Ancient Memorial and Software Report

Posted on May 27, 2014 by Gefei Liu, PVI

The oldest written Chinese characters are on bronze ware, stones and mostly on bamboo or wood slips. The bamboo or wood slips allowed the Chinese to preserve their history, keep records and exchange knowledge, but one can only imagine how hard it would be to read one of these books.

The legend says that Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China, was very diligent in managing official businesses. He set a rule for himself that he would not go to bed until he finished reading 31kg (68lb) of bamboo slips of memorials submitted by subordinates. You can tell the amount of reading at that time was measured by weight. Back then, reading was a physical exercise as well as a brain exercise. By the way, Qin Shi Huang’s reading speed was amazing. By calculation, the memorials he read every day exceeded 300,000 words.

Later, plain silk joined the bamboo and wood slips as a material for writing and painting. Silk has advantages over the slips in that it was much lighter and could be cut into desired shapes and folded, as well as easy to be kept and carried. Due to its cost, silk was never as popular as the slips so it was later replaced by another miraculous invention: “the paper”, which we have been using till now.

One of many disadvantages of bamboo or wood slips is its excessive use of natural resources. The problem might not have been so severe at that time because the population was small and not many people read. Now, the environmental impact of paper is more significant than ever as paper becomes a cheap commodity due to highly mechanized harvesting of wood.

The next movement is to create a paperless society, which would not use paper to print texts, but would display texts on a computer screen or mobile devices.

For our drilling software users, going paperless does not have to mean they’d lose something. Digital content in the form of MS Word or PDF is not just greener but provides an unmatched convenience. This picture shows an MS Word report generated by CEMPRO, our mud displacement model.

Report from CEMPRO

Converting to a paperless practice brings many advantages such as saving on printing documents, photocopies and storage space, as well as easy email management and improved customer service. Remember that companies like Salesforce always remind us of how important and essential it is to take care of your customer service!

Today, it is tough to make great software because you have to make it environment friendly as well as user friendly.

Mud Reporting: A Piece of Cake

Posted on May 20, 2014 by Gefei Liu, PVI

Daily tasks can become heavy burdens if we do not use proper tools. These burdens cause us more stress and cost more time. Time is money, but even money cannot buy us time. On the other hand, if we are equipped with the right tools, our productivity increases. We can be happier and capable of controlling what we do.

For mud engineers, daily life starts with the preparation of mud reports in the early morning. In the old days, mud engineers used paper forms to record mud properties, usages and costs. Nowadays, most mud engineers use Excel spreadsheets or computer software like MUDPRO (drilling mud reporting) to do the same jobs. Software has become our most essential weapon to fight the daily battle of mud reporting.

But, not all weapons are created equal. Excel, while serving the purpose of electronically filing mud data, has limitations on keeping track of costs and mud volumes, because the start of each day of drilling is the continuation of the last day of drilling: we need to calculate the accumulative cost and the current inventory of chemicals. Once the drilling is done, mud engineers are required to generate end-of-well reports. At this stage, Excel’s limitations become more obvious. As the number of wells being drilled increase, the difficulties of using Excel arise exponentially.

A better approach is to use a software like MUDPRO, with a back bone of database to record and more importantly, to manage the data. Yes, it is a new piece of software we need to get familiar with, but once you use it for a few days, it can become a habit and a routine; a good one you want to keep. No matter how many days the drilling phase may take, MUDPRO keeps all the history in its database. So, daily efforts of mud reporting are almost the same and at the end of the drilling process, you can just click a couple of buttons to generate the end-of-well recaps.

If we compare the efforts in the overall performance of using Excel and mud reporting software like MUDPRO VS drilling days, we can see the divergence between the two lines.

Reporting Efforts vs Drilling Days

Managing our time is managing our lives. Using the right software saves us time and enhances our lives. MUDPRO makes mud reporting a piece of cake, which you can enjoy with a cup of morning coffee.

