Technological Advances in Hydraulic Fracturing

I have recently come across some very interesting facts that could become very important for the energy industry. Hydraulic fracturing has become more and more common in the world today as a method to create an oil or gas well. There is much effort that goes into creating just one of these wells. So companies that have multiple fleets to produce these wells have a hard time keeping track of all the sites and the information produced from them. These companies are becoming more and more reliant on the data that is compiled from these locations.

Fracking fleet. Photo by Kansas Geological Survey.

One fleet is usually composed of multiple trucks. Some of these trucks house multiple pieces of equipment including engines to run this equipment. That’s a lot of data to keep track of; which is why there is a separate vehicle called a data van that has the sole purpose of keeping track of the data. There are not many companies that take advantage of collecting this data. It gives a company the opportunity to speed up the production of the well and also save time and money. 

The benefits that come from collecting this data are great. Access to the time series data makes it much simpler to track down the source of a problem when it occurs. It also makes routine maintenance checks much easier to track. This allows planning for future checks to become almost effortless. Canary Labs has developed a solution to effectively manage these dynamic assets as they move around the country between different fleets. The AxiomTrend allows the data to be collected with no loss and sorted by fleet which shows the individual trucks associated with that fleet at a centralized corporate site by satellite or cellular connection. All this data can be accessed offsite and can be viewed anywhere. The end result is a more efficient, easy to maintain fleets that speed up the production process and allows better utilization of equipment, resources and most importantly increases profitability.

This is just one of the many industries that is being shaped by the collection of data. It leads me to wonder how time series data can change other industries as well…

The Value in Time Series Data

At first glance, when I see large amounts of data, boredom quickly overcomes me. I would compare it to trying to read a different language or hearing a highly intelligent person try to explain a complicated task. The data seems worthless, but if used correctly it can be quite valuable. The simple truth is, after you see the value in something, a perspective can quickly change. At least, that is what caused my perspective on time series data to change. 

What is time series data? It is the constant monitoring of a piece of equipment; a steady stream of information that might record a machine's speed and productivity. It gives the company access to a timeline of what is happening and what has happened to the piece of equipment. After hearing that explanation, you might be inclined to think that there is a whole lot of pointless information that could be recorded. However, this is not the case.

The bottom line is that time series data can prove to be invaluable to a company. It gives operational insight that can help a piece of equipment run more efficiently. I now have access to information that could help me discover how a piece of equipment might be might be run more safely and efficiently. Looking at this gives a timeline of everything that happens to the equipment and may help me prevent future operator errors and

The AxiomTrend allows you to stream live data anytime and anywhere.

equipment failures. In short, it provides efficiency. Why would you not want your factory to run more efficiently? For me, when it comes to making decisions, I like to have all the facts. Having the time series data available provides these facts to a company and makes the decision-making process a whole lot quicker. Not only that, but it can also lead to some interesting observations that could be very beneficial for the future of your company.

There are lots of different options as to which software to choose when looking to record your time series data. However, If you want quality software that gives the answers you need and yet is easy to use, the Canary Historian is your best bet. It not only provides you with all the data that many other historians erase, it provides accurate and reliable information that can prove to be helpful. Many historians compress the data being recorded which only creates problems for the future. A company might see gaps in their time series data which leads to loss of time, value and quality parameters. The Canary Historian gives you all he data. The philosophy behind this, is that your data is your data. All I have to do is sit back and let the software do the rest. 

When you see the benefits of time series data, the answer is quite clear: it has too much value to be overlooked. If more companies recorded and utilized time series data, it would leave them asking the question, 'why didn't we take advantage of this sooner?' I would say, it was because they didn't see the value in it.