S P R I N G
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NEWS R E M O T E C O M M U N I C AT I O N S E X P L O R AT I O N
Data in Data out Optimising data transfer from remote locations Does volume mean value?
Home from Home Why crew comms may need 10Mbits
Sustaining profitability with low oil prices
Remote Insight Report Africa’s connectivity updates
Top Tips for EU data security legislation
VSAT can cause 50% downtime (solution inside) • RigNet enters Kazakhstan • Acquisition creates largest space based M2M company • GE invests US$millions in industry • EMC onboard construction vessel • O3b and Hermes Datacoms light up oil and gas comms in Angola • PLUS: The Quarterly, diary dates, product updates and much more inside!
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Contents
Welcome
Spring 2015
Our sector has taken a turn in the last few months. Oil prices remain in a slump and the latest figures of working oil rigs indicate a downward curve. Therefore, exploration and production companies will likely be facing some tough calls in 2015, in terms of maximising productivity and profitability, amid expected cuts in resource expenditure. It’s not long ago that the world dealt with similar hits. See the feature on page 20, where Julian Pickering of Geologix harks back to a similar situation in 2008. But we have come a long way since then in terms of technology. In this edition we take a look at how to smarten up the E&P data flow. There are several elements to consider for getting this kind of information working harder (and more cost effectively) along the pipeline. For example, while real-time data transfer can provide valuable insights and production updates, could that bandwidth be utilised more efficiently? Check out the Data In : Data Out features on pages 20 to 27. For those planning, currently implementing, or upgrading a digital oilfield, perhaps you will find some ideas about greasing your networks in this issue. Georgina Elrington Editor@OffCommNews.com
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Inside this issue
OffComm News is a trading name of CTLD Publishing Ltd. Company No. 7774639 ISSN 2051-9362. Read the digital version online by clicking the current edition image at http://OffCommNews.com. OffComm News is available in print quarterly by subscription only. Digital subscriptions are free via www.goo.gl/kr3bz For advertising contact: marketing@OffCommNews.com For editorial & subscription queries email: editor@OffCommNews.com or telephone 44 (0) 203 239 1777
Whether online or in print, copyright remains that of CTLD Publishing Ltd. It is prohibited to photocopy, scan, distribute either hard copies or digital versions on a website, via email or anywhere else without appropriate accreditation i.e. Source: OffComm News magazine. Reprints are available. The publisher is not responsible for the endorsement for products, services or opinion offered, nor any subsequent effects relating to accuracy, goodwill, substantiations or consequential outcomes relating to news, features or advertisements.
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23
FEATURE Data Replication Downgrading from mission critical to occasionally needed
FEATURE Optimising data transfer from remote locations. Vaughan O’Grady investigates Part 1
16
25
PRODUCT NEWS The latest developments for remote communications
FEATURE For the digital oil field, the time for real-time is now
18 INTERVIEW No bandwidth costs for remote comms Find out more from Novelsat’s CEO, Itzik Wulkan
26 FEATURE Does data volume mean data value? Vaughan O’Grady investigates Part 2
19 OPINION Preparing O&G for HTS Denis Sutherland at iDirect gives us his view on the HTS market today
28 COMPLIANCE Neil Cross of Advanced 365 gives us his Top Tips for EU data security legislation compliance
20 EXPERTISE Sustaining profitability with low oil prices Dr Julian Pickering, CEO at Geologix, shares his insight for the emerging digital oilfield
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31 FEATURE Home from Home HTS and the impact on crew and welfare comms systems
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The Quarterly - Marketplace Roundup Stay up to date with the market on these pages in every issue. In between, get the news to your inbox as it happens: http://goo.gl/kr3bz
EMC steps onboard Ceona Offshore’s latest O&G subsea construction vessel Emerging Markets Communications (EMC) has been selected by Ceona to provide onboard communications for its newest field development asset, the Ceona Amazon. The deal includes the delivery of satellite connectivity services for the vessel’s main operations, including voice, and offshore comms for crew welfare ~ using SpeedNet for faster internet browsing. The use of dual antennas will help to avoid blockage caused by the main pipe-laying tower on the vessel.
