Leader in Alarm Management: Hexagon Marks 7 Years as #1 Software Provider
Throughout my career, I’ve witnessed poor practices in the field of alarm management, most before I even knew what alarm management was. I’ve seen paperclips jammed in field-mounted horn silence pushbuttons, rubber gloves over gas sensors, even cut wires to internal PC speakers. Operators just needed the noise to stop. They had a need, they solved a problem. Necessity is the mother of invention; you may not like the invention.
Operators also knew the importance of alarms and responding effectively to them. I recall facilitating a Process Hazard Analysis (PHA) and an operator was uncomfortable with the existing safeguards for a high-pressure scenario. “I know we have a high-pressure alarm, I know we have a high-high-pressure alarm, but there’s so much junk coming through the system that I’m afraid I’m going to miss something. Can we have a high-high-high pressure alarm?” Back then, the concepts of alarm management weren’t as well-known as they are today. There were no standards back then, and little awareness of best practices or how to solve these problems.
Times have certainly changed. Alarm management has gained much more awareness through the publication of handbooks, international standards and technical reports. The methods of understanding the performance of alarm systems and the importance of the role they play in achieving operator situation awareness has been broadly recognized across many industries, not just the process industries.
I’m proud that the ARC Advisory Group has recently published its annual market study on Alarm Management and Hexagon was recognized, for the seventh consecutive year, as the leader in alarm management software packages. Our expertise and thought leadership in this field spans decades. We continue to evolve our analytics, products and services to ensure effective understanding of alarm system performance and how to address deficiencies. We strive to make sure everyone can harness the power of the data produced by control systems to ensure effectiveness. The more effective control systems and operators are, the better the plant performance against safety, quality, productivity and environmental metrics.
Alarm management has come a long way from paperclips and quick fixes. And while the journey isn’t over, one thing is clear: with the right tools, alarms don’t just make noise — they make a difference.
Read the full press release and explore more about Hexagon’s alarm management solution to see how we’re helping organizations worldwide achieve safer, smarter, and more sustainable operations.
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