Now serving the market with the combined software offerings of Schneider Electric and Invensys, Schneider Electric saw the need to make its software project services more efficient in light of growing requirements for increased multi-site, global software rollouts.
A key aspect of the Schneider Electric’s new project services offering is its Global Delivery Services organization, which supports the company’s Avantis, SimSci, Wonderware, Ampla, Citect, and OASyS DNA products. More than 870 professionals offer technical support, as well as project consulting and implementation services.
A key aspect of the Schneider Electric’s new project services offering is its Global Delivery Services organization, which supports the company’s Avantis, SimSci, Wonderware, Ampla, Citect, and OASyS DNA products. “We want to create game changing software,” said Rashesh Mody, senior vice president of software services and support, “and we will support that with our global services and practices, customer support, and ecosystem partners. Our Global Delivery Services currently has more than 870 employees and is growing rapidly with its offering of technical support, as well as project consulting and implementation services.”
Stan Brubaker, project manager for Schneider Electric, explained that the company’s end-to-end delivery operating model reaches from the project design and execution phases to building on success post implementation. The design phase includes due diligence, contract and commercial management, as well as early delivery involvement, Brubaker explained. Project execution focuses on delivering the “right processes, the right people, and the right tools,” he said. To deliver this, Schneider Electric uses a standard project execution methodology (InRIM), quality systems, global and regional governance structure, and global practices and competency development. Following implementation, Schneider Electric continues engagement with clients to review lessons learned and identify continuous improvement opportunities.
A unique aspect of Schneider Electric’s global project services is its system integrator partner program. Brubaker pointed to system integrator partners such as Autoware and its work with Barilla Pasta, Callisto Integration and its work with Nestle, and Avanceon and its work with Colgate, as prime examples of the types of services Schneider Electric can offer through its system integrators to industry on a global basis.
Schneider Electric’s Customer FIRST program for support and maintenance allows customers to select the level of support they need. Brubaker explained that services in this program range from online technical support and training seminars to version upgrades and revisions as well as license replacement.
Outlining the success of several companies that use Schneider Electric support services, Brubaker cited:
- Carlsberg Group and support around its MES software implementation that addresses corporate excellence programs on Lean, OEE and sustainability; reduced cost of regulatory compliance; reduction of inventory, energy costs, machine downtime and overtime and labor costs; and improving operator performance through real-time visibility into manufacturing KPIs.
- Merck and the support it needed around a weighing solution tied to recipe execution and its ERP system. Schneider Electric’s support program services and partners helped deliver the weighing solution across Merck—allowing for future extension into MES functionality, ensuring IP protection, and providing a real-time overview of production and inventory management.
- Helping Sempra Energy convert its LNG import terminal in Louisiana into an export terminal through a dynamic simulation study of the project. Using simulation, Schneider Electric was also able to help Sempra Energy identify mistakes in equipment design and control early in the process to reduce capital expenditures and commissioning time. Schneider Electric support also provided an engineering study to verify design integrity and safety.
- Playing an integral role in the launch of the Operational Excellence project at the New York City Department of Environmental Protection (NYCDEP) water utility. By deploying Schneider Electric’s Avantis software across nine sites, the department was able to comply with regulatory preventative maintenance plans and improve overall customer satisfaction by enabling field workers to access information on site with mobile devices to address problems directly.
