Case Study of the World's First Offshore Implementation of a Drilling Automation Platform with Multiple Closed-Loop Applications

Abstract

Drilling automation technology has been successfully deployed and in operation for several years. While the technologies covered in this paper had already been deployed separately in other regions, this case study is not only Malaysia's first drilling automation project but also the world's first deployment that includes the automation platform combined with two third-party closed-loop control applications (Apps). The study details the technologies, their implementation approach, and key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure the success of the project. Technical and procedural measures necessary to ensure the safe and efficient use of the system are explained. The project's measured KPIs were collected and analyzed throughout multiple wells and are presented in the paper to measure the performance and success of the project. Throughout the execution of the project, the automation platform successfully coordinated control ownership of the two Apps. A comparison by the drilling contractor of KPIs with and without the automation technology successfully validates the benefits in performance and consistency.