What We DO
At Skellig, we know that being an engineer-first company is the best way to build trust and credibility with our clients. We support our engineers by minimizing complexity and advocating for them in the interest of great work outcomes. We endeavor to create a more ideal work experience so our engineers can find fulfillment and do the work of their lives.
AUTOMATION SOLUTIONS
Deep Experience in Operational Technology Automation
At Skellig, we intentionally developed our services to be measurably better than the industry standard. From proposal to project closeout, our process improvements are apparent before the project begins.
The beginning of any successful project is a great plan, so we use our proposals as a way for clients and our engineering team to start from a common vantage point.
At the start of every project, each client will know who is on the team, what the expectations are, and the timeline to completion. We take the guesswork out of agreements — our clients know exactly what they’re paying for and are given the clarity they need to make the best decisions possible for their businesses. We welcome any and all questions ahead of time, and our team takes the time to ensure everyone is aligned prior to kickoff.
We value collaboration and transparency. Clients should expect that Skellig’s engineering team will be set up for success.
Skellig is technology agnostic. Our engineers work cleanly on identifying and using the best technology for the engineering challenge at hand.
That’s why our clients trust us, and why we’d welcome the opportunity to speak with you about your next project. For information on our automation, process and project controls services, contact us at any time.
Where We Can Help Clients the Most
Process Automation Systems
Our key foundational expertise is in process automation, from design, build, commissioning through qualification. We work best on the plant floor with deep expertise in legacy systems such as DeltaV and open, future-oriented platforms such as Ignition and Opto 22 Groov EPICs. Our commitment to industry standards such as S88 and S95 are paramount, and we prefer to use risk-based approaches for validation and qualification (ASTM 2500).
Beyond the plant floor, we have growing capability in digital transformation.
DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION
To find success, everyone within the business must buy in because true transformation is a never-ending process. Resistance can lead to stasis, and nothing is more dangerous than stalling in a fast-moving industry such as the Life Sciences.
Digital transformation goes beyond digitizing a company—digitization is nothing more than the elimination of paper. While this is necessary, it must be part of a larger, holistic business strategy.
One of the best examples of a digital company is Amazon. Their journey to becoming fully digital began in 2002 with then-CEO Jeff Bezos’s famous email.
The Bezos mandate outlined the Amazon digital strategy as follows:
1. All teams must henceforth expose their data and functionality through service interfaces.
2. Teams must communicate with each other through these interfaces.
3. There will be no other form of interprocess communication allowed: no direct linking, no direct reads, no memory model, no back doors what so ever.
4. It doesn’t matter what technology you use. HTTP, Cobra, Pubsub, custom protocols – doesn’t matter.
5. All service interfaces, without exception, must be designed from the ground up to be externalizable. That is to say, the team must plan and design to be able to expose the interface to developers in the outside world. No exceptions.
6. Anyone who doesn’t do this will be fired.
7. Have a nice day.
In short, digital transformation isn’t easy, and the journey can’t be taken lightly, but it can propel a company into something much greater. Skellig has created a series of whitepapers to help Life Sciences manufacturers take the first steps towards true transformation. For manufacturers that reach out to us for support, we engage to bring what they need to begin digital transformation as painlessly and thoroughly as possible.
Industry 4.0
Life Sciences and the 4th Industrial Revolution
Industry 4.0 promises manufacturers new ways of operating. However, this can often be a confusing topic with ambiguous claims and uncertain outcomes. This is especially true for Life Sciences companies where qualification and validation are often at odds with the more agile approach of Industry 4.0.
Skellig’s transparent approach with our clients is also apparent in our approach to Industry 4.0 solutions. We are a technology agnostic company and invest considerable time evaluating platforms that can best serve our client’s needs. This allows us to offer solutions that are effective, scalable and have fast time to value.
Our approach is based on a Unified Namespace and open technologies. This allows for proofs of concept to scale into factories and factories to scale into enterprises. Further, it ensures that our clients are able to choose fit-for-purpose and best-in-class technologies for nodes in their business ecosystems.
Skellig’s expertise and singular focus on Life Sciences also plays a critical role in our approach– as we are able to design projects using a GAMP lifecycle and can work with quality and validation teams to make sure they are supported by SOPs and qualification protocols.
Whether investing in a new MES (or augmenting an existing one), developing an AI strategy, or looking at new methods of process control – Skellig’s approach to Industry 4.0 is routed in our client’s best interest and our engineers happen to love working on them.
Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES)
One of the biggest challenges in Life Sciences manufacturing today is the design and implementation of an ideal MES. Overengineering, limited access to MES talent, and the growing number of MES technology companies all pose unique challenges and questions for manufacturers.
Our clients can depend on us for talented MES Team members to navigate those challenges and questions. Skellig has a robust Emerson Syncade Team for consulting services, projects, or staff augmentation. Skellig also offers services in Rockwell’s PharmaSuite and is strategically partnered with Tulip Interfaces.
Validation
Whether a process or computer system is in development or already active, thorough validation is an essential element in all successful Life Sciences implementations. Creating and maintaining a validated environment is also required for GxP compliance. Through the SDLC and beyond, Skellig’s validation team has a disciplined and practical approach not only to validation, but also to compliance with 21 CFR Part 11, S88 and S95, and alarm management principles. Our validation professionals have experience throughout the project lifecycle, and we firmly believe that it’s never too late to perfect our clients’ validation methodologies.
HISTORIANS
We support clients with time-series data historian needs. Our experience centers around legacy platforms such as Aveeva (OSIsoft) PI, with an increase of experience with modern historians. The future-oriented historian we are most excited about is Canary Historian from Canary Labs. Our Innovation team specializes in time-series data visualization, modeling, and management strategies. The Skellig team is excited about the future of data modeling and is ready to help with our client’s data and historian initiatives.