Who’s Who Wavestream, a Gilat Satellite Networks subsidiary that provides solid-state power amplifiers for mission-critical defence and broadcast satellite communications systems, has appointed past President and cofounder, James Rosenberg as CTO. Picture courtesy of Ceona Services (UK) Ltd
SpeedCast marks deals for energy sector and tanker fleet Global satellite comms service provider, SpeedCast International Limited, has been awarded a multi-year comms contract from Arab Maritime Petroleum Transport Company (AMPTC), a provider of maritime transport services of hydrocarbon substances in the Middle East. SpeedCast will provide satellite network connectivity for AMPTC’s entire fleet of 10 vessels, initially for three years. AMPTC’s LPG carriers, crude oil tankers, and product carriers will be fitted with end-to-end VSAT
services to enable corporate networking, internet access, voice communications, and crew welfare services. SpeedCast designed the system leveraging its global Ku-band network to meet the specific requirements of AMPTC. SpeedCast also recently opened a new office in Houston, Texas; set up a division dedicated to the energy sector; and was appointed by Inmarsat, as a distribution partner for its flagship maritime service, FleetBroadband, and Fleet One.
O3b & Hermes Datacomms light up oil and gas comms, Angola In collaboration, O3b Networks and Hermes Datacomms will deliver advanced communications services to a major energy customer in Angola. The deal enables ultra low latency services to oil and gas bases and camps in the region ~ before extending network reach offshore. Low latency connections are a critical enabler for energy clients, allowing numerous delay and performance sensitive applications such as ERP (Citrix, Oracle, SAP) and real-time monitoring and control. John Finney, chief commercial officer for O3b Networks, explained: “O3b and Hermes Datacomms can deliver powerful new capabilities to the energy industry enabling sophisticated cloud based applications and streaming HD video to
remote and offshore areas that until now, could only have minimal connectivity or had to replicate IT infrastructure onsite.”
Intelsat S.A. David McGlade, currently Chairman and CEO, will transition to executive chairman, effective 1 April 2015. Stephen Spengler will become chief executive officer. NovelSat, a leader in satellite transmission technology, crowns David Rubner as Chairman of its Board of directors with immediate effect, as the company prepares for a period of accelerated market growth. Inmarsat welcomes Jeffrey Sare as vice president of airline market development. Jeffrey, formerly vice president of strategy and technology for Thales USA, joins Inmarsat during a period of rapid growth and unprecedented investment in its aviation business Global network services company Level 3 Communications, Inc. has cemented its commitment to the EMEA region ~ as well as its customers ~ with its most experienced and proven regional leader. Andrew Crouch will take the helm at the company as EMEA regional president, driving the focus on customer experience and expansion, as well as global accounts management across all Level 3 regions for global enterprise and wholesale.
The service will seamlessly connect the customers’ sites in Africa with corporate and operational centres in Europe, via O3b’s integrated gateway and backhaul network.
Gilat Satcom increases capacity between Africa & US Increasing capacity from its PoP in Maryland, USA, Gilat Satcom has implemented highend satellite transmission software: NovelSat NS3000 satellite modems. These modems run software called Novelsat NS3,
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which can increase spectral efficiency by up to 30% compared with the DVB-S2 satellite industry standard. Using the software, Gilat Satcom has also been able to achieve modulation levels of 64APSK.
