As digitalisation climbs to the top of many corporate agendas, engineering and construction contractor KBR has agreed to collaborate with IBM to develop digital products and services to help oil, gas and petrochemical customers to cut costs and increase profits, reliability and safety.

The Halliburton subsidiary said falling crude prices, volatile socio-economic and political environments and ever-increasing demands for sustainability and safety are disrupting the industry and companies require new levels of innovation and digital solutions.

“As chemical and petroleum companies strive to remain competitive, implementing a digital strategy will help optimize capital expenditures, reduce operating costs and help maximize the potential of the knowledge and skills of their people,” said Luq Niazi, IBM’s global managing director, chemical & petroleum industries. “Working with KBR, we will deliver analytics and cognitive solutions that diagnose, compare and enhance the production and operational activities of chemical and petroleum assets.”

The alliance will join KBR’s deep understanding of the hydrocarbons market and large-scale capital projects with IBM’s services, including cloud computing, advanced analytics, Internet of Things and cognitive business solutions.