming a necessity for a range of applications.

Data Visualization

With 65% of the global population being visual learners, it’s no wonder that data scientists devote 21% of their time making data visualizations.

Over 2.5 quintillion bytes of data are created daily. This includes streams of customer-related data. When data collection is efficient, businesses can use them to customize marketing campaigns and increase the customer’s lifetime value.

Virtual reality helps users appreciate data more in the following ways:

Unlimited presentation options

With VR, people can present data as a multi-dimensional model on a 3D canvas instead of 2D Excel sheets, pie charts, and bar graphs. Data becomes the environment that people can walk through.

Take the case of the Virtual Reality Network Visualizer developed at the University of Cambridge’s Institute for Manufacturing. The VR tool allows users to explore a company’s supply chain network using a VR headset and controllers.

Intuitive experience

Compared with 2D graphics, VR visualizations—such as the ones produced by LookVR—offer more dimensions such as lighting, haptics, and depth, plus a larger field of view. Moreover, users can observe changes in one variable and how it impacts other variables. This makes it easier for users to make connections or do cross-referencing.

Greater focus

With fewer distractions in a virtual reality setting, people can see patterns and trends faster. This can improve the speed by which they can identify and respond to risks and problems. Platforms like Virtualitics can allow e-commerce owners to identify clusters of similar customers and compare each cluster better by customizing the look of each data set according to color, size, and shape.

Overcoming Language Barriers

Language learning can be less intimidating and more immersive through virtual reality. For example, VirtualSpeech offers tutorials to non-English language speakers who need to learn English to be more competitive at work.

The VR app’s photo-realistic environments prepare users for actual business situations such as going to a job interview, leading team meetings, and delivering speeches. The app also analyzes speech so that users can gain instant feedback on their fluency, pacing, eye contact, and more.

Creating Common Spaces

Self-isolation and social distancing measures in the new normal will make VR tools necessary in collaborating for work or play. Users can benefit in the following ways:

Telepresence

Video calls via FaceTime and Zoom fail at giving a sense of “shared place.” On the other hand, virtual reality can provide room-scale and co-presence for organizing and staging virtual events, tours, onboarding, and training for the workplace.

Some companies like eXp Realty have gone to the extent of migrating their main offices to the virtual world. Employees download software developed by VirBELA onto their computers that allows them to attend meetings, share documents, and get technical support in eXp World.

Creativity

Virtual settings can be set up to be less intimidating than regular video conferences. Coupled with their new digital appearance, participants can feel freer to share creative ideas. Engineers at Hyundai and Kia are already using virtual reality for their car design evaluation system.

Sense of privacy

Representing one’s self through avatars can help users protect their identity and physical location when a meeting involves many people who may not know one another that closely.

Mixed Reality is a focus; a 2020 survey by Microsoft and the Harvard Business Review Analytic Services about MR across a range of industries is detailed. Here are some key results:

• Almost 90% of businesses are currently piloting, exploring, or deploying MR; a third of these are putting MR into production this year
• 68% of businesses believe MR is important for achieving strategic business goals
• 62% of businesses expect improved customer satisfaction from using MR
• 55% of businesses expect an efficient work process due to MR

Industries that have benefitted or have uses cases from MR mentioned include:

• Automotive
• Manufacturing
• Engineering
• Construction
• Communications
• Retail
• Education

The current remote state of working, along with the reduced cost of MR devices, has encouraged companies to innovate. AI and machine learning are also anticipated to bring great change to AR and VR in the enterprise with functions such as improved human motion. This will allow for better interaction, and deeper immersion. 5G can further provide better connectivity, lower latency, and higher bandwidth. This can enable AI functionality as well as faster data transfer speeds.

Immersive tech has had a massive impact on workplace events and conferences during the pandemic. Benefits of this include:

• Reduced travel expenses
• Greater meeting and interaction flexibility
• Real-time collaboration
• Allowing for failure and quick recovery with little/no cost

SaaS-based companies (such as AltSpaceVR and Spacial) that offer 3D work environments are now higher profile as a result. The Global HR Summit was even hosted on AltSpaceVR last fall. Oculus Quest headsets were shipped out to all 50 speakers by Bento HR and Genius Ventures, who noted that it was actually cheaper than shipping out speakers and providing accommodation.

MR has another use case for training. It enables trainees to interact with physical aspects of the work environment while the process remains virtualised. Entire processes and procedures can be simulated using a headset, while real-world instructions and 3D objects are overlaid. The benefits of this include:

• Provides stimulating engagement
• Cost efficient
• No need for travel, a trainer, practise equipment, or a training space
• Built-in return on investment

In 2018, Walmart acquired 17,000 Oculus Go headsets for training over 1 million employees. This initiative provided realistic, repeatable, and scalable content, and helped employees with learning and retaining information.

Certain challenges still affect AR, VR, and MR adoption: lack of user experience, lack of understanding capabilities, initial price of output, reluctance to take the leap. However, with 2021 predicted to be integral for immersive tech integration, four strategies to overcoming these challenges are outlined:

• Developing business models to manage and promote immersive tech investment
• Investing in a team to enable adoption
• Determining the correct use case to deliver lasting support and value
• Preparing IT infrastructure for integrating immersive tech

Read the full article here.

Many tech insiders and analysts believe the AR glasses will replace smartphones in the next 8-10 years.

MagicLeap, another AREA member, has now shifted its focus on selling AR glasses to industrial users.

Tech companies are exploring the technology’s business relevance and its role in the workforce enablement, customer experience and product enhancement.

AR technology holds tremendous promise for changing the way businesses operate.

Just a few of the kinds of benefits that businesses are experiencing are: contextualised information, increased workflow standardisation, hands-free assistance and documentation.

Read the full original article to find out more.