SPRING 2015
NEWS
The Quarterly - Marketplace Roundup Company announcements can be emailed to the news desk for consideration. Send your story to editor@OffCommNews.com
BRICS study reveals new capacity revenue potential worth $325m In a new, emerging market country-level study, ‘BRICS Satellite Capacity Supply & Demand,’ NSR (Northern Sky Research) delves into Brazil, Russia, China, India, and South Africa, to find out about the satellite telecommunications elements of these expanding economies. According to Christopher Baugh, President of NSR, the BRICS economies will collectively generate $325 million in new satellite capacity lease revenue during the next decade. Overall, the five BRICS economies combined will see traditional FSS demand grow by just under 600 TPE* to 2023, led almost exclusively by Ku-band. Beyond this,
Who’s Who
nearly 100 Gbps of HTS demand will be present in these five countries by 2023. “Perhaps the most striking finding in this study is the impact HTS will have on these emerging markets, and the huge differences between markets. For instance, Brazil is aggressively developing a governmental HTS program deploying around 50 Gbps of supply, while China has made no mention whatsoever of HTS,” noted Blaine Curcio, NSR senior analyst and report co-author. He added that the supply picture for HTS differs markedly between markets, which will have a significant impact on the development of Ku-band for some key emerging applications. (*36 mhz transponder equivalents)
Ethernet infotainment onboard with new industrial managed switches
BG Group has appointed Helge Lund as chief executive, and executive director, with effect from 2 March 2015. He is currently the CEO at Statoil. BG Group plc has a broad portfolio of business interests focused on exploration and production and liquefied natural gas. GE has named Harel Kodesh as VP, chief technology officer of GE software. He was previously executive vice president of EMC Corp’s cloud business; and CEO of Mozy, an EMC subsidiary. Prior to that he was chief product officer for Amdocs.
Vessel owners looking to provide a variety of infotainment onboard systems might benefit from an Ethernet network to handle video, voice, and data transmission requirements. From M.A.C. Solutions (UK) Limited, a new range of high performance, industrial switches enable better management of such systems from anywhere on a ship. Certified for use in marine applications, the switches are DNV (Det Norske Veritas) type approval-certified to withstand the harsh conditions often found offshore such as:
extreme operating temperatures, high humidity and corrosion, high shock and vibration, and where protection from EMI or RFI is required. ATEX-certified switches are also available for installation in potentially explosive atmospheres, such as on offshore oil and gas platforms, as well as at onshore chemicals and petrochemicals plants. They can connect and remotely manage CCTV, audio PA, telephones, lighting systems, ventilation, and SCADA systems.
Trend driving factors for in-the-field RF spectrum management Signal Hound has been looking at demand drivers for high-performance portable instruments. A pioneer in USB-powered spectrum analyzers, the company has since released a paper entitled, Cost-efficient and Extensible RF Spectrum Monitoring & Management.
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It discusses trend driving factors for in-thefield RF spectrum management; the limitations of larger, standalone spectrum analyzers vs. portable USB-based spectrum analyzers; an open systems approach to RF spectrum analysis; as well as real world use cases from the South Pole. You can access the white paper from this news story on our website.
SPRING 2015
MacGregor, part of Cargotec, welcomed John Carnall as senior vice president of global lifecycle support. He joins from Danfoss where he held the position of VP for parts and service; before that, he was at Atlas Copco’s oil and gas segment. Ensco plc has confirmed that Steve Brady take on the role of senior vice president (SVP) – Eastern Hemisphere and relocate to London. Brady was previously SVP – Western Hemisphere based in Houston, which is now being headed by Gilles Luca. Telenor Group confirmed that Rajeev Sethi will join Grameenphone as CEO while Vivek Sood will join Uninor as CEO. Sethi comes from the role as chief marketing officer (CMO) in Uninor. Sood, who has served as Grameenphone CEO since January 2013, re-joins Uninor as CEO. Morten Karlsen Sørby steps down as CEO of Uninor due to illness in his immediate family and will assume a new role in Telenor Group. Uninor has also appointed a new CMO, Upanga Dutta.
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Comms News
Deals $637.5 million in industry investment GE, Petrobras, and BG Group to develop advanced technologies for O&G processing on the seabed General Electric (GE) has invested $500 million in a new Brazil Technology Center that will focus on developing advanced subsea oil and gas technology. The centre, GE’s first in Latin America, will be a hub for engagement and collaboration with its customers in the region, tapping into a $1.2 trillion offshore market opportunity. “Our new research centre in Brazil will allow GE to innovate locally for our customers in Latin America, and then export those innovations to the world,” said GE Chairman and CEO, Jeff Immelt. Currently, offshore oil and gas processing happens on platforms on the surface of the sea. These are often located miles from the wellheads located on the seafloor. By placing power and processing equipment next to the wellhead (on the sea bed), it makes the job of extracting the oil and pumping it to the surface easier, safer,
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and ensures a successful and economical flow of oil or gas from a reservoir to the point of sale. It is also environmentally sound and more cost-efficient for the extraction company.
