Bearing assembly increases safety, uptime on oil rigs
The Timken Sheave Pac bearing assembly is designed to eliminate the need to regrease the traveling block or crown block on oil rigs. In the past, maintenance personnel performed the task of relubricating these blocks situated hundreds of feet above the rig platform. This sealed-for-life sheave bearing assembly avoids the need for that job, increasing safety for rig workers and reducing expensive downtime, Timken said in a press release. The Timken Sheave Pac is pregreased, preset and unitized and was built to run an entire operating cycle between rebuilds without the need for relubrication or additional maintenance. The assembly contains the bearing cones, bearing cup, triple-lip seals and grease and is easily interchangeable with industry-standard bearing assemblies and seals. timken.com/sheavepac
Smokeless combustor reduces emissions, expenses
Aereon released a product line of enclosed combustors to deliver regulatory compliant solutions for the upstream industry. The Quad-O Design Enclosed Combustor (QDEC) is a smokeless system offering quiet operation with no visible flame, reducing emissions to comply with NSS Subpart OOOO. The system’s smokeless burner uses flame-spreading technology to maximize the air-fuel mixing, providing smokeless performance for gases even as heavy as butane with as little as 2 oz/sq in. of supply pressure. QDEC does not require electrical, steam or assist-gas utilities to achieve smokeless performance, which reduces capital, operational and maintenance expenses. With low power consumption and an optional solar-powered ignition panel with nine-day battery backup support, QDEC is designed to be reliable even in remote installations. The line offers a suite of optional equipment enabling the product to meet varying company standards. QDEC installation is simple, which decreases the number of required onsite personnel for deployment. aereon.com
Small GPS tracking device provides service to new asset classes
Geoforce’s new device, the GT0, is the world’s smallest industrial GPS asset tracking device that operates on a global satellite network. Coupled with Geoforce’s web-based software applications, it provides service to new asset classes that could not be addressed with larger devices found in the market. The GT0 has an omnidirectional antenna, allowing placement in almost any orientation on an asset. The product is completely sealed, providing extreme durability and the smallest footprint of any device in its class. It is an IP67-rated weatherproof device and has an optional metal bezel for added protection. With an expected five- to seven-year battery life, the tool is simple to deploy. The devices have unique coding for mobile scanning of product information, and communication is 100% satellite-based for visibility in remote locations. Applications for the GT0 include tanks, trailers, containers, cargo units, conex containers, waste disposal bins and more. geoforce.com
Cable helps clean up, speed up wireline industry
EcoSeal from Camesa, a WireCo WorldGroup brand, is an environmentally friendly wireline for the oil and gas industry that eliminates the need for grease injection systems and allows faster rigup time at the well site. The double-seal technology features an inner sleeve and an outer jacket, which reduce the need for additional equipment and make a cleaner job site. With EcoSeal wireline, operators don’t need additional grease pumps that inject grease into traditional pressure control equipment. Flow tubes and extended lubricators also can be eliminated, reducing the operation’s footprint. The smooth technology allows technicians to achieve higher running speeds without the loss of pressure control, and the dual-polymer coating helps eliminate common cable problems like birdcaging and loose armor wires. camesaemc.com
Stabilized microwave systems enhance broadband FPSO communications
The BTS and DVM systems from BATS Wireless focus on alleviating the connectivity problems that frequently affect operators using deepwater and ultradeepwater FPSO vessels, floating storage and offloading units, and drillships. BATS systems facilitate critical production communication and data capabilities between the assets and key support vessels and structures typically used in offshore deployments. The company’s stabilized microwave systems can be integrated with almost any radio and are used to form a high-speed, high-capacity wireless network that can offer up to multigigabit connectivity speeds. Featuring connect and track technology, the systems allow the dynamic connection and continual movement of high-throughput point-to-point and provide links that can automatically adjust for movement, either due to environmental or requirement changes. BATS systems provide a secure, high-bandwidth, private FPSO communications and data pipeline either back onshore, with vessels and platforms infield, or both, without the high recurring costs typically associated with competing satellite solutions. batswireless.com
Flameless tank system reduces risk of storing, separating volatile oil
EnviroVault Corp.’s ThermoVault tank system provides a safe alternative to the traditional firetube separation method commonly in use in the production of volatile crude. The ThermoVault’s catalytic heaters use a flameless radiant heat system safe for use in Class 1, Zone 1 hazardous areas, making them suited for light crude oil separation and storage. These heaters eliminate the potential for the oil to catch fire. Light volatile crude presents many challenges to infrastructure at all levels of production. Upstream production and storage has challenges heating and separating oil from water. Fire tubes with open flames can be dangerous with highly flammable crude. The ThermoVault also reduces space requirement on lease sites because it eliminates the need for a heater treater that must be 7.6 m (25 ft) away from the tank. The system increases safety, mitigates environmental risks and is cost-effective as it reduces reclamation costs, said EnviroVault’s general manager Mike Nielsen. envirovault.com
Plug-in integrates data, analysis, models from software
Elsevier launched Geofacets Connector for Schlumberger Petrel and Studio, which integrates hundreds of thousands of maps and associated papers with the Petrel platform’s analysis and workflow tools. Using the plug-in, geoscientists can query a specific area or topic and, via a single interface, combine georeferenced maps and scientific data from Geofacets with 2-D and 3-D geological and geophysical models created on the Petrel platform. This integration provides a more detailed overview of a region when investigating ways to develop and improve yields and also enables users to validate proprietary data with external insights from sources including the Geological Society of America, the Geological Society of London, the Society for Sedimentary Geology and the Society of Economic Geologists. Geoscientists can therefore make quicker decisions and assess risks relating to exploration projects. This technology integration has the potential to improve the efficiency of workflows and the effectiveness of research earlier in the exploration process. elsevier.com/gfconnector
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