TANK STORAGE

Everywhere in the world, storage terminals hold products that require special attention: Oil. Gas. Chemicals. Bitumen. Plus all kinds of other liquids and half-solids. This complex business has many different stakeholders and partakers: Terminal operators. Stock owners. Transport agencies. Tax officials. And many others.

To make the most of their operations, all of these entities must work together fluidly, transparently and collaboratively. Key to this is data. The more accurate and accessible it is, the better the storage units can organize the keeping, fetching and delivering of the products they hold. As the tank farms are central hubs in the downstream supply chain, their capacity to work smoothly and efficiently is vital for all follow-up processes.

Fragmented supply chain

As the industry’s big players focus on the areas in which they excel the most, they sell the remaining parts of their businesses to independent players and other market participants. Consequently, the supply chain becomes increasingly fragmented; and the number of agents involved in the journey from the refinery to the storage plant to the end consumer increases drastically. This calls for open architectures and shared standards. Also, it calls for terminal management systems that are quick and open to connect with third-party software, hardware and interfaces.