Collaboration GE is working with petroleum companies on the development of technologies and equipment to move production from the platform to the seabed. For example, BG Group is helping to explore ways to make drilling systems smarter, increasing the amount of data they provide, and helping the operators utilize the data in real-time. It is also discussing more effective and efficient ways to separate oil, water, and gas on the seabed, with Petrobras.
Center is a place where we can work closely with local customers and universities in the region and harness the full power of our global research network to drive innovation in ways no one else can.” One such approach is to increase the amount of machines carrying out work in these sub-sea environments. Not only would this replace the need for manpower, it is also a safer option given the extreme environment when plumbing from the seabed.
Mark Little, senior vice president and chief technology officer, GE Global Research said: “Expanding opportunities for oil & gas production in ultra-deep waters requires the kind of industry and technology knowhow for extreme environments that is a part of GE’s DNA. The Brazil Technology
SPRING 2015
NEWS
Comms News
Markets Creation of largest space based M2M comms company Given that scenario, another recent industry development has resulted in the largest global space-based M2M comms company. ORBCOMM Inc., a global provider of Machine-to-Machine (M2M) solutions, has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire SkyWave Mobile Communications, for $130 million. SkyWave is the largest M2M service provider on Inmarsat’s global L-band satellite network. Via the acquisition, ORBCOMM will have one of the largest combined engineering teams in the M2M industry, gaining significant economies of scale in operations and manufacturing. Inmarsat’s CEO, Rupert Pearce, commented: “Our two companies are well positioned to exploit the growing opportunity for satellite to enable the Internet of Things. ORBCOMM’s track record of innovation, combined with Inmarsat’s global network reach, will bring compelling offerings to the market, further advancing Inmarsat’s M2M growth strategy.” Pui-Ling Chan, SkyWave’s CEO, said: “We are excited about the combination of our
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two organizations, which will create a leading force in the industry to provide more products, applications and tool sets aimed at the Internet of Things. Together, we have the capabilities to serve customers of all sizes, locations or sectors with one of the most comprehensive and competitive portfolios, as we lead the M2M industry to a new level.” SkyWave’s distribution channels in South America, Asia and the Middle East, along with Inmarsat’s support, provide ORBCOMM with even broader global distribution. ORBCOMM will gain access to new geographies in Eastern Europe and Asia, and diverse vertical markets such as security and marine. The addition of SkyWave’s higher bandwidth, low-latency satellite products and services that leverage the IsatDataPro (IDP) technology also expands the breadth of ORBCOMM’s portfolio. Under the commercial agreement, ORBCOMM (through SkyWave) and Inmarsat will jointly own the IDP
SPRING 2015
technology, which Inmarsat intends to make available through its reseller channel. Inmarsat will acquire and operate SkyWave’s satellite network assets located primarily at three Inmarsat earth stations in Laurentides, Canada; Burum, Netherlands; and Auckland, New Zealand for $7.5 million.
Wider reach Further, Inmarsat recently refurbished its hub in Sydney, Australia. The centre offers research and development engineering facilities, as well as demonstration labs. MTN Communications is also focussing on business development. In response to 20% year on year growth, regarding the oil and gas vessels that it serves, MTN has installed a new technical team in Houston, Texas. Currently, commercial energy organisations represent 32% of its customer base. “Building our Houston team is one more investment in the oil and gas sector as we serve an unprecedented number of the most data intensive customers in the industry,” said Errol Olivier, MTN CEO.
