Every day for us is the first day of the future.
That’s why, in all tasks and processes, we think in innovative solutions.
Thyssengas is currently working on two innovative projects relating to “Augmented Reality” (AR).
By using computer systems to extend the range of our perception of reality, we want to make work easier for our employees. Thus, in a pilot project, we are testing how to make training our technical employees easier using VR glasses. We are virtualising a gas pressure gauging station so that it can be explored virtually using data glasses. Work and tests can also be simulated in this plant. In this way, employees can learn concrete processes and working methods at any time – no matter where they are.
Thyssengas is also in the process of virtualising gas pipelines and embedding them using VR directly into the landscape. In this way, third parties – for example, companies engaged on a construction site who are not well acquainted with our pipelines – can be prepared for work in the best possible way.
Fully automated line monitoring via drone
Our transport system, with a length of 4,400 kilometres, only functions in the reliable way it does because we constantly check it on the ground and from the air. For aerial observations, we have previously used helicopter flights along the route – a source of noise and emissions.
That is why Thyssengas is currently testing and evaluating the use of drones and artificial intelligence. Drones can take off fully automatically, carry out a pre-programmed flight over our gas pipelines, take countless images and land again, say, in a hangar. This “drone garage” provides the unmanned vehicles with electricity to charge their batteries and allows the image data to be transferred to the cloud, meaning human deployment on site is no longer necessary.
Then, artificial intelligence comes into play: it analyses the images and classifies various objects, e.g. stacks of wood, mounds of earth or construction machinery located near the pipeline. In this way, our field service can receive not just a list of coordinates, as produced by helicopter pilots, but also image and map materials allowing them to decide better which areas should be more closely inspected. The result: higher efficiency, less noise, lower emissions, more digital information and more safety.
New tasks, new work
The “new normality” during and after the coronavirus pandemic has accelerated changes in the world of work. Within a very short period of time, Thyssengas brought to completion numerous previously existing projects involving the digitalisation of processes and workflows. Digital platforms allow the exchange of documents on the virtual plane, even on the official side and with third parties, and of course with the highest level of security. Mobile working has become the standard.