Finding the right expertise for today’s complex energy landscape can be challenging. ABB Electrification’s new advisory services address this need. With ABB Navigate, experts support customers in improving reliability, safety, productivity and sustainability. Electrification Services’ Victoria Frodsham, key account manager, and Steve Squires, segment and business development manager, share insights into advisory services.
How do advisory services support businesses in navigating today’s challenges?
Victoria: With rapid technology advancements and heightened environmental awareness, companies must navigate complex electrification strategies. Many businesses are overwhelmed because it can be difficult to identify what improvements could and should be made to avoid potential risks. Our advisory services offer a holistic view to optimize operations and meet regulatory standards. We’re here as partners to solve today’s challenges and look ahead to help customers remain competitive.
Steve: Take sustainability for example. Most businesses need to achieve sustainability targets. They need to save energy, reduce costs whilst keeping the business operating to its maximum performance. They’re looking for guidance and it can be a minefield. We support them with their journey and set up a roadmap to achieve their sustainability targets, starting with where, when and how their energy is being used and the life cycle stage of their equipment.
A lot of sites have old equipment. Some of it may be obsolete and spares may no longer be available. Some customers look at their equipment and think it's working fine so why not just leave it alone. Old equipment won’t be as efficient as modern equipment and can generate power quality issues, which is a concern on its own. Modern equipment with built-in communications can give early warnings so businesses can have a proactive maintenance program. Advisory services can identify these areas of concern, supporting end users with a very effective maintenance plan.
Where do you start when it comes to supporting new advisory customers?
Victoria: Building trust is key in every advisory relationship. It’s about doing what we say we are going to do while consistently adding value. This includes keeping customers up to date with the latest trends affecting their industry and providing tailored support for their specific needs, which drives long-term growth and resilience.
Steve: Customers want peace of mind. When we first visit a site, we look at the customer’s main electrical infrastructure including:
- Where is it in its life cycle?
- Is there a back-up plan to keep outages to a minimum?
- Is there a maintenance or service contract in place to keep the equipment operating to its optimal performance?
We also look at the health and safety aspects, any sustainability targets and what customers are looking to achieve.
An important factor is: “when was the equipment last serviced”? A site can have an outage for many reasons including a fault issue coming into the building from the network. If equipment isn’t set up correctly, then it doesn’t power up properly as power comes back online. For example, sometimes a breaker simply won't come back online because mechanics within the breaker haven't been lubricated or set up correctly. It’s so important to service assets annually.
And finally, what brought you to your advisory service role?
Victoria: I joined ABB this year because it’s a company that knows what needs to be done and is ready to do it. Everybody needs someone that they can trust and rely on. Our customers want the knowledge that their people are safe and their operations are running effectively. In advisory services, we give our customers just that: visibility and control to future-proof their business operations. Electrification affects everyone so this has been a very fulfilling next step in my career of helping customers across industries.
Steve: It’s so important that we embrace new technologies within a business as we do in our everyday lives with modern cars, iPads and smart TVs. After all it makes life easier. I like that advisory services bring these benefits to customers with new ideas, strategic plans of action, health and safety, as well as behavioural changes. It’s a good feeling to feel customers’ trust in me and having ABB standing behind me. Advisory services fit well within ABB. We have the knowledge, portfolio, the research and development, and global resources backing our recommendations.