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Flash comms contracts Q4
Vendor
Client
Type (fixed, cellular, Destination satellite, hybrid)
Details
Deal date
Redline Communications
Undisclosed / Confidential Satellite & Cellular
SpeedCast International Ltd
EMAS AMC
Worldwide
Contracted to deploy high-speed wireless network for digital oilfield operations
Oct-14
Worldwide
Multi-year high-performance broadband connectivity deal for mission critical data & voice on 12 vessels Oct-14
Xplore Technologies Global Marine
Undisclosed / Confidential Satellite
Undisclosed
US$6 million order for fully-rugged Bobcat Windows tablet to be used by field service technicians
Oct-14
Tampnet
Cellular
North Sea
3rd contract to extend the offshore fibre optic network with a new cable linking offshore platforms
Oct-14
Redline Communications
Undisclosed / Confidential Cellular
Argentina
US$1 million contract for 1st phase wireless network to connect people & machines across entire oilfield Oct-14
TW Telecom
Level 3
Satellite & Cellular
Worldwide
Acquisition results in comprehensive product portfolios supported by a global network
Nov-14
Marlink
Palantir
Satellite
Oslo
Collaboration to improve access to sophisticated IT services in the maritime industry
Nov-14
Satellite
InfiNet
Real Solutions Private Ltd
Cellular
Pakistan
Contract to drive wireless connectivity through VAR
Nov-14
Intellian
Telenor Satellite Broadcasting (TSBc)
Satellite
Europe
Deal for v-series antennas on the satellite THOR 7 expected in 2015
Nov-14
Skywave Mobile Communications
ORBCOMM Inc.
Satellite
Canada
Agreement to purchase with $130 million price tag
Nov-14
SpeedCast International Ltd
Arab Maritime Petroleum Transport Co (AMPTC)
Satellite
Middle East
Multi-year comms contract for entire fleet of vessels
Nov-14
O3b Networks
Hermes Datacomms
Satellite & Cellular
Angola
Partnership to deliver advanced communications to a major energy customer
Nov-14
O3b Networks
RCS-Communication
Satellite & Cellular
South Sudan
Collaboration delivers state of the art communications, inc. RCS-WIMAX, to the world's newest country Nov-14
SpeedCast International Ltd
Inmarsat
Satellite & Cellular
Asia Pacific
Distribution partnership for FleetBroadband & FleetOne for leisure yachts and near-shore fishing boats
Dec-14
AST
Cobham SATCOM
Satellite
Undisclosed
Alliance brings enhanced service support
Dec-14
Globecomm
Gannexion
Satellite & Cellular
Mali
Contract to provide eWelfare services for on-site personnel
Dec-14
EMC
Ceona Offshore
Satellite & Cellular
Undisclosed
Appointed to provide on board communications for flagship vessel, the Ceona Amazon
Dec-14
Data Replication Steve Driver, managing partner at DXSTRO Software LLP
Downgrading from ‘mission-critical’ to ‘occasionally needed’ Keeping applications and relational databases current at distributed sites Geographic remoteness and poor connectivity mean many organisations encounter issues when attempting to keep remote sites or workers up-to-date with essential data. Data replication ensures optimum quality of service all the way to the edge of the enterprise where connectivity is intermittent or limited, says Steve Driver of DXSTRO.
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he problem of inconsistent connectivity and limited bandwidth is compounded by the trend towards increasingly distributed enterprises. The growing number of mobile workers and remote sites has meant the centralised architectures employed by most businesses today are out of sync with the distributed enterprise.
Latency Latency is a major source of frustration for remote application users. Network outages and connectivity issues aside, the fact that an application must communicate via a network during its operation introduces noticeable delays in processing and usability – even over high-speed networks. The effect becomes more pronounced as the distance between the user and the data centre increases. This is why a fundamental change in the way business applications are architected is required by users such as utilities, oil & gas operators, and the armed forces – for whom access to current data is business or mission critical.
