• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer
Epsis

Epsis

We care about tomorrows work

  • Services
    • Digital maturity assessment
    • Working Virtual in Operation Centers
    • Integrated Operation center initiative
  • Product
  • Resources
  • About us
  • Contact
  • Investor
    • Why Invest in Epsis technology
    • Corporate Governance
    • Buy shares
  • Sustainability
  • nb_NO

Virtual operations centers

Successful Pilot for Virtual Operation Rooms

June 1, 2023 By epsis

Epsis Virtual operations centers

Reporting on a successful pilot for Virtual Operating Room

In November 2022, Epsis was awarded a pilot within drilling and wells in Equinor, where we were to investigate the opportunities of developing a Virtual Operation Room (VOR) within drilling.

The title was “From physical to virtual operating rooms” (Equinor awarded Epsis a pilot project – Epsis). The project aimed to create a scalable solution. Virtually enabling situational awareness and interaction as if you were together in a physical space. We have worked from concept development to product development and testing. Everything was done in collaboration with Sekal, Odfjell, SLB, and Equinor at Deepsea Aberdeen’s drilling rig.

What have we done?

In the first part of the pilot, a feasibility and requirements analysis was carried out with crucial operational personnel. We then narrowed it down to specific focus areas for the pilot. In addition, the project-initiated work with IT across all the companies to open up Microsoft Teams functionality that makes collaborating easier. Enabling this functionality was essential. It created a solution with different functionality to help in day-to-day operations. We tested the functionality and corrected errors. On 29 March, the solution went live. It happened at the same time as essential drilling operations were underway at Deepsea Aberdeen.

In sum:

  • We have designed a virtual room—a “room” where the team could quickly access all tools and information systems.
  • We have established a secure area for sharing information across companies and roles.
  • Additionally, “the room” provides functionality for effective dialogue about various operational tasks and questions.

The solution combines new functionality in MS Teams – Shared channels and Epsis’ product Enify. We have collaborated closely with the customer, and the users’ needs have played a decisive role, involving users from both onshore and offshore teams.

We have collaborated with a forward-leaning team from various companies who want to simplify the operations. In the pilot, we have supported meetings / synchronous interaction. But a virtual space must facilitate asynchronous interaction where everyone can inform and contribute at the right time. Such an environment can reduce the time spent searching for the right resources and make information available for a specific task when needed. It allows sharing information across companies in a secure area accessible to everyone, rather than sending large amounts of attachments by e-mail.
We are incredibly proud of what the team across such large companies has achieved so quickly, says Jan-Erik Nordtvedt, Epsis’ project manager in the VOR Pilot.

What has the team achieved?

  • Carried out a pilot that has illustrated some of the possibilities, utilizing existing technologies
  • Together, we have established an easily scalable pilot
  • We have tested the solution operationally, with positive feedback

Work is now underway to look at scaling the project. The tested solution could be the first step in creating a standard for Virtual Operating Rooms. A standard that is quickly scaled and makes it possible to onboard and train personnel across different operations rapidly.

Epsis is proud to have taken part in this pilot – it is motivating to help create solutions for the “sharp end” in operations.

Go back to Resources

Contact us

Let’s talk.

We would value learning about you and sharing some experiences!

Filed Under: Digital Operation, News, Virtual operations centers

Embracing the Virtual-First Approach for Your Organization’s Operations Center

March 22, 2023 By epsis

Epsis Virtual operations centers

Embracing the Virtual-First Approach for Your Organization’s Operations Center

Organizations are finding new and innovative ways to streamline their operations as the world becomes increasingly digital. One approach gaining popularity is the concept of the “Virtual-First Approach.” In that approach, the focus is on how the collaboration flows and how we execute our daily operations. It focuses on “building” a virtual Operation Center environment first rather than a physical one.

Later, teams may want to develop one or more highly targeted physical aspects of the operations center. These centers are built based on actual feedback on the operational needs and the organization’s priorities. These are very different from the initial thinking. The organization realizes the benefits a “virtual-first” approach provides.

In this article, we’ll explore the benefits of this approach and provide instructions on how to implement it in your organization.

 The Virtual-First Approach for Operation Centers

Traditionally, organizations have built operation centers in the “real” world. They built them in dedicated office spaces first. Being part of numerous Operation Center projects, it is our experience that their overarching idea was to:

  • Get people together in the same physical area,
  • Break down the “silos” between disciplines, and
  • Improve team collaboration, and foster continuous improvement.

Organizations invest in real estate, design the layout, and build the infrastructure to support the operations when making centers.

This approach is often expensive and unnecessarily time-consuming in the more modern world. Massively improved collaboration tools have increased in recent years. The new collaboration tools have features to support better remote working and blended workforces of the modern work environment, including;  remote working and shift changes that have always been a core focus of operations center capabilies.

