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Sometimes it is most convenient to interact with a drive through its physical interface right there on site. Other times it would be much more effective to interact with it using a smart phone, tablet or laptop somewhere away from the well. SCADA is the means to capture and communicate well data to a centrally available system in support of this remote monitoring and control. But how easy is it to put a drive on SCADA?

If you have beam pumps and an interest in improving performance, consider adding SCADA remote monitoring. Beam pumps are in heavy use across the US for both conventional and unconventional plays. These workhorses must be monitored and controlled to optimize production and minimize cost.

Oil and gas operations increasingly involve SCADA for remote monitoring and control. These systems enable faster decision-making and action-taking, particularly when wells are widespread and fields are many.

SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition) connects systems in one place to people (and potentially other systems) elsewhere. Pump drive monitoring and control is greatly aided by SCADA. Pumpers can review the status of all their wells, then prioritize the day’s travels based on what they learn. If authorized, they can also make control changes. When preset parameters like maximum torque are exceeded, pumpers are automatically alerted to the issue.

If there was ever any doubt whether oilmen are concerned about data security, it was dispelled at the recent Mid-Continent Digital Oilfield Conference held in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Hundreds of attendees buzzed with talk of retail data breaches and the implications for the oilfield. As a sponsor and event exhibitor, we were able to discuss key security concerns and how Well Optix helps address them.

Well Optix will exhibit at this year’s Digital Oil Conference in Tulsa, OK. Kimberly Early, Well Optix Sales and Marketing Manager, will present at the conference on a topic that is considered to be a key issue in the digital oilfield - security. Make plans to hear and see the presentation of "How Secure is Your Well?". The two day event will be hosting its second year as a conference that focuses on how digital technologies have improved and changed the oilfield business on February 18-19, 2015.

SCADA has grown in importance within the oilfield over the last several years. More and more people are using it as a tool to remotely monitor their wells.  Being able to know the status of their wells 24/7 allows them to increase their uptime, saves them money on repairs, and can help increase their production by optimizing the performance of the well. 

While the concept of the digital oilfield is not new, several trends are converging that should accelerate technology adoption. These trends are:

• Increasing production variability
• Increasing recovery costs
• Mobile technology adoption

Combined, these trends are pushing operators to move faster toward fully automating their fields and connecting them to the rest of the company through remote monitoring and control.

Trend #1: Increasing production variability

Unconventional resource plays have opened up great new opportunities for oil and gas companies. The potential volume of hydrocarbons now accessible in the US is staggering and there has been a rush to grab the opportunity.

More and more, operators are gathering field data digitally using SCADA systems. Assets are tracked. Production is tracked. Increasingly, equipment performance is tracked and managed remotely.

There are many advantages to using remote monitoring in conjunction with pumping equipment.