American Oil and Gas Reporter - August 2019 - 53

Leveling The Playing Field

MIKE MILLS
President, Bluetick Inc.
AOGR: Automation was once a high-cost technology reserved
for only the largest producing companies or for select applications.
How is technology continuing to level the playing field when it
comes to accessing advanced automation and monitoring tools?
What supporting technologies do you see as most important?
What does a good automation system look like today?
MILLS: Many of the largest producing companies used to
produce much of the high-cost automation technology in house.
They had the staff, equipment and money to develop most of
the tools they needed, but at a cost. Today, oil and gas companies
are benefiting from everyday technology developments that are
coming out of many different industries. Some of these developments-such as IIOT, cloud services and wireless technologies-
are being developed by companies such as Bluetick to provide
more affordable automation and level the playing field for
smaller companies who need to take advantage of these opportunities. However, focusing on affordability does not necessarily
translate into the best system for a smaller company's needs.
A good system will gather data from multiple points in the
field to provide the information necessary for various people
within different levels of the organization to make informed
decisions affecting their day-to-day operations. This system would
consist of the proper combination of sensors in the field, coupled
with an effective data transport system to bring back information
that can be analyzed on backend software. This system would
provide user-friendly tools that permit easy interpretation of that
data. This kind of system would provide enough real-time data
to improve predictive modeling efforts to direct changes in field
management. In addition to data analysis, the system should be
reliable and offer mobile applications to keep field personnel apprised of changing conditions on the ground in real time.
AOGR: Putting all the pieces of an automation and
monitoring system together can be a daunting task. But the operator first has to understand exactly what its automation needs
are. How would you advise oil and gas companies with respect
to assessing their operations? What suggestions do you have
for them when it comes to finding solutions to address their
identified needs?
MILLS: Many of our customers already have a good idea of

what they want to monitor when they engage us and we help
them engineer the most effective way to do that. In many
upstream and midstream operational activities, there is always
a balance between the right amount of information needed and
cost. We help them evaluate their operational needs and budget.
Many of our suggestions simply come from experience working
with a large variety of applications. If customers would like to
experiment with a new application or sensor they would like to
beta test, then we are always willing to work with them. We
have the flexibility and know-how to make it work. Most
important is the ability to scale the system as the operation
grows or technology changes and keep it all integrated on a
single platform.
AOGR: In your experience, what automation system capabilities
and features are most important to independent oil and gas companies? How do automation needs and potential solutions vary
for unconventional versus conventional fields? How important is
compliance and health, safety and environmental factors in terms
of driving automation needs?
MILLS: The easy answer would be the most important
system capabilities and features are the ones that keep production
running smoothly, efficiently and profitably.
It is difficult to pinpoint the most important capabilities and
features because there are so many different applications that can
be monitored and controlled in the field. It is highly dependent
on the needs of the company from one week to the next. In most
cases, they want to keep their operating costs as low as possible.
In my experience, either type of operation-conventional or
resource play-is equally important to the company operating it.
With the ever-changing regulatory environment today, automation
has become increasingly important not just with data collection
for reporting purposes, but also for companies to monitor the
health and safety of their personnel and the environment.
AOGR: Please describe your vision of what's to come in oil
field automation and monitoring. How can operators be confident
that the component technologies they install today will have the
adaptability and longevity to continue meeting their needs over
the long term? When will the digital oil field concept become a
practical reality?
MILLS: My vision of what's coming in oil field automation
is simply based on the concept that we must continue to innovate
tools to help customers make better decisions. We all hear and
read the daily technology buzzwords, but you have to consider
who is putting those ideas to work.
Many operators cannot afford to employ a full technology staff
to keep up with new technology concepts, nor should they have to.
Working with a technology partner allows them to reap the benefits
from the latest technologies, discuss their automation strategies,
and focus on what they do best. Operators should let their technology
partners keep up with evolving technologies and focus on having
their partners provide great systems and services to them.
The digital oilfield is here! Smart companies are using technology today to move from reactively managing "situations" to
proactively managing their assets and operations.
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AUGUST 2019 53

American Oil and Gas Reporter - August 2019

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