As these digital capabilities increase daily, it makes sense to take advantage of them. This digital capability provides a high probability for new opportunities to improve collaboration and operations. Virtually changing ways of working hold the promise of impactful changes to the operations,  minimizing disruption to operations. In contrast, changing the physical space will always disturb and may well disrupt operations.

Creating a Virtual Environment

With the virtual-first approach, organizations create a virtual environment focusing on the digital side of operations, concentrating on the performance of daily activities and how people collaborate. You can often create a virtual environment from your existing technology stack to support effective communications, information provisioning, and sharing, minimizing user training and support overheads.

Once the virtual environment is up and running, it can be tested in operations and optimized. The team can then assess weaknesses that physically co-located people can only overcome – this then becomes the scope for a “real-world” operations center, more focused on a known core need rather than a “best guess.”

In many cases, a virtual center will suffice. However, having people in the same physical space over time is sometimes a clear benefit. Even in cases where you establish a physical center, the virtual one will live on, as you are very likely to have team members that are not present in the physical center yet are essential to include in daily operations.

Benefits of the Virtual-First Approach

The virtual-first approach offers several benefits over the traditional method. Firstly, it is cost-effective. Creating a virtual environment is significantly cheaper than building a physical space. Organizations can save money on construction, infrastructure, A/V equipment, and labor cost.

Secondly, the virtual-first approach is time-efficient. Virtual environments can be created in weeks, while physical spaces take several months (if not longer) to build. It allows organizations to get their improved operations up and running much more quickly and start harvesting the value in such a way as to conduct the operations months earlier than with the traditional approach.

Thirdly, the virtual-first approach allows for greater flexibility and adaptability. Once a physical space is built, making changes is difficult and expensive.

In contrast, virtual environments can be effortlessly modified and updated to meet changing business needs and include new technology available at an ever-increasing pace within a controlled space that maintains focus on daily operations. It allows organizations to adapt quickly to changing market conditions and stay competitive.

Implementing the Virtual-First Approach

Implementing the virtual-first approach is about something other than operations centers. It is all about improving operations and establishing a culture of continuous improvement in your organization. Typically, we seek to develop these through an operations center initiative in the first place.

So, Virtual-First = Operations-First.

Implementing these projects within a live operations environment can feel like changing a plane’s engine in mid-air. It is challenging to do and fraught with new challenges. In operational businesses, we need to ensure that the operation can continue undisturbed while being improved. Here are a few key steps:

  • Select a platform for collaboration, communication, information storage, and sharing that will be available for all parties involved in operations.
  • Select a representative part of the operations and pilot the new working method operationally. Observe, implement, reflect, learn, change, and continuously improve until you feel good about the result.
  • Scale by incorporating additional focus areas of the operations following an agile implementation strategy until done.
  • Assess the needs for any physical space, and if necessary, create one that meets the organization’s needs.

Conclusion

The virtual-first approach to building operation centers is a cost-effective, time-efficient, and flexible approach that can help organizations streamline their operations. By creating a virtual environment first, organizations can test and optimize their operations before any physical construction occurs. It allows them to save money, time, and resources and quickly adapt to changing market conditions. The virtual-first approach is worth exploring if you’re considering building a new operation center; it may be all you need.

Go back to Resources

Contact us

Let’s talk.

We would value learning about you and sharing some experiences!

JEN-1-500x333

Filed Under: Digital Operation, News, Operations Center, Virtual operations centers

Virtual Operations Centers

July 1, 2022 By epsis

Epsis Virtual operations centers

Virtual Operations Centers

What is a Virtual Operations Center (VOC)?

It is an Operations Center whose purpose is to support various parts of your company’s operative activities. The fact that it is virtual implies that personnel can work from different locations and connect virtually instead of meeting in a dedicated space (a meeting room or classical operations center facility). The VOC is a next-generation operations center designed to support critical operational functions across your company. Unlike traditional centers, the VOC breaks down physical barriers, allowing experts and teams to work virtually from anywhere, fostering efficient collaboration while maintaining real-time situational awareness.

Read more about the solution

Empowering Seamless Operations Anywhere

The Virtual Operations Center (VOC) is a state-of-the-art solution that empowers remote teams to collaborate seamlessly, make informed decisions, and achieve real-time situational awareness, replicating the experience of being physically present in the same room. By implementing the VOC, your organization can revolutionize its operations and thrive, overcoming geographical limitations and unlocking new levels of efficiency and effectiveness.

The VOC reshapes the way work is structured and executed. With a virtual setup, your personnel can connect and communicate digitally, no matter their location or affiliation. By leveraging state-of-the-art technology, the VOC ensures that everyone gains collective awareness, enabling efficient decision-making and coordinated actions.

Key Benefits of the VOC:

Flexibility and Scalability: The VOC adapts to your organization’s evolving needs, seamlessly accommodating changes in team size, locations, and partnerships.

