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they can add value through the cloud and screwdriver on the pump and the Internet.” listen to the vibration on the

A case in point is condition monitoring screwdriver. When you are talk-

Expanding and big analog data analytics that allows ing about these big pumps that

Automation for a predictive maintenance plan. cost thousands and thousands

Industrial Internet of Things of dollars, that wasn’t a good is out there, but ‘work needs

Monitoring Mud Pumps enough solution for them. NOV on IIoT to be done.’

National Oilwell Varco (NOV) is a perfect implemented a condition-based example. The oil services giant was deal- monitoring system so they can,

By Gregory Hale ing with trying to solve issues with mud communicate on a single standard. On not only know when they have a pumps that circulate drilling fuids. Mud the commercial IoT they have a really ndustrial Internet of Things (IIot) problem, but be able to pinpoint pumps stabilize pressure and support the good way to communicate with the is nebulous term bandied about in where exactly in the pump the

I well during the drilling process and drill- regular Internet. That won’t cut it on the just about any conversation when seal is actually leaking and hav- ing fuids provide friction reduction and industrial side of things because of the it comes to automation, when in real- ing a problem.”

Learning about a valve issue ity, the level of communication already determinism that is needed for the indus- a means to remove cuttings. NOV created often occurs when the leaks are so severe conducted on a daily basis for the past trial environment.” a leak detection system for hex pumps. they induce large discharge pressure decade or so has been a precursor to the “IIoT is just about taking a thing, The hex mud pump relies on six pistons, fuctuations and create washout damages. advanced technology on the verge of automating that thing and adding value six suction valves, and six discharge “When a severe leak is detected, we local- becoming the industry norm. to the Cloud and the Internet,” said Jamie valves. A rotating asymmetric cam drives ize it manually by listening to the fuid

With sensors becoming ubiquitous and Smith, National Instruments’ director of the six pistons, according to Pål Jacob modules while the pump is running, but it data rushing through the enterprise like embedded systems product management, Nessjøen, formerly with NOV and now is diffcult to uniquely localize the leak and a raging creek after a torrential spring quoting a conference keynote speaker with Kelda Drilling Controls.

distinguish between a suction valve leak rainstorm, properly using Big Data and discussing the IIoT. “If you boil it down “Previously, they were listening and a discharge valve leak,” Nessjøen said.

putting everything in context becomes to those three simple steps, I think a lot to these pumps and trying to under- stand if there was a leak,” Phillippi of companies can start. They can look for paramount for users. When it comes to valve leaks, they said. “Sometimes they would put a things they want to automate and then “Today, we need to hire a slew of often develop quickly so manual mathematicians to help us out,” said

Chet Mroz, chief executive at Yokogawa

North America. “There are about three times more data points coming in.” There will be even more data coming online as Mroz said there will be direct integra- tion of the distributed control system to subsea.

While IIoT is not a complete pack- age yet, there are companies employing pieces to garner additional knowledge and productivity. “There is a lot of IIoT out there, but there is a lot of work that needs to be done,” said Brian Phillippi, one of the managers on the C Series IO products at Austin, Texas-based National

Instruments. “A lot of companies already are taking in a lot of data.”

Holding Back IIoT

There are some big issues, however, pre- venting full adoption of the IIoT.

One is fnding the right people with the correct skill set. “Some of the hottest jobs right now are the data scientists that can make sense of all the data,” Phillippi said. “Another big one in terms of adop- tion of the IIoT is going to be security.

Every week now, we are hearing about some kind of hack going on and I think the industry as a whole has to get bet- ter about embedded security. The third thing causing a lot of problems of IIoT is the ability of everything being able to

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