Asset management with Internet of Things: A case study within an automatic fuel management and remote monitoring system

Abstract

Technological advancements facilitate managers in remote monitoring and control, leading to improved job performance. In this research, an automatic monitoring and control system is presented for fuel management at various generation points across the country. Centralized fuel management system helps in optimizing fuel consumption by controlling generators run-time, fuel level, timely fueling, consumption record, refilling alarms, and fuel theft. Fuel management system is primarily used as a solution for the problems that occur during manual fuelling at remote sites. This phenomenon occurs especially for fuel thefts representing one of the major issues being faced. Automatic alarm generation for theft, unusual opening of the tank, fuel level fall, temperature rise or any abnormal activity may help in better management. The data acquired from sensors and flow meters at human machine interface (HMI) is analyzed to obtain insights for efficient management. The results with and without fuel management system are compared for average fuel consumption and total cost. As notable improvements have been found at each site of the project, it is concluded that effective implementation of specific technological advancements for automatic monitoring and controlling is unavoidable for efficient fuel management, especially, in public sector projects.