Computers in the Workplace: Midstream Oil & Gas

I have worked in the midstream oil & gas industry for nearly three decades; during this period, I have been involved from the design and construction to commissioning and operation of oil & gas pipelines and related facilities.  The technology used across the value chain is broad, has grown and evolved, and has become more and more dependent on it as the operation and control of these systems become more complex.

Midstream Oil & Gas involves the gathering and transportation of oil, gas, and other related products from the production field to processing plants and other industrial users.  Computers used in the space are responsible for the following aspects:

1. Engineering & Construction
   • Engineering & Design – Computers are used in the design of pipelines and related facilities via specialized CAD (Computer-Aided Design) software. Computers are also used to calculate stress, hydraulics, and other complex engineering requirements.
   • Land Survey – Computers are used in the routing and location of pipelines and other facilities across the land. Specialized survey equipment is used to determine the geolocation of the proposed pipeline in order to obtain the rights to build across private and public lands.  In the field, surveyors use GPS (Global Positioning System) equipment to plot the physical location of the proposed facilities on the ground.  GPS systems are computers outfitted with radios and antennas that obtain the geographic position from a constellation of satellites that are constantly transmitting signals to earth intended to provide these devices the ability to triangulate their location on the earth’s surface.
   • Construction – Computers are used to collect information on the installed pipes and equipment as they go in the ground. This includes material and quality data that is, in most cases, required to be collected by the pipeline operator.
2. Operations & Maintenance
   • SCADA – Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition systems are the central nervous systems of pipelines. Data from all of the remote devices and sensors on the operation and control of the pipeline is collected and analyzed in real-time via SCADA systems.   Computers are the backbone infrastructure of all SCADA systems. Along with software, provide controllers of pipelines with the information needed to respond to changes and other events that occur every day.
   • Measurement – Computers perform another essential role in measuring volumes of gas and oil collected from production fields. This data is aggregated in a central system to analyze and bill customers.
   • Inspection – Smart Pigs are specialized devices with onboard computers and sensors launched inside pipelines to inspect for damage or internal corrosion.
   • Cathodic Protection – Computers are used to monitor the potential current potential of buried pipelines to ensure their protection from corrosion.

Employees of pipeline companies play an important role in the operation of pipelines, using technology to control and monitor assets.  Cybersecurity has been an emerging topic within pipeline companies in the past five years. It will have a brighter spotlight in years to come with the recent cyber-attack that forced the Colonial pipeline to shut down.  While companies have and will continue to invest in advanced computer systems to control and protect pipelines, the uninformed and untrained employees will always represent the weakest link in any security system.  For this reason, employees must invest time in computer training and education to recognize and prevent cybersecurity threats, along with the advancing technology used in the day-to-day operation of pipelines.

Computers in the design, construction, and operation of pipelines and related systems will continue to evolve and become more necessary as time goes by.  With pipeline companies looking to become more environmentally responsible and regulations becoming more restrictive on pollution and associated reporting, computers will continue to play an essential role in the operation and control of pipelines.

References

Finnan, K., & Melrose, J. (2017). Cybersecurity for pipelines, other SCADA systems: It’s critical to stay up-to-date with cybersecurity measures to improve defenses against cyberattacks. Control Engineering, 64(8)

Laith Abed Sabri, Subhi Aswad Mohammed, & Mohammed Ibrahim Issa. (2017). Design of SCADA System for Oil Pipeline Control Using LabVIEW