Emerson's Sam Thiara joins our continuing podcast series, 5 questions for an Emerson Expert. Sam works with manufacturers across the process industries to improve operational performance and achieve top quartile performance.

We'll have an in-depth podcast in the coming weeks with Sam's perspectives on how the Operational Certainty consultants on how they work with process manufacturers to achieve and sustain improved performance in safety, energy & emissions, production, and reliability.

 

https://www.emersonautomationexperts.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/5-Questions-Sam-Thiara.mp3
Transcript
Jim: Hi everybody. This is Jim Cahill, and welcome to another edition of the Emerson Automation Solutions podcast series. Today I'm joined by Sam Thiara and he's a business development manager for the Europe, Middle East, and Africa as part of the Operational Certainty Consulting Group, and Sam's specialty is in energy management. Welcome to the podcast, Sam.

Sam: Good morning, Jim. Welcome to you too.

Jim: Well, thank you very much. Can you give us a little bit of your background and kind of how you got into this Operational Certainty consulting?

Sam: Well, it all started when I was about 14 and 15 getting into electronics. It was a hobby of mine and buying experimental electronic equipment back in the early days of, I guess you can call it Radio Shack. We had a store chain called Tandy. And I just progressed into electronics into automation systems and into information systems and I focused on, if you like, technology and advanced applications for about 25 to 30 years and the various different application areas.

And energy was something I was interested in going back into the early '80s when we applied variables controls to phantom mixer controls. So, fan control, motor control, applications, and then it just sort of expanded to more energy management across the site and then as technology evolves, you then look at the application of energy management principles and practices to moving somebody from a very reactive to a proactive environment.

Jim: Well, that's a fascinating path because mine is somewhat similar starting with 150-in-one electronics kit from there to becoming an electrical engineer down the road. That's interesting to have those similarities. I guess when it comes to energy management, what are some common concerns you hear from the manufacturers and producers around it?

Sam: The biggest or the most significant feedback that we've received has been in customers actually have lost revenue because the incident of energy overconsumption in whatever process it is, it's only analyzed after the fact. That's one of the reasons we look at moving the client from reactive to a very proactive environment so they can capture any losses and identify any areas of waste as soon as they occur or even before they could possibly occur.

Jim: That's interesting that you kind of know you wasted it after the fact when you really can't do anything about it. What are some things that we can do either through our technologies or the expertise of the Operational Certainty Consultants bring?

Sam: Well, we bring probably a two-fold benefit. One is in having experienced engineers and consultants who have worked in very rigorous energy management app or the application of energy management practices and technologies into almost any industry. To support the expertise of the consultants, we also then have advanced applications that do allow you to move towards flat top quartile performance in the energy space. And, you know, recent studies have shown that you can experience anywhere between 3% and 5% improvement in earnings if you take a very proactive attitude to energy management.

Jim: And I was reading for some industries, energy consumption can be the largest part of the op...