Enhanced Efficiency: By breaking down geographical constraints, the VOC optimizes resource utilization and promotes streamlined operations, resulting in increased productivity.

Real-Time Situational Awareness: Personnel can access accurate and up-to-date information, monitor multiple data sources, and promptly respond to incidents or changing conditions.

Collaborative Excellence: The VOC fosters effective teamwork and information sharing through advanced communication tools, enabling remote experts to collaborate seamlessly.

Expert Partnership with Epsis: As a trusted partner, Epsis specializes in VOC implementation, providing comprehensive solutions tailored to your specific requirements. With a proven track record, Epsis ensures successful change management and efficient project execution.

Read more about Enhancing Efficiency and Decision-Making: Key Aspects of a Virtual Operation Center (VOC)

Unlock the Power of the VOC with Epsis

At Epsis, we understand the challenges and opportunities of creating a Virtual Operations Center. With our expertise and innovative Enify solution, we empower organizations to build custom VOCs that enable seamless remote collaboration, real-time decision-making, and optimal operational performance.

Take the first step towards revolutionizing your operations. Partner with Epsis to create a Virtual Operations Center that empowers your teams and drives success, regardless of physical boundaries.

Contact us today to learn how Epsis can help you establish a Virtual Operations Center tailored to your unique needs. Transform your operations, empower remote teams, and thrive in an ever-connected world.

Filed Under: Equinor, News, Operations Center, Virtual operations centers

Successful innovation project: Virtual operations center

July 3, 2021 By epsis

Epsis Virtual operations centers

Successful innovation project: Virtual operations center

Meeting virtually became a real problem overnight when Covid-19 hit us all. Epsis together with Equinor, Woodside and with solid support from Innovation Norway wanted to take a closer look at the problem; – “How to create good solutions for integrated teams who work from different locations and meet in a virtual space to ensure a good understanding of the situation and operations.”  The Virtual Operations Center concept was born

Operations center environments are often characterized by the following:

Shift work
24/7 operation
A lot of information to process
Several operations to be followed up more or less simultaneously
Switch between different tasks (analysis, monitoring, project and events)

Throughout the project, together with operative personnel, we have looked at the way of working in various centers (Emergency, Subsea, Logistics, drilling and well, geo operations and telecommunications). Furthermore, we have looked at requirements for further development of Epsis’ software system to be able to support operations regardless of location. The software has been developed based on the needs of operative personnel who work in and in connection with the centers.

Challenges: lack of digital effectiveness and structure

    70+ applications are used daily in medium-sized organizations

  • Workers switch between tasks 20+ times a day
  • Daily work consists of several interruptions from various technologies and through unstructured collaboration
  • The number of available screens is challenging when gaining situational awareness
  • Time is valuable, and wastes of time are notable

The project needs have resulted in the following functional areas in the application:

1. Screen control

The number of screens and screen layouts vary greatly, and in the centers with large screen walls, managing information takes time. It is therefore useful to have an application to manage this

2. Information collections

The number of applications and clicks within various applications to find relevant information for managing a task or a facility is time-consuming. Remembering where things are located/long paths means that you sometimes do not retrieve relevant information from one system or that you store copies locally. It saves time for employees to have one application to go to to find everything they need across documents, processes, tasks and applications

3. Task switching

The everyday working life of these operational environments is made up of structured tasks and more event-oriented tasks that occasionally interrupt a structured task. It takes time to find focus between tasks, and it takes time to find the information you need to perform different types of tasks. It is useful to have a system where everything you need to perform a task is available.

4. Shared understanding of the situation

Everyday work consists of ensuring that everyone who works together can quickly achieve an equal understanding of the situation for various tasks and events. For this, you would like to have environments with shared screens and of course the employees’ own work area. For this, it can be useful to be able to share more than one information element and, not least, that the information that belongs together is placed on the screen surfaces so that it is easy for the recipients to absorb. Enify can help with this.

Result

Find relevant information – across systems
Find information and quickly change the focus – easy to switch between tasks.
Sharing information – sharing sets of links/information
Have one system for navigating many – with a single keystroke
Smart multitasking – Dividing users screens into layouts allows one to work with several applications simultaneously
Always have the same work surface – no matter where you log on from

  1. One team saved 30 min per day.
  2. One team managed to keep the operation running 100% when they had to close the center and move to home office.
  3. The cost of building a virtual operation center vs. a physical one is much more affordable.

Contact us

Get in touch, to know more.

We are here to help you succeed!

Filed Under: News, Virtual operations centers

Footer

Company

About

Privacy Policy

Cookie Policy

Terms and conditions

 

Phone: +47 55 92 57 50

Email: post@epsis.com

 

Product

Enify

Follow us

LinkedIn 
Facebook
Instagram

Resources

Download Papers

Webinars

© Epsis