The Plight

If you’re an operations engineer or tech, you probably have data that is housed in different locations and accessed using multiple platforms. It’s a common theme in the oil and gas industry. We frequently hear lamentations—sometimes even horror stories—concerning the effort required to position adequate information to make good operational and engineering decisions in a timely manner. Even in today’s environment where electronic information is so available, an approach to organizing, combining, and utilizing the information in effective ways can be cumbersome—if not impossible. Many companies battle keeping disparate systems in lockstep with complimentary systems to accomplish the goal of keeping information quickly attainable. Other companies rely on shared file structure folders, with rigid in-house rules for retrieving files for use.

The problems that result from the “patchwork” approach to operational information are that a.) it sacrifices cost in order to maintain a data system that has integrity (or perhaps even sacrifices integrity itself), and b.) it lacks the necessary fluidity to reach all disciplines with the right information at the right time. The key to solving these inherent problems—and also increase the sustainability and integrity of multiple operational data sets—is to have a system that addresses these problems from the onset, i.e. data capture. How is this accomplished?

The Key

The foundation of proper information flow is to have a common Asset Master. That is the beginning point of any subsequent data capture or management as it relates to events occurring around the asset base. When this Asset Master feeds any subsequent systems, it can provide a single source of information that can be used to properly blend the rest of the information captured in a variety of systems. If this Asset Master also stays tied to the company accounting and land sources, a significant improvement in information flow is possible, which will lead to greater profitability. The SlideShare presentation below elaborates on the critical points of data integration.

 

This very principle of single source data management is what drove us to build Total Asset Manager™. It is at the core of every module we’ve built, and it is what allows us to expand and configure systems that are fully integrated from the outset. It is the reason we are able to offer such an expansive menu of applications under a single platform. If your data doesn’t flow through a single source, you will fight a never-ending battle of updates, patches, duplicate data, arduous report-writing, and multiple (expensive) software licenses. And perhaps most importantly, you’re compromising your ability to make timely and confident decisions that will impact your operational efficiency.