Time Optimization of Warehouse Operations Through Industry 4.0 Technology Implementation: Case Study from a Spare Parts Warehouse in the Oil and Gas Industry

Abstract

This work is a case study approach to optimizing warehouse operations for the oil and gas industry. As companies in the energy industry seek to decrease costs, optimize industrial processes, and achieve higher degrees of sustainability to cut emissions, new automation tools are considered for utilization. The oil and gas industry is under scrutiny from governments, citizens, and activist organizations due to high carbon emissions, and need new initiatives across business areas that can contribute to decreases in emissions without compromising energy supply. This paper presents four different scenario setups of a spare parts warehouse for an offshore oil production installation in the Barents Sea outside the Norwegian coast. The scenarios are created in simulation software according to real-life dimensions. Various automation tools are used in the different scenarios to observe the degree to which time expenditure is affected in each scenario. They are compared according to the average time spent on order picking, consolidation, and shipping. Conclusively, we observe that a combination of few automation tools and a high degree of interoperability make for the most efficient oil and gas spare parts warehouse. For further work, we suggest cost and sustainability analyses.