Obsolescence management is the process of implementing proactive maintenance strategies to manage future hardware and software to mitigate the risks posed by obsolescence. Key to a successful management strategy is reducing the time the system is exposed and managing all associated risks.
- Identifying hardware and software, which is approaching obsolescence as early as possible to make informed decisions.
- Ensuring a robust plan is in place to replace or ‘migrate’ components in a controlled and timely manner whilst maintaining business continuity and mitigating risk to operations.
Why is obsolescence important for a metering control system?
Obsolescence management covers several important factors:
- Operating system software:
- Where software patches are no longer released this can leave systems exposed to security vulnerabilities.
- Drivers are no longer available for current hardware.
- 3rd party software applications:
- Where software patches are no longer released this can leave systems exposed to security vulnerabilities.
- Limited support for modifications by the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM).
- Server, PC, flow computer and other system hardware:
- Older hardware can also be more costly to maintain due to the decreasing amounts of spare parts available, increasing time exposed to failure.
- Compatibility issues can arise where trying to connect newer equipment – communication protocols, etc.
- Any single point of failure can lead to a complete loss of metering for an extended period until replacement hardware is sourced, and re-engineering is carried out.
We understand that customers need to strike a balance between maintaining systems and managing risk whilst sticking to tight budgets. No matter the size of the system, we are here to help.
How can we help with obsolescence management?
Swinton Technology helps customers across the globe manage obsolescence strategies on their metering computer systems with great success. Our support contracts include both basic and enhanced obsolescence reporting for your system(s).
The basic report details the status of key hardware and software components within the metering system and gives advanced warning of impending obsolescence, this covers the important ‘time of exposure’ element of obsolescence management and ensures action plans can be devised by the customer to mitigate risk.
The enhanced report carries on from the ‘basic’ offering, covering all equipment within the metering computer system and then recommends the most appropriate risk mitigation approach including:
- Identification of critical system components
- Early procurement of spares (last time to buy from OEM)
- Phased migrations of exposed equipment
- Full upgrade paths
All solutions offered are based on each unique metering system and its specific requirements. Noting budgetary constraints, Swinton Technology can offer any of the above solutions under a support contract, to allow obsolescence to be effectively managed. This helps avoid a scenario where obsolescence requires a full system upgrade, often needing OPEX funding.
Another benefit of our support is that, due to our close relationships with OEMs, we can offer our customers as much notice as possible when it comes to upcoming obsolescence.
If Obsolescence Management sounds beneficial to you, don't hesitate to contact us