Delivering a distributed model There are several ways in which to provide improved access to applications and data. The first step is to recognise the internet’s inability to provide reliable access, and change its role in the application architecture from ‘mission-critical’ to ‘occasionally needed’. Based on this approach, there are four core technology options: • N-Tier Client Server: Closest to the traditional, in-house, centralised application environment, this scenario involves a central database server and deployment of robust client applications at each remote site or user location. Network connectivity is essential, with performance tied to available bandwidth and reliability hinging on network availability. • Thin Client ‘Application Access Portals’: A remote control operation where network dependant terminals access one or more central servers. Each user has their own virtual machines running on these central servers, on which the applications are loaded and executed. Regardless of bandwidth requirements, network connectivity is necessary to use the application. Latency may be an issue as keystroke and GUI data must be sent between the thin client and the server.
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SPRING 2015
• Web Client: Encompasses several different client implementations, the most common being web browser based, ‘thick client’-based applications using web services technologies, or server-deployed but locally executed. As with the previous two approaches, network and server reliability is the determining factor for application availability. • Distributed Applications & Data: Involves deploying independent, replicated database instances together with a robust client application, either in a remote office or on a user’s laptop. The database needs to be synchronised at regular intervals, with frequency dependent on application and business requirements. This solution can tolerate frequent network outages and bandwidth restrictions and still allow remote users to continue working.
Read-write access Database replication technologies allow a rich-client interface to operate uninterrupted via a local database, even during periods of complete network unavailability. They can then allow updates to stream back and forth over the network during periods of acceptable network QoS. This distributed or decentralised model gives all workers equal access to perfectly performing and fully functional enterprise applications. Enabling disconnected use of fully functional applications and data is an essential requirement for any distributed approach. This does not mean providing users with read-only versions of their data. It means fully functional, read-write access to data as if they were still connected to the network without degrading application performance. Asynchronous update-everywhere replication allows organisations to manage their disconnected remote sites and mobile workforce centrally from the office, regardless of latency or bandwidth. Moreover, it doesn’t rely on email or FTP, and it doesn’t require all sites to be available at the same time for replication to take place. Crucially, users don’t have to be connected to a network to access their data. Instead, they can obtain up to date information at any time with the same levels of QoS, performance and management costs as those in the central office – using either simple data replication or complete synchronisation.
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REMOTE INSIGHT REPORT Africa
Remote Insight Report
Out of Africa East Africa is undergoing a major transformation to become a new world-class player on the energy market. An emerging hot spot, East Africa represents a primary opportunity sector for M&A activity. In the past four years, the top three largest deals in the region were in Mozambique with Asian based national oil companies.
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y 2025, East Africa is expected to experience an incremental production growth of nearly 1 million barrels of oil equivalent per day (boe/d), led by Mozambique and Tanzania.
With the highest number of gas discoveries between 2010-2013 in East Africa, accounting for more than 25% of added reserves worldwide ~ and as the largest contributor* the region comes to the fore of international openness to investment, boosting its attractiveness and competitiveness, according to new analysis from IHS Inc. Despite the high potential for further growth, East Africa has suffered major setbacks with lack of local infrastructure in place, institutional capacities, regulatory framework, and an adverse geopolitical situation overall. “East Africa is the new hot spot,” said Stanislas Drochon, (pictured) director Africa oil & gas at IHS Energy. “The region is going through a major transformation and it has huge potential to play a crucial role in driving the region’s future growth, while still operating in risky business environment where the regulatory framework and infrastructure are not in place.” Drochon said that the regulatory framework and lack of institutional capacities in a context of very high expectations for socio-economic transformation will not only bring challenges for a growing role of large IOCs (integrated oil companies), but also for governments within the region.
Pioneering gas discoveries requires infrastructure development Over the past five years, Mozambique and Tanzania have seen the region’s most significant gas discoveries, with more than 80% of them located in Mozambique. “East Africa remains under exploration and there is more to be discovered, including in other countries such as Ethiopia or Comoros, but there is more to be done,” Drochon said. “The large infrastructure developments and financing are crucial to ensure that all the investments can materialize. The development of gas reserves and associated power generation are necessary to support the transformation of the region, by providing cheaper and reliable energy, key conditions currently missing for the industrialization of the region.”