5 Benefits of Drilling Software Training

Posted on May 13, 2014 by Gefei Liu, PVI

These days software, in general, becomes more and more user-friendly, even as it gets more and more sophisticated. We, as users, also have more confidence in using software without being bothered to read manuals or attend training sessions. Our busy schedules do not allow us to attend software training.

The situation is the same for drilling software users. As drilling engineers, whether we work in oil companies or in service companies, we always have next wells to drill, meetings to attend and deadlines to meet. We are so busy focusing on output that sometimes we forget about taking the time to receive input and recharge ourselves.

Unlike MS Office, drilling engineering software is not general-purpose software. It requires more specific knowledge to obtain results and understand the meanings of those results. Drilling software training should always be the first step to effectively use a software. Here are the reasons why software training is necessary:

1. Understand the engineering models

All drilling engineering software is based on certain mathematical and engineering models. Understanding these models behind the graphic user interfaces helps us acknowledge the limitations of the software as well as the capabilities.

2. Interpret data meaningfully

Drilling software needs input data such as survey, BHA, wellbore and mud properties to predict hook load, pump pressure and ECD, etc. Like other software, only meaningful input data can lead to meaningful output data. It is necessary for users to know what the required input data is and to explain the meanings of the output data and charts to their colleagues or clients.

3. Increase efficiency

Training helps potential users to see the big picture as well as the tricks and features of the software. Once users know more aspects of the drilling software, they can use the software more efficiently. For example, survey data is essential to describe the well path and calculate the torque, drag and hydraulics. Survey data can be in various formats, Excel, text or PDF. All of our software can import data from these formats. The survey import feature saves tremendous time, especially when importing survey data from a PDF file.

4. Gain confidence

Software training connects the users with the developers of the software. The 2-way communication helps the users understand the ideas and structures of the software. Once users understand the inside calculations, the software is no longer a black box to them. Training removes the mysterious veil of the software. Users become more confident on explaining the results to clients.

5. Guide and influence

The software development training also provides a platform for users to influence and even guide the software development. Users, involved in field operations, can give suggestions, which can enhance the functions. This leads to better versions and win-win situations for software vendors and users.

Ancient Chinese philosopher Confucius once said:

“I hear and I forget.

I see and I remember.

I do and I understand.”

How true this is to drilling software training.

Prevention is Better than Cure

Posted on May 6, 2014 by Gefei Liu, PVI

Many of us wouldn’t go to see a doctor until we get sick. This not only costs more money, but also causes more pain. Preventive medical assessments may be seemingly unnecessary and unpleasant, but it can help identify potential health problems, save lives, and reduce medical costs.

We often hear of some famous physical doctors or medical experts, who have remedied illness, when troubles surfaced. As a matter of fact, we are all doctors ourselves, in a sense that we take care of our daily lives, command our bodies to certain tasks, and avoid certain activities. We, as doctors ourselves, play a big role every day in maintaining our health. We are all CEOs of our own way of life and happiness. If we do our best to keep up good habits, take care of our bodies regularly, we will save ourselves lots of trouble and money in medical expenses.

Prevention can be beneficial to drilling engineering as well. Our experiences gained and lessons learned help us make right decisions for our next well. Drilling engineering software also serves as a great tool to identify any potential problems in our existing drilling plan or make sound engineering designs.

Take an example of cementing job design. One of the key elements of a successful cementing job is good displacement efficiency (less mud channeling). We have known that several parameters such as casing standoff, flow rate, differentials of fluid properties and hole deviation affect the effectiveness of fluid displacement. Now, with the help of computer modeling, we can see the impacts of these parameters. The following picture shows the mud concentration in the annulus at the end of the cementing job, where casing standoff is 0% throughout the wellbore (casting touches the borehole).

Displacement Efficiency for Casing Standoff 0%

You can see that there are quite large red areas in track 3, indicating poor displacement efficiency.

