Press Release


February 2009


ISO 15926 is the way forward


Open Standards (ISO 15926) will lead to increased competitiveness – reducing time and cost in both plant design and management, however, research shows there is still a long way to go in terms of awareness and education.


A recent market research study carried out by Business Advantage, examined the take-up and awareness levels of ISO 15926 (Industrial automation systems and integration – Integration of life-cycle data for process plants including oil and gas production facilities) within Europe, the Americas and Asia/Pacific.


Open Standard ISO 15926 reinforces the benefits of interoperability - the ability to effortlessly transfer data within and between software packages, such as plant design software. As awareness of ISO 15926 grows and uptake increases collaboration will become easier and time and cost savings are certain to follow.


There are two distinct audiences that are affected by the findings of this report, Owner/Operators and Engineering, Procurement and Construction Service Providers (EPCs). We share the key points from the research below.


Lack of interoperability costs owner/operators time and money and can compromise data integrity. A third of owner/operators (35%) claimed that using incompatible data or file formats had an impact on their business in terms of time and a further 13% reported monetary costs - 5% had issues concerning data loss. EPCs are also significantly affected by lack of interoperability, with 26% citing costs in terms of time and 13% monetary costs.


Even amongst owner/operators who believe they currently have interoperability satisfaction is not high (see attached chart). Only 18% are extremely/very satisfied, with 48% claiming to be ‘quite satisfied’. There is certainly considerable room for improvement in this area. EPCs are generally more satisfied (32% extremely/very satisfied), but 42% are still less than enthusiastic.


The vast majority of those surveyed considered interoperability to be very important – scoring 7.5 out of 10 on importance for owner/operators and 8 out of 10 for EPCs.


Awareness of ISO 15926 still needs increasing, but amongst those that are knowledgeable, significant numbers are very likely to consider an application based on an open standard like ISO 15926.


Our research showed that awareness of ISO 15926 was 43% amongst owner/operators, but only 30% amongst EPCs (see attached chart). However for owner/operators who were aware, 44% were extremely or very likely to consider an application based on ISO 15926. Even amongst EPCs this figure is 32%, indicating considerable interest in such an application.


Managing information across the lifecycle is a key issue for owner/operators as data is locked into proprietary design formats (see attached chart). The study showed 28% said they often/always experience problems and 50% said they occasionally experience problems.


In conclusion, those that are aware of ISO 15926 understand that it is the standard for data exchange and interoperability. The study shows that greater interoperability and increased usage of ISO 15926 will reduce costs and show significant ROI benefits, in the near future.


To download the research report please visit ISO 15926 Submit form


Source: This research is based on 179 telephone interviews with users of PDS/SmartPlant 3D and other engineering design software, within Europe, the Americas and Asia Pacific, between 20th October – 2nd December 2008.



Editor’s Notes:


About Business Advantage: Formed in 1992, Business Advantage is a B2B research, business development and marketing consulting practice operating in the global IT, Digital and Telecommunications sectors. Our team of specialist researchers has undertaken B2B research on a worldwide basis and has completed information and communication technology assignments in over 100 countries, spanning 5 continents. We provide a wide range of services to many leading international companies, including Hewlett Packard, IBM, Microsoft, Intel, Autodesk, Bentley Systems, PTC, Océ, Sony, BT, Xerox Engineering Systems, Siemens PLM and many others.


To arrange an interview with Sue Hannay, Research Services Director, Business Advantage please contact:

Loretta Taylor, Marketing Assistant, Email: loretta.taylor@business-advantage.com
David Eaton, Marketing Director, Email: david.eaton@business-advantage.com
Tel: +44 (0)1689 873636,
Web: www.business-advantage.com