Hydrocarbon production on the rise Within the next decade, East Africa, driven by LNG projects in Mozambique and Tanzania, is expected to form the largest hydrocarbon production, accounting for nearly 1 million boe/d. By the end of the decade, landlocked Uganda is also expected to contribute to this growth. “Gas and LNG production will become a dominant revenue generator in East Africa. The accelerated growth in the gas sector will outsize the previously important coal sector, but we are unlikely to see an immediate increase in employment opportunities and local supply chain expansions,” said Natznet Tesfay, head of Africa at IHS Country Risk. “The massive investment followed by the infrastructure boom will transform the northern Mozambican provinces, allowing the local governments to get involved. We expect that this will facilitate and attract the entry of foreign investors, exploring not only the opportunities in the energy sector, but also other areas, such as chemical, power, manufacturing, and mining. The transformation of East Africa, however, will set its own pace”. * More than 50% of total regional mergers and acquisitions value in 2013.
As African growth is expected to remain strong for the next 10 years, the new East African gas discoveries and growth in incremental hydrocarbon production will attract new international investors and increase regional openness for further developments and further M&A activity. Yet, the pace of East African transformation and further growth depends on critical infrastructure investments to ensure security of supply and modernization of resources, geopolitical stability and sufficient regulatory framework.
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Remote Insight Report
Progressing towards a connected continent Growth of Africa’s satellite, rural, and carrier communications industry
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wo recent announcements form part of the emerging picture regarding connectivity in Africa. Firstly, microwave-networking provider, Aviat Networks inked a multi-year supplier agreement with Safaricom, the leading mobile operator in Kenya. The deal will see Aviat support Safaricom in the modernisation and capacity expansion of its microwave backhaul network. It will also help to optimise performance ~ using IP networking technology ~ when the carrier begins taking delivery of Aviat's next-generation CTR microwave routers later on. Multi-year contract includes microwave radios, routers, and services. For now, the deal includes the planned migration of current operator traffic to protected microwave rings, augmented by MPLS routing capability; and support services for 60% of Safaricom's wireless network upgrade and expansion Around the same time, iWayAfrica ~ the region’s leading ISP ~ committed to an agreement to offer global bandwidth as a service to its corporate customers in Zimbabwe. It’s a cloud-based service enabled by DiViNetworks, a provider of software-centric network solutions, which serves more than 150 ISPs in 50 countries. With an MPLS-style managed solution, corporate networks gain the advantage of guaranteed international bandwidth, visibility of their international traffic (broken down by applications and sources), as well as the ability to define intricate priorities and policies. This is becoming a key consideration as the rush of BYOD, automated systems, and the plethora of connected devices head offshore, as well as to inland remote areas, for monitoring and control of digital oilfields, amongst other traffic and analysis (see the previous edition of OffComm News).
communications problems. By using available satellite technologies, Palmtree’s customers range from users requiring secure and private connectivity in Lagos to the Serengeti, as well as from offices to oil rigs.
Smaller, faster, cheaper Nano, or micro, satellite chatter also seems to be on the rise. Major players include some familiar names ~ as well as other emerging entities ~ all with an eye on the microsatellite industry’s rapid development and experimental missions. A source close to these developments informed us that the nanosatellite industry has experienced progress comparable to the evolution of the computer industry (think desktop tower shrinking to the smartphone). Should all go well for this mini-market, launch schedules could be appearing on a calendar near you in the not too distant future. BYOD: Bring Your Own Device ISP: Internet Service Provider MPLS: Multiprotocol Label Switching
Hotbed of enabling connectivity Joining iWayAfrica at this year’s SatCom Africa event, collocated with World Rural Telecoms and Connected Africa, is Isat Networks ~ a solution provider for satellite ground segments. It designs systems and provisioning for RF, IP networks, as well as baseband plus management solutions. Amongst many others, you will also find: EMC, Globecomm Systems, Gilat Satellite Networks, Hughes Network Systems, Imtech, Inmarsat, Spidersat Communications, and Palmtree Communications, which is a telecommunications operator and service provider with a special interest in solving African
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Review (c)2014 Hilton Hotels & Resorts
Digital oilfield progression Review of Digital Oilfield Summit London, December 2014 In December 2014, OffComm News attended the Digital Oilfields summit at the Hilton, London Olympia. Hosted by IPQC, the event comprised presentations that addressed the challenges and opportunities faced by companies regarding the increased digitisation of oilfields.
