American Oil and Gas Reporter - December 2016 - 77

Thinking Long Term
When commodity prices make every
penny count, it may be tempting to base
purchasing decisions on cost alone. But
citing the maxim, "You get what you pay
for," Bill Gilliam, general manager for
the energy division at Anvil International,
urges operators to resist that temptation.
"Many people think a fitting is a fitting,
a nipple is a nipple, and a hammer union
is a hammer union," he says. "However,
because of differences in manufacturing
processes, two products with the same
rating can vary greatly in reliability and
safety."
As an example, Gilliam offers swages.
"Ideally, swages should be heated and
spun to produce a uniform wall thickness,"
he says. "Instead, many manufacturers
cold press swages to the desired size.
The good ones then will do an annealing
process, heating the metal to bring its
properties back. If that step is skipped to
reduce cost, the swage will have a weak
spot and a higher chance of failure."
For producers that lack the time or
expertise to discuss manufacturing processes, Gilliam recommends buying wellmarked products. "Look for a country of
origin, a pressure rating, and a heat code
that can be used to get a material test report," he advises. "These are proof the
manufacturer is interested in selling a
safe, reliable and high-quality product
rather than spitting out units as fast as
possible."
Choosing the least-expensive replacement part can end costing far more in recurring maintenance, repair and downtime,
Gilliam points out. "It costs more to buy
a product with traceability, but the slight
increase in cost is well worth the assurance
the product will perform as intended," he
says. "In the long run, it will cost less
because it will not need to be replaced as
often."
Installation Key
When a failure does occur, Gilliam
says a reputable manufacturer will address
it quickly. "If there is an issue in the
field, we are going to be there within 24
hours to study the site," he assures. "We
also will send the product to our research
and development team. The goal is to
figure out what went wrong so we can
make sure it does not happen again."
In many cases, Gilliam says, the problem is incorrect installation. "For example,
a few months ago, we had a four-inch,
90-degree elbow on a tank battery blow
out. The elbow had a 150-psi pressure
rating, which should have been enough
for the application, but the crew that installed it did not put a vent valve on the

line. When the gas heated during the summer, the pressure had no place to go."
To ensure proper installation, Gilliam
encourages operators to hire experienced
crews and an inspector or foreman to supervise the work.
"There needs to be an education process
to make sure crews understand what to
watch for," he adds. "For example, a
roustabout who is installing nipples should
check to see if the threads are chattered,
because if they are, the connection could
leak or give under pressure."
Careful product selection and installation may add a little bit of time to a
job, but Gilliam says it is necessary to
safeguard on-site personnel and the environment. "The last thing any operator
wants is a spill or injury because of a
faulty piece of equipment or installation
process," he comments.
Broadband's Benefits
Installing private wireless networks
on well pads can have tremendous benefits,
according to Renner Vaughn, oil and gas
lead for ABB Wireless. "A wireless network can open the door for applications
that will deliver the visibility operators
need to improve safety," he says.
Video is one of those applications.
"Pointing a camera at a tank battery or
pumpjack to watch for leaks remotely
has been done for a long time," Vaughn

says. "Today, we are seeing the dawn of
video analytics, in which software behind
the camera will detect problems automatically and kick off a workflow. For
example, it may notice a leak, alert the
operator, and show him a list of steps to
take in response. This allows him to react
more quickly than if he needed to dig
through an operations manual."
Wireless networks also can reduce the
amount of time spent driving, Vaughn
says. "Vehicle accidents are the leading
cause of death in the oil and gas industry,"
he notes.
A good network can reduce windshield
time by enabling pumpers to remotely
access, monitor and analyze data on production equipment such as flow computers,
he says.
"Instead of driving to each location,
getting out of the truck, going to the flow
computer, taking a reading, and coming
back to the truck, the pumper can get the
information he needs at a central facility
or a location where all the wells in an
area are visible over the network. Then
he will drive only to the wells he knows
have issues and need attention," Vaughn
says.
Cellular networks can deliver similar
benefits, but Vaughn cautions that operators
may need to drive to the top of hills to
get usable signals. "In the San Juan Basin,
we had a gathering company with that

A producer in the Powder River
Basin is using a wireless mesh
gateway mounted on the same
tower as a PMP backhaul radio
to spread connectivity to nearby
well pads. This multitier network
architecture is enabling realtime SCADA communications
and secure access for automation software, ABB Wireless reports. The company says such
automation is one of many ways
wireless broadband networks
are helping producers improve
safety and reduce costs.

DECEMBER 2016 77

American Oil and Gas Reporter - December 2016

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