Tagging

What is Tagging?

Tagging is the practice of assigning a unique tag number to each functional item in a facility, from a centrifugal pump to the pressure transmitter on the line that feeds it. The tag is the common reference that links an item across engineering drawings and the systems used to operate and maintain it.

For owner-operators, consistent tagging allows anyone working on an asset to find its drawings and work history by searching a single identifier. Without it, the same piece of equipment can appear under different names in different systems, and information about it is difficult to trust.

How Identifiers Are Structured

Tag numbers follow a naming convention defined in the organization’s tagging or equipment numbering standard. Conventions differ between companies, but most combine location and function into a single code.

For example, a tag such as 20-P-1001A might break down as follows:

• 20: The plant area or unit where the equipment is located.
• P: The equipment class, in this case a pump.
• 1001: A sequence number that makes the tag unique within that area and class.
• A: A suffix identifying one of two parallel pumps, with the second tagged 20-P-1001B.

Relationships & Hierarchies

A tag is most useful when it is connected to the information around it. A tag is most useful when it is connected to the information around it. Two types of connections give tag data its value in daily work, including links to supporting documents and placement within a structured hierarchy.

Tag-to-Document Relationships

Each tag links to the documents that describe it, such as the piping and instrumentation diagrams that show it and the datasheets that specify it. These relationships let users move from a drawing to the related asset record, or from a work order back to the latest approved drawing. At large facilities, tag-to-document links can number in the millions.

Tag Hierarchies

Tags are organized into parent-child structures, typically moving from site to area to system to individual equipment. A well-structured hierarchy lets maintenance costs and reliability data roll up to the system or unit level, which supports intelligent asset management decisions about where to invest.

Tag Management Software

Tag management software holds the master tag register for a facility and maintains each tag’s links to documents and attributes. Platforms such as Octave InConcert or AVEVA Asset Information Management serve as the system of recordWhat is a System of Record? A system of record is the author... More for tag data, typically within a broader asset information management environment.

These platforms validate new tags against the organization’s numbering standard and flag duplicates before they reach operations. Most integrate with EAM systems such as SAP or Maximo, so tag changes made during a project carry through to maintenance planning without manual re-entry.