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BP's HIVE visualization workroom improves team communications Three dimensional pictures and stereoscopic images help people understand data and communicate effectively with each other Alan Bailey PNA Contributing Writer
HIVE, BP's Highly Interactive Visualization Environment, looks like a scene from a futuristic movie. People sit in a row, staring through stereoscopic goggles at the curved screen which occupies one end of the darkened room. An image of the Prudhoe Bay oilfield appears on the screen as a series of multi-colored, undulating surfaces, layered one on top of the other. Thin lines depicting oil wells pierce the surfaces.
The operator switches the image into stereo. The wafer-like surfaces now appear to project out of the screen towards the viewers. Wells dangle like threads in the air. As the operator rotates the image for different views of the field, the assemblage of surfaces and wells looks like some misshapen space ship maneuvering into position.
This type of three dimensional visualization enables drilling engineers, geologists and other specialists to save huge amounts of time when planning oilfield development. A single meeting in front of the interactive screen can achieve the same results as weeks of convoluted discussions by telephone and e-mail, said Stephen Lewis, a Prudhoe Bay geophysicist. In addition, the 3-D images of the field provide an accurate and reliable means of assessing issues such as where to drill new wells. The end result is cost savings of millions of dollars to BP.
HIVE development started in 1998 BP started developing HIVE in 1998. Since then, the company has deployed the system to several of its worldwide locations. The company first introduced the system in Anchorage in December 1999.
"Since we've started using this [technology] we've seen so many benefits to it," said Lewis.
A $300,000 high-speed computer coupled to three projectors forms the core of the system. The processing power of the computer enables operators to manipulate complex images on the screen — a single image may consist of as many as 100,000 smaller fragments.
A communications network links HIVE to BP's database of Prudhoe Bay seismic and well data. As a result, people in the visualization workroom see continuously updated information.
For example, the display may depict information about a new well while the well is being drilled. Integrating up-to-date data into a single display also helps weed out errors.
"We can look at [the data] all at once, and we can see when there's something that's not right, it's very, very obvious," said Steve Jones, a Prudhoe Bay geologist.
The system aids teamwork Lewis said that the HIVE system has changed the way in which people work. Instead of sitting in isolation at office desktop computers, specialists now meet as teams to view and discuss data interactively. People can quickly assess a situation and make decisions.
Teams involving a variety of different experts especially benefit from the use of HIVE. For example, geologists meet with drilling engineers in the HIVE workroom to plan new wells.
Jones explained that as a geologist he uses maps and cross-sections to visualize underground structures in three dimensions. Drilling engineers are not used to doing that.
"So, if you can show them exactly what it looks like in three dimensions with the stereo viewing, you're able to communicate much more effectively," Jones said.
Communications networks linking different HIVE sites also enable people at different worldwide locations to view and interact with the same images simultaneously. Experts from different places can then collaborate as teams without incurring the time and cost of traveling.
Better well planning cuts costs Well planners use the system to reduce the number of oilfield drilling problems.
"We're dealing with putting threads through three dimensional objects: the more effective the communication, the less chance [of an error]," said Jones.
Jones said that geological faults, where rocks layers have slid past each other, often cause drilling problems and delays.
Faults show up on HIVE displays as cliff-like structures. Engineers use the displays to plot precise well trajectories which will pierce faults at optimum locations.
Time wasted through drilling problems translates directly into cost. Jones estimates that since the introduction of the HIVE system Prudhoe Bay has saved about $1.5 million in avoiding fault-related problems.
"And that's just one part of the well planning process," he said.
Modeling oilfield facilities Lewis explained that BP also uses the HIVE workroom to display three dimensional models of oilfield facilities such as production modules.
The HIVE images depict facility features such as frameworks, walls, piping and machinery. When displayed on the HIVE screen, an operator can rotate an image to any orientation, display the complete facility structure or zoom in to look at the smallest detail.
The facility images prove especially valuable for training. People can learn the layouts of the oilfield installations without any need to travel to the North Slope. This arrangement saves substantial training costs.
HIVE facility models also assist maintenance and repair projects. Maintenance planners use the HIVE images to work out how to install or remove equipment through the maze of machinery and piping of a North Slope module.
With HIVE's ability to display any kind of data in pictorial form, the technology has many uses. However, BP particularly values the system's ability to facilitate understanding and discussion.
"We're in the business of managing an oilfield, and what that takes is input and communication between lots of different disciplines," said Jones. BP's futuristic visualization workroom seems to break new ground in helping people work together effectively and efficiently.
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