A case study with Cepsa

The customer and the challenge

Experts in refining

At their La Rábida Energy Park in La Huelva, Cepsa carries out a wide range of processes, such as distillation, hydrodesulphurisation, and hydrocarbon conversions. They transform crude oil into products with higher added value to provide their customers with a variety of fuels, diesel, petrol, and kerosene.

All you need is a digital boost

Plant maintenance personnel had previously identified pipes based on drawings supported by experts remotely over the phone. These conventional means and channels were no longer sufficient to provide a solid technical background. It was causing delays in repairs and resulted in higher costs to cover additional expenses, such as experts travelling to the site. Cepsa was aware that the right technology would help them ensure predictive maintenance and more efficient troubleshooting.

Revolutionising the industry with 5G

Cepsa decided to use Vodafone Business 5G network to kick off La Rábida’s digital transformation. It allowed them to get the most out of other technologies, such as augmented reality and IoT, and develop two use cases to optimise the refining process. As part of the 5G Andalusia Pilot initiative, we partnered with other companies to show Cepsa that the sky is the limit when using 5G technology in industrial environments.

How we helped them

Creating a well-oiled refining process

Monitoring assets and facilities in real time has never been easier thanks to augmented reality. Our mobile application enables field operators to always keep an eye on the products running through the pipelines and measure temperature, flow rate and pressure with the same device. They can always contact an expert for immediate support by making a video call to help them deal with any incident happening in the field.

IoT knows no distance

Our 5G network combined with our IoT solutions enables Cepsa to monitor if their recirculating pumps are working properly. Installing vibration sensors without using any wires or cables and connecting them to the cloud made it possible for Cepsa to access the data even from server rooms located miles away from the field. That’s how they can ensure predictive maintenance and reliability of their equipment, no matter where they are.

A step ahead of the competition

Our partnership enabled Cepsa to become a digital leader and create solutions that seemed impossible before. They’re now at the forefront of technology, ready to pave the way for the refinery industry. “Thanks to Vodafone 5G, I believe we’ll change the rules of the game for telecommunications going forward” affirms Jesús Gómez Melgar, IT Systems Manager at Cepsa.