Making data sing
Identifying and resolving problems
Arria, a sponsor to the event, brought an interesting take on how information delivery can be streamlined using AI (artificial intelligence) software to convert data into natural language.
Thony Brito Cardier, of Rockwell Automation, took the floor to update delegates on how digitisation and M2M has benefitted offshore, subsea and land based operations in terms of optimising the time between identifying problems and resolving them to reduce operational costs. The company has a portfolio covering both Greenfield and Brownfield operations which incorporates transportation, processing, and refining oil and gas ~ utilising SCADA/M2M extensively throughout.
“The oil industry is data rich but often information poor. But with Arria NLG, we can liberate that data to express itself as actionable insight into real-time operations,” said the company’s senior vice president, John Bell. As examples, the company’s NLG software (natural language generation) has been trialled at the Met office ~ the UK's national weather service ~ to produce thousands of postcode-specific forecasts in seconds. Arria also has an application for the healthcare market where data can be turned into different reports depending on who needs to receive this information, i.e.: a doctor, the practice nurse, or even the patient. Of key interest to the delegates was how the technology is of use in the oil and gas sector. An energy client in the Gulf of Mexico has used the software to reduce the time taken from an alert generated from machinery, to the creation of a detailed report in natural language sent to the platform; from more than three hours down to just to 60 seconds.
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Implementation of the digital oilfield A workshop at the end of the day allowed delegates to share their views and learning’s from the event, as well as offering their own insight and recommendations on how best to incorporate digitisation functionality into existing oilfields. Interestingly, the consensus from these sessions was that digitisation would benefit oilfields once they had grown to 20+ active platforms. Further, producers should plan for such a system gradually ~ as they expand ~ so that infrastructure is there and ready to switch on when needed.
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Product News BlueTide launches fleet management app
Emil Regard, managing director, BlueTide
BlueTide Communications Corporation (BlueTide) has just launched BlueVision® - a proprietary app that monitors and helps to manage vessels directly from an iPhone, iPad or iPod touch device. From video streaming and deck snapshots to instant contact with individual vessels, the BlueVision app offers a central touch point for fleet communication. Users can access 24/7 live video or request recorded video history of the deck, take screenshots of any potential concerns and email the images back to base.
Lee Johnson, SVP & CIO, GulfMark
Customers can also use BlueVision to contact their bridge and engine rooms, or call BlueTide’s global network operating centre for additional support.
BlueTide’s managing director, Emil Regard, said: “Our goal was to provide as much interactivity with the vessel as possible and to enable the user to share information across corporate functions as well as with their customers. BlueVision is targeted to our customers who are primarily in the office but who need to easily manage and view their fleet remotely.” GulfMark provides marine transportation services through a fleet of offshore support vessels serving every major offshore energy market in the world. Its SVP and CIO, Lee Johnson, said: “We’re excited about the operational efficiencies BlueTide brings to our fleet with these types of innovative mobility solutions. This supports our Safe Operations initiative of sharing safety best practice videos across our fleet.”
Smartphone application enables coverage in remote locations worldwide EMC Global Cell, from Emerging Markets Communications (EMC), is a smartphone application enabling global coverage for employees in remote locations. The service is part of the company’s existing crew welfare offering and works over an end-user’s own phone. Jesus Barber, SVP of maritime and energy at the company, said: "Our customers are demanding alternative communications for crew members that are economical and do not compromise the performance of the operations network. The EMC
Global Cell application and service allows crew members to make private calls on their own phone, using a dedicated network, with optimised payment options." The app uses a nearby WiFi connection to make and receive phone calls, performing best on EMC's global satellite network. A direct client model option means that rig and vessel owners, operators and services providers can obtain connectivity services directly from EMC using its global Ku-band network, for a fixