EOS Technology presents opportunities in terms of asset management and predictive maintenance

In recent years there has been a trend towards oil companies having to manage an increasing number of fuel stations staffed by fewer and fewer people. A sizeable proportion of these fuel stations have now been automated as a result. If a pump develops a fault, then the fuel station operators receive a notification automatically, whereupon they can take the appropriate course of action immediately. The intelligent EOS Technology from Bever Innovations means this automation can now also be extended to encompass the Bever EOS LED lighting and Bever EOS pricing displays.

‘The unique thing about EOS is that this technology itself checks whether all the connected LED products are activated and properly functioning in good time’, says Erwin Dingemanse, Commercial Director of Bever Innovations. ‘If not, then a notification will automatically be sent to the Bever Innovations server, which is connected to the e-mail addresses of one or more contacts. It will then be possible for appropriate action to be taken here as well, thereby considerably improving visibility, safety and perception of safety. This technology is now in widespread use in industry and has proved highly successful. That said, it’s also ideal for the fuel retail market, especially in the case of fuel stations that are not staffed and managed 24/7.’ The last staff members often close the shop and head home after 9 p.m., leaving the automated night service to run the fuel station, he says. ‘If the lighting at the fuel station isn’t working properly, or isn’t working at all, there won’t be anyone there to notice this, particularly in the lighter evenings during the summer months. The customers will notice, though….’

Asset management for optimum customer experience

‘Major oil companies in particular, such as Shell and BP, have huge, rapidly changing networks’, states Rutger van Dierendonck, Technical Director of Bever Innovations. ‘New fuel stations are always being added or removed. Making it easy to monitor and manage these existing and new fuel stations at a glance is quite a challenge. Nevertheless, the need for this is significant as it will enable budgets to be planned even better and thus money to be spent even better. What’s more, proper asset management—including of the lighting and pricing displays—can vastly improve customers’ experience of the fuel station.’

Straightforward retrieval and relaying of data

In order to know what kind of maintenance and/or replacement you can expect over the next few weeks, months and even years, insight into the status of the LED products is indispensable, stresses Van Dierendonck. ‘EOS is the ideal way for us to home in on this. The smart technology allows all Bever EOS LED lighting and Bever EOS pricing displays on the site to communicate wirelessly. It also makes it straightforward for us to retrieve and relay the data from the LED products. Both to our own web portal and to the asset management system of our customers.’ Some of the data (number of burning hours, temperatures, light intensities, etc.) is stored in the LED products themselves and can easily be read out (in situ or otherwise) using a tablet or smartphone, he explains. ‘Anyone wishing to be able to also manage and control the LED luminaires and LED pricing displays remotely and through the Bever Innovations web portal or their own customer software will find it sufficient to add a single EOS Connected Bridge (gateway) with Internet connection for each fuel station.’

Possibilities in terms of predictive maintenance

Fuel station operators will automatically receive a notification in the event of faults or failure on the part of the LED lighting. ‘An automated notification will also be sent once the luminaires have reached the end of their technical lifespan (stated number of burning hours) and the light level has fallen below a certain (technically acceptable) floor limit’, says Dingemanse. ‘The same goes for anomalous temperatures and energy consumption, making predictive maintenance possible.’

In addition to asset management and predictive maintenance, Bever Innovations’ EOS Technology presents opportunities in terms of improving customer flows at fuel stations. What’s more, EOS makes it easy for operators to see what information is being displayed on the pricing displays and to check it. Using the information from the Point of Sale (POS) system, for instance, which is connected to the pricing displays via the EOS Technology.

Start straight away!

The EOS Technology is incorporated into the Bever EOS LED lighting products and Bever EOS pricing displays as standard. Companies installing these LED products at their fuel station would be well advised to start amassing data straight away, believes Van Dierendonck. ‘This will ensure that once they’re ready and willing to start data analysis, they’ll already have enough data at their disposal.’

Are you curious to see if asset management techniques at your petrol site can help your company save a substantial amount of money on maintenance? Check out our website or contact us for more information.