Now, we change the casing standoff to 70% and keep the other parameters the same. The following picture shows the much improved mud concentration after displacement:

Displacement Efficiency for Casing Standoff 70%

Time and money (not to mention headaches) could be saved if drilling engineers undergo through all the engineering assessments before problems arise. Be sure to use your know-how, skills, experiences, lessons and available drilling software. Having a complete understanding of what will happen gives you a greater sense of control, reduces risks and saves money.

Floating Egg

Posted on April 29, 2014 by Gefei Liu, PVI

I did a simple science project with my 8-year-old daughter to show the action of buoyancy.

Step 1: Put a raw egg in a glass full of water. The egg sinks to the bottom.

Step 2: Keep adding salt and stir the water. You will feel guilty of wasting too much salt, but eventually, the egg arises.

My daughter and I were both amazed by this simple demonstration of buoyancy of salt water. Recall that Archimedes’ principle states that the upward force on a submerged object (egg) is equal to the weight of the water that it displaces. Salt water weights more than fresh water, this difference of upward force (buoyancy) makes the egg arise.

In drilling mud situations, saltwater drilling fluids can be formulated with high-density brines, such as calcium chloride, calcium bromide, etc. The mud weight is dependent upon the specific gravity (SG) of salts added and concentration of these salts. The heavier the mud, the higher the bottom hole pressure is. Note that one of the main functions of drilling fluids is to provide hydrostatic pressure to prevent formation fluids from entering into the well. Heavy mud brings some advantages and some disadvantages to other aspects of drilling operations because of the buoyancy it creates.

Buoyancy makes drill string appear light. This reduces the side force, which pushes drill string against wellbore. Therefore, there is less torque and drag for a heavier drilling fluid system, but what helps also causes problems in this case: too much buoyancy revokes the effectiveness of transferring the pipe weight to the bit.

When cementing a casing, due to the large size of the casing and the big difference of fluid densities in the annulus and inside the pipe, the buoyancy could be so great that the casing could be pushed out of the hole if it is not chained down.

Let’s use Dr.DE (drilling engineering tool box software) to show a couple of examples.

Consider an 11.75” OD casing with weight of 47lb/ft. The casing shoe is at 12,345 ft in a vertical well. The annulus is full of cement slurry of 16ppg. We assume mud weight of 8.33 ppg. With the help of Dr.DE the calculation shows that the casing will be lifted up.

Casing Will Be Lifited Up

Now, change the mud weight to 9 ppg, due to this change, the hydraulic pressure inside the casing increases and the casing will not be lifted up by the buoyancy.

Casing will NOT be lifited up

Wooden Barrel Theory

Posted on April 22, 2014 by Gefei Liu, PVI

Have you ever seen those old-fashioned wooden barrels? I recently ordered one, Of course, my intention is not to study the theory indicated in the title, but use it as my foot SPA.

Because of the way wooden barrels are made, people have derived a theory: the capacity of a barrel is determined not by the longest wooden bars, but by the shortest, as you can see illustrated below.

The theory can apply to numerous situations. A chain is only as strong as its weakest link. The durability of a product depends on the part that fails first. In military situations, sometimes all it takes to win a battle is to find the weakest point of the enemy and attack it. The performance of a team is severely limited by the least capable member. A fleet will only move as fast as its slowest ship. In plant or crop growth situations, increasing the amount of plentiful nutrients did not increase a plant’s growth. Only by increasing the amount of the limiting nutrient was the growth of a plant improved.

For a software product, we need to ensure the robustness of major functions. Ironically, the overall quality of a piece of software does not depend on the maximum number of fancy features, but on the minimum number of bugs or errors.

Fancy features in a software package may be eye-catching, but bugs are the killers of its usability. As we expand a computer program by adding more features, the chances of having more bugs grow at the same rate, if not a greater rate. It is up to our software development team to look at the balance of features and bugs.

We may have the best idea or architecture of a software package; however, if our implementation process creates fatal shortcomings, the success of the product will not exceed the size of the fatal mistakes.

