In mobile devices like drill rigs that spend extended time in storage or in the field, software can interrogate controls and drives to make sure all of the assets have the latest code and updates. (Image provided by Rockwell Automation)

The world’s energy consumption is projected to increase by 50% from 2005 to 2030 according to a new report from the US Energy Information Agency. To keep up with this growing demand for petroleum, natural gas, and other energy resources, oil and gas producers worldwide are constantly searching for new ways to optimize their production by improving reliability and uptime. Acquiring the right information to lengthen the lifespan and improve the availability of rotating assets, specifically motors, is fundamental, yet gathering and making use of that information is often a complex process.

Asset Performance Management (APM) solutions can help simplify the information-gathering process with solutions designed to help companies shift from repair-focused asset maintenance plans that carry high associated maintenance costs to a reliability-focused plan that allows the company to reduce overall maintenance costs and increase production uptime.

APM tools and solutions are helping companies improve asset availability and decrease costs. APM technology provides a means of gathering and analyzing vital data from across production facilities. Companies can use this collected data to create a comprehensive asset maintenance program that provides a competitive advantage.

Easy integration, major payback

Since companies can incrementally build on APM solutions, it is easiest to start by incorporating small improvements that make a difference over the life cycles of the assets.
APM tools can also help oil and gas companies boost their bottom lines: 27% of companies that implemented these solutions saw a 10% or better reduction
in maintenance costs, according to a study by the Aberdeen Group. Companies that weren’t using these solutions averaged only 81% for on-time deliveries and just 58% for overall equipment effectiveness.

One oil and gas company that participated in the study and implemented these solutions reduced its annual maintenance costs by more than 60% while simultaneously increasing the lifespan of its machines from six months to more than five years on average. In addition, some of the company’s production facilities that were operating at partial capacity are now completely operational and running at full capacity.

Make the most of motor health

Compressors and pumps are critical elements in every oil and gas process, moving fluid from the wellhead to processing facilities, pipelines, and terminals. They are also important to production assets in refineries, petrochemical, and chemical plants, where they move crude, gas, and other products between process units. As each asset is linked to the next, even the smallest outage on the tiniest motor can be costly — causing major loss of production and high, unexpected repair costs.

Motor control solutions, including

networked drives, overload relays, and motor control centers linked to central controllers, are essential to the equation. APM solutions use data from electrical equipment to help reach rotating assets where traditional condition-based monitoring systems would be cost- prohibitive. Each of these solutions provides vital motor health data that can help companies anticipate problems, allowing maintenance engineers to predictively manage rotating assets.

Planned maintenance, improved bottom line

Condition-monitoring tools protect machinery by processing critical rotating equipment parameters in real time to assess current health and predict future health.

For example, if a compressor suffers failure when it is being used to move gas through a pipeline or improve oil recovery through injection and pressure is lost, the resulting downtime can range anywhere from a few hours to several days. And the associated costs can easily climb into the millions of dollars.

When companies create a maintenance program using condition-monitoring solutions, they can plan to bring a backup compressor online or schedule downtime, which helps minimize loss of production. By predictively monitoring an asset’s health, oil and gas companies can optimize asset performance and promote energy efficiency.

Armed with information

While collecting information from key rotating equipment, pressure valves, or temperature controls is important, making actionable decisions based on that data is essential to a successful solution. When there isn’t a specialist available to analyze the information, site-wide information-gathering software helps operators and decision-makers gather, organize, and analyze essential information. This offers a flexible solution to help oil and gas companies reduce costs and extend the life-cycle of existing investments.

In addition, tracking and trending software that allows access to historical information at any time across different levels of a production operation can give oil and gas companies a valuable tool to aid in making many business decisions. By tracking process variables like temperature, pressure, flow rates, and levels over days, weeks, and even months, operators and engineers can identify anomalies and correct problems more quickly.

In mobile devices like drill rigs that spend unknown amounts of time in storage or out in the field, software can also interrogate controls and drives
to make sure that all assets have the latest code and updates. By downloading the most current information and getting a machine up and running more quickly, operators can simplify change management and better leverage automation assets.