Engineering Workflows

Full Title:

Engineering Workflows in Upstream Production Surveillance and Real Time Optimization

By: Jose A. Alvarez, Kemal Farid, Sebastiano Barbarino

This paper examines the growing need for workflow management in the upstream production industry. Workflow management is the management and improvement of data and activities through specific business, scientific, or engineering processes. This paper discusses the application of workflow management to upstream production surveillance and optimization using software that can integrate large data volumes with multiple engineering tools, including specialized engineering applications such as a well-model simulator or production network simulator.

Engineering workflows can provide new and improved analytical capabilities that are applicable to a wide range of tasks, including field development planning, production deferment tracking, production optimization, and assisted model creation, among many others. Effective workflow management is associated with multiple benefits, including knowledge retention when older employees leave the workforce, knowledge transfer, and process automation that result in the more cost effective management of production assets. Engineering workflows can automate field surveillance by combining production models with access to multiple data sources.

As an example, we present the use of a model-based surveillance-by-exception workflow to produce timely, actionable data for proactive field management. We also present a model-based closed-loop-optimization workflow to improve well stability and increased production rates. These workflows also serve as an excellent model of how the integration of data, tools, and processes can be better achieved through workflows.

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