Same rules apply to the drilling software development, including the levels of developers and qualities of programs. Needless to say, we strive to have more comprehensive programs (with minimum bugs). We also heavily invest in the usability of software by eliminating as many bugs as possible. After all, if there is just one short wooden bar on the barrel, all the other bars that are longer than the short one are actually wasted, right?

Imagination, Prediction and Reality

Posted on April 15, 2014 by Gefei Liu, PVI

There is a joke about the human brain and it goes like this: our brain has two parts. One is the left brain and the other is in the right. The right one has nothing left and the left one has nothing right.

According to the theory of left-brain or right-brain dominance, a person who is “left-brained” is often said to be more logical, analytical, and objective, while a person who is” right-brained” is said to be more intuitive, thoughtful, and subjective.

Artists may use the right side of their brains more to maximize creativity, but if they exhaust their imagination, their art works lose their appeal.

Sometimes, we, as viewers, participate in the creative process when we enjoy a good piece of art. This can be demonstrated in our appreciation of the statue of Venus de Milo. The statue is widely renowned for the mystery of her missing arms. The missing arms do not stop people from appreciating this marvelous work of ancient Greek. People are fascinated by the missing parts and are creating their own interpretations of the possible positions of the missing arms. By imagination, everyone creates a Venus statue in their mind. Maybe that is the everlasting beauty of Venus: the incompleteness of an original work of art.

However, in the world of engineering, we strive to remove any uncertainties as much as possible. Drilling software is a tool for drilling engineers to help them predict what will happen on the rig floor and downhole.

The following graph shows the hook load prediction using TADPRO (torque and drag model).

Hook Load Prediction Using TADPRO (torque and drag model).

Charts like these give drilling engineers guidelines as to what to expect during drilling operations. This way, we can see the upcoming reality with little imagination.

A Season for Giving

Posted on April 8, 2014 by Jerry Murphy, PVI

Everyone knows that the season for giving begins in November for Thanksgiving and continues in December with the Christmas holiday. More money is spent on gifts at this time than any other time in the year. Many folks also become very generous by giving to charities, the homeless and people in need of food during the holiday season. Large companies and individuals alone will take time out of their day to volunteer to feed people holiday meals, or give large donations to charitable causes. While these are honorable things to do during Thanksgiving and Christmas, it sometimes appears that we forget about actions like these once the holidays are over.

Whether we accept it or not, there are people around the world, around the country and right in the city we live in who are in desperate need of help every day. Many people that we may help feed Thanksgiving dinner will not have anything at all to eat the very next day.

There are several non-profit organizations that assist in caring for homeless, sick and hungry people; however, their funding is limited and the resources that they require can be overwhelming. One of these organizations is the Houston Food Bank which provides non-perishable food and meals to people in need around the city of Houston. This organization requires quite a bit of support and thrives on volunteers and donations to exist.

A few years back, I took time out of my day to volunteer at the Houston Food Bank. It was quite an experience! I sorted food and helped prepare care packages for needy families. I felt good about the idea that I was actually working first hand towards helping someone who needed support.

I am very fortunate to work in such a prosperous industry - Oil & Gas. I am very thankful for the opportunity every day. I network with many professional people that, like me, are blessed to have a solid career and foundation to support their families and live a happy life. However, I feel that we can do things that can support those in need. Several large oil companies hold impressive events each year that raise money for charities. I always try to support events like these. I think they are excellent ideas.

Since I work in oil and gas sales, I have had the opportunity to network with many people on golf courses. Golf is a great game and even if you are not a good player, you can enjoy the outdoors and have a great time relaxing and even discussing business on the course.

