This week's issue of OGJ begins a series of posters and wall-sized maps that utilize advanced graphical and geospatial technologies to depict many facets of the oil industry. These topics, which range from drilling rig design to a country-by-country depiction of refining efficiencies, will take advantage of a wide range of OGJ sources, including internal surveys, PennWell databases (PennPoint, MapSearch), public and private sources, and collaborative works with industry leaders.
A modern land rig
Although most of the world's onshore drilling units continue to age, some companies remain dedicated to the maintenance of a modern rig fleet (see insert, Modern Land Rig). This focus ranges from simple upgrades to the installation of proprietary systems.
Although the capital investments involved with these commitments can be huge, those companies that base competitive strategies on technological innovation often receive higher day rates, saving time and money through increased penetration rates, faster rig moves, and cleaner and safer work environments.
For example, the replacement of power-cable "suitcases" with overhanging, cantilevered trolleys can eliminate the time-consuming labor involved with marking, disconnecting, and feeding dozens of lengthy power cords on every rig move. Or the installation of cylindrical mud tanks, interconnected through a series of pipes that link the active mud system to trip and slug tanks, can eliminate chemical "dead spots" found in traditional rectangular tanks while improving the way drillers tackle lost-circulation and well-control situations.
Graphical engineering
Behind the scenes, advanced graphical and computer-assisted design (CAD) technologies serve to intermesh these engineering concepts with a dynamic blueprint. For example, Helmerich & Payne (H&P) used a 3D model to build the cylindrical mud-tank system shown in this issue's insert.
"When it comes to dealing with the piping on the active mud system, 3D allows us to visualize the way the components relate to one another," said Beau Brown, technical illustrator for H&P.
"It's easier than using 2D, because we can rotate the model around and look at any feature from any direction." And if an engineer makes a change to the model, such as a change in pipe size, "You don't have to go back and update every single view," he said.
This ability allows H&P to build or upgrade its rig fleet in virtual reality, long before a welder steps on location. Taking this concept to another level, Brown says the interaction of graphical and CAD technologies "can be used to explain ideas that can be understood in any language."
He is quick to point out that development of the poster insert used the same technologies as do Hollywood film makers or game makers such as Sega. All in all, final rendering of the 250-Mbyte, 7,800 x 7,800 pixel image required 2 weeks of nonstop processing with a dual 550-Mhz Pentium PC, involving the application of ray traces and orthophotographs to depict shadows and other realistic features.
In the end, it can be shown that design, function, and form all go hand in hand.
