April 8, 2018
Kymera Systems is located in Leduc, Alberta and provides scalable IIoT solutions and the design, installation and maintenance of automation systems. They have developed a strong relationship with clients in the Oil & Gas, Water/Wastewater, Power Generation, Food and Beverage, Manufacturing and Industrial processes sectors.
Panel Builder & Systems Integrator had the opportunity to ask Kymera Systems about their company and the services they provide.
1. As the respondent tell us just a little about yourself? (Work history, your position at Kymera. How long you
My name is Ben Greenhow. My education focused mainly on software development. I also have more than 13 years of experience in designing, developing and implementing SCADA and automation solutions. I was working primarily in the oil and gas industry but am now focused on manufacturing and other commodity industries. I started with Kymera in November of 2015 which was a very interesting time. Every other company was either downsizing or even closing their doors, and that is when Kymera experienced record growth.
- Tell us a little about the history/founding of Kymera Systems?
Kyle Chase started Kymera with the vision of creating an integration company that focused more on delivering high end software applications. This was different from the typical service/maintenance-based approach that many competitors are focused on.
- How has Kymera grown and in what way since it was founded?
Kymera Systems started out as a small basement operation and has grown explosively in our time as a company. Now Kymera has teams located in various places around the globe and has a sizable extended team through partnering with local integration firms around the world.
- What is the philosophy that has driven Kymera Systems to success?
Our philosophy is to deliver consistent and world leading software applications to any industry.
- Tell us a little about the team of professionals you have working for you? (electrical, automation, information systems and how they work together to provide an optimum product)
From our management team right down to the freshest face, we all are trained in the Ignition software platform. Our goal is essentially to transform every employee, regardless of their position, to be well equipped in cutting-edge methods and with the ability to facilitate nearly any customer request and project.
- Could you provide a little detail on the areas of specialization you focus on, and the benefits you are bringing to your customers in those areas?
We specialize in a variety of IoT/IIoT services and solutions; data connectivity, enterprise messaging, security, custom software development, etc... We are also Ignition specialist, providing our custom Ignition modules, Ignition integration work, and custom Ignition modules development within the existing Ignition software platform. This provides us the ability to deliver world class applications to customers. These applications are scalable from the smallest edge network device to a global cloud or corporate IT infrastructure.
- With a focus on IoT and automation, how does Kymera System stay ahead of the rapidly changing technology (ie. Training, advanced hiring, or are you one of the industry trend setters for new technology?)
We are constantly using the latest software versions and pushing the limits of what is possible anywhere we can. Most recently, our focus has been on using MQTT, MQTT Sparkplug and OPC UA to collect data and control remote assets.
- Would you share the details of one or two of your successful projects?
One of our successful projects has been the HIT system. It is an Ignition-powered application designed to accurately monitor gas utilities in Developing Countries. It includes a CRM for managing customers, as well as a data storage and analysis portion that runs against incoming gas usage statistics.
Consumers of natural gas in many Developing Countries currently pay a fixed-rate fee each month based on the number of gas-consuming appliances on the property (stove, water heater, etc.). It is estimated that the error in gas consumption could be as high as 50 percent.
Kymera was contracted by an International Company to design and develop the software portion of the solution. The solution was to change gas utilities monitoring in Developing Countries from flat-rate billing to a pre-paid system. Under the pre-paid system customers visit a manned point of sale (POS) connected to the HIT System and bring with them an NFC card paired with their gas meter. By using the card, when they purchase gas at the POS, Kymera reads the latest information about the meter. It reads information like the consumption history, any alarms from the meter, and charges the card with the new volume of gas. The customer can then return to their meter and add the volume of gas to the meter which will run until the gas is consumed.
The HIT System consists of three key parts:
- The CRM drives the organization of all account information. It facilitates the creation of new accounts by modifying existing accounts and views the account history. This represents the bulk of the application in terms of the user interface.
- The Card Reader is a custom Ignition module Kymera developed that provides several scripting functions and callbacks for interacting with a Sony NFC card reader. It ultimately powers all communication between the HIT System and the meters.
- The Analysis is driven partially by Ignition’s reporting software, and partially by Kymera’s library of analysis scripts. The system provides data in aggregate such as a customer’s purchase history or their meter’s consumption history. In addition, the Analysis also drives the detection of anomalies in the customer data. It automatically searches for deviations in the customer’s purchase frequency and volume. It also detects leaks in the meter and verifies that the customer’s purchased gas is consistent with the gas being consumed by their meter.
The solution provides a web API for interface through third-party payment providers, the gas company’s existing management system, and a mobile POS app developed by another project partner.
Kymera plans to make this a “drop-in” software solution as it begins to distribute to other regional gas companies World Wide with our partners.
- What’s next for Kymera Systems?
Kymera will continue to build success by creating a larger team that still delivers world class custom solutions. Our main goal is to be the clear choice for any company requiring Automation Service in any Industry. Kymera Systems is the only choice for world class custom industrial software applications anywhere.