A few years ago, I decided to step out and see if I could make more of a difference for hungry people in Houston. I came up with an idea for Pegasus Vertex to host a charity golf tournament that would raise money for the Houston Food Bank. Fortunately everyone at PVI was excited about the idea. The Oil & Gas Charity Golf tournament is a way for companies and individuals in our business to take one day and help make a difference. We also have a food drive at the tournament and collect non-perishable items to donate to the organization. Several companies have supported our cause and helped us sponsor this event.

This year’s tournament is held at the beautiful Augusta Pines Golf Club, right outside The Woodlands, Texas. The event will be held on Monday, May 12, 2014, the week after the Offshore Technology Conference. To sponsor or play in the event, you don’t have to be a part of the oil and gas industry. You don’t even have to be a golfer – you can simply sponsor a hole or give a donation. We still have openings for players and sponsorships as well.

It doesn’t have to be Thanksgiving or Christmas to give to someone. You can make a difference at this event and you can also have a lot of fun!

For more information on the Oil & Gas Charity Golf Tournament, please visit www.pvisoftware.com.

Language War, No More

Posted on April 1, 2014 by Gefei Liu, PVI

I made a stop in Paris during my trip to Dubai. Although I don’t speak a word of French, I somehow managed to get around and order meals. I’ve heard from others that some French people deliberately speak French to English-speaking visitors, even though they’re able to speak English. Whether this is true or not, I’m not sure. I myself didn’t meet many people who do not speak English in Paris. If this statement is true, which I doubt it; it would be hard for us to understand one another. To communicate in our own native tongue is hard enough, why create an artificial barrier?

While visiting the Louvre museum, I noticed that all the labels are in French, which I found quite visitor-unfriendly, since most of the visitors in that museum are foreigners. This made my quick tour of the museum quicker than anticipated. I briefly looked through most of the art works except one painting that caught my attention: I even did not need to read the label to understand it. I was so fascinated by this painting that I even took a picture of it.

As you may already know, the painting depicts the Bible story of David and Goliath. According to the Bible, David heard that the Philistine giant Goliath challenged the Israelites to send their own champion to decide the outcome in single combat. David went out to face Goliath alone. David picked five smooth stones from a nearby brook and struck Goliath in the forehead with a stone from his sling. Goliath fell dead, and David took Goliath's sword and beheaded him. I read that story a couple of weeks ago and it was delightful to refresh my memory in front of the giant painting.

As they say, art does not have borders. Art does not rely on language to manifest its meaning, just like we can appreciate and understand the paintings and sculptures from France and Italy without speaking their languages.

I’ve been involved in the drilling engineering field for a long time and met many drilling engineers from different countries, mostly during our software training sessions. We all are able to communicate with each other easily despite our language differences. I figured out it must be due to the following reasons:

Most people in the drilling industry can understand and speak some English.
Tables and charts are easier to understand than articles.
Our software has been translated into Spanish, Russian, Chinese and Portuguese.

It is our goal and effort to create some universal engineering tools for our drilling community.

This is Your Life

Posted on March 25, 2014 by Gefei Liu, PVI

To make a long story short. When I was in Banff, Canada I went to this store and saw a big poster with the words: “This is Your Life”. I was quite touched by these words, so much that I bought a few inspirational posters once I was back in Houston.

Now, one of them is hanging on the wall in our break room in the office.

The story behind this poster hanging on our wall is that someone wrote these sentences as some kind of resolution to inspire himself. His friends found them so inspiring that they started to copy the writings, then, this guy started out a business by selling these kinds of posters. Why not? Making money while inspiring people seems like a good way of earning a living.

Even though it is difficult to follow them, I agree with every phrase in the poster. These phrases are the author’s personal words, but I believe it is a good idea to put the poster in our office area. After all, we’re all just normal people before we are software developers and salesmen and we all need inspiration in life.

We make drilling software. The quality of our software is the reflection of the dedication we put in our work. We spend 1/3 of our time working. Our work is part of our lives. If we can improve our lives, we improve our software.

This is our life and this is our software.

Pegasus Vertex, Inc. – Blog

Breakroom for Drilling Professionals

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