Strides within the industry to keep drilling equipment fully operational often result in pushing equipment beyond its design limits and impacting the ability to ensure it is running at optimal condition. Typical maintenance programs rarely coincide with fast-paced drilling cycles and accelerated rig moves. Furthermore, with the industry use of pad drilling, few hours are left between the end of drilling one well and starting the next one, the time that traditionally allows maintenance to take place.

To address the industry’s concern, Tesco Corp. (TESCO) developed the Equipment Health Monitoring (EHM) system, a sophisticated system of sensors, communication infrastructure and real-time monitoring support. Using the array of features within the EHM, drilling contractors can plan routine equipment maintenance and prevent downtime. This preventive maintenance allows drilling contractors to more realistically meet scheduled operational deadlines and reduce nonproductive time (NPT), ensuring the quality of its equipment over the product’s lifetime.

Considering the significant contribution the top drive provides to the drilling operation, early development of the system chartered that both hydraulic and electric TESCO top-drive models were to be fully commercialized at product launch. During field-testing of the EHM, both top-drive variants were exposed to real-world drilling conditions, providing full system product assurance. Test sites included multiple locations throughout varying regions of North America as well as international locations, where part failures without the EHM system could result in excessive NPT.

Efficient maintenance

The EHM adds value to the rig operation by ensuring that maintenance is conducted efficiently, discovering potentially defective parts that need to be replaced before failure, and positively impacting the bottom line by reducing the spare parts inventory required on the drillsite.

The system provides field technicians with step-by-step guidelines to easily perform maintenance and gives supervising service managers insight into the work being performed. Operations managers have detailed diagnostics into how the top drive is being used, allowing for optimal operational planning.

These benefits stem from the main features of the system, which fall into three categories: asset management, maintenance tracking and predictive health monitoring. The EHM technology allows drilling contractors to view the current operating status and GPS location of their equipment, review and manage maintenance records, and proactively plan for service events remotely from anywhere in the world using the TESCOMATION web portal.

Sensors monitor parameters

A network of sensors connected through a wired and wireless infrastructure provides near-instantaneous information available to monitoring personnel. The current EHM system includes pressures, fluid flows and temperatures monitoring critical path components. If these parameters went out of range, it could quickly impact the performance of the top drive.

An example would be a fast pressure drop in the lube pressure hose on an electric top drive that would quickly be identified and signal that action must be taken, reducing the impact to the equipment before a catastrophic event could occur.

In addition, shock and vibration sensors are used to provide a holistic understanding of the overall use of the equipment. The EHM is able to predict critical system failures by analyzing both real-time and historical data. These predictive abilities combined with an experienced operational support team can greatly reduce unforeseen damage to the top drive.

By analyzing an increasing vibration in the gear train, this trend could potentially indicate a failing part, or by looking at extreme shock events, monitoring personnel may be able to determine equipment abuse. By allowing users the ability to review historical equipment utilization trends, comparisons can be made between current and past driller performance.

Trending data also provide insight into parts fatigue and can identify when to service parts, avoiding NPT caused by a failure and ultimately lowering operating costs and reducing parts inventory.

Service personnel are able to plan, record and report maintenance events for the top drive by using TESCO’s Wellsite Interface Panel on the rig. If a service event is performed, this same interface is used to update the system without the need for paper copies that are hard to track and require additional documentation control.

Maintenance and service data become available for review by anyone from anywhere with an Internet connection. Through the TESCOMATION web portal, it is also possible to set up maintenance scheduling and alerting based on TESCO’s Global Preventative Maintenance Program guidelines. If maintenance has been missed, email notifications can be set up to remind field technicians or supervising personnel, automating the call to response.

An additional advantage of the web interface is a direct link to the aftermarket sales and service teams for help with parts identification and ordering, further reducing NPT by ensuring accuracy and reducing potential miscommunication.

Installation kits

Specific installation kits are available for all of TESCO’s hydraulic and electric top drive models between 150 tons and 750 tons.

EHM installation kits feature a robust, field-tested programmable logic controller (PLC), a wireless access point and electronics contained within stainless steel enclosures located on the top drive. The remainder of the kit contains Class 1/Div 2 wireless antennas, sensors, cables and interconnections with other rig components such as the Top Drive PLC to ensure critical data are fed into the EHM system.

Satellite or cellular services are available to connect the rig to the web portal, or the system can plug directly into the rig’s communication system. Installation of an EHM system can easily be performed between spud dates or during the recertification of the top drive.

The EHM system is scheduled to be commercial by Dec. 31, 2014. Several drilling contractors have already used the system on their rigs as part of the external field trial stage.

Continuous monitoring of the top drives on these rigs has assured proper maintenance to the equipment. Furthermore, TESCO’s rental fleet has 11 units installed as part of the internal field trial test phase. These rental units are already seeing the benefit to increased drilling uptime.

Currently developed for TESCO Top Drives, the EHM system will be expanded to include TESCO catwalks, third-party top drive models and other rigsite equipment, providing rig contractors cross-product commonality.