I love seeing new technology and new solutions to problems in Oil and Gas. I am down-right passionate about it. This week I visited the AADE National Technical Conference and Exposition and met some really great people. Here are my key takeaways.
New Drilling Test Facility
There is a brand new drilling test facility on the block! KeyStone Test Facility has just opened their doors and are now accepting reservations. They have an amazing setup with a modern rig and multiple hole sizes. I will definitely be recommending that Erdos Miller clients consider it for testing new down-hole and surface technology in the future. It seems like Craig Brown and Ann Copple will be able to provide a very needed facility to help push innovation forward.
https://keystonetestfacility.com/
Gaining More Intelligence from New and Old Sensors
The folks over at CoVar are developing some amazing software to utilize all sorts of sensor data for drilling performance and safety enhancements. They showed me some demos of tracking activity on the rig floor, including the identification of joints, pipe length and activity using simply a camera on the rig floor. They have smart algorithms that will predict failures from existing sensor inputs. They also can use image processing to identify equipment and personnel on the rig site which will assist in feeding back that information to rig systems to increase productivity and safety. These guys are definitely go-to experts for smart algorithms!
Predicting and Reducing Fluid Loss with Statistics
I can't do Husam Alkinani's work justice with my paraphrasing of his work, hopefully he will post it online so we can all see the results. Husam was able to use statistical analysis and modelling to reduce fluid loss to the formation. He analyzed nearly 100 historical wells to understand and prove statistically what operations and practices lead to wells with a high percentage of non-productive time generated by fluid losses. He was then able to recommend changes to drilling practices that led to a significant reduction in non-productive time due to fluid loss. He is quite a brilliant young engineer and we here at Erdos Miller will watch his career with great interest.
Warning: We may be a bit biased as we have a few Missouri S&T grads on staff here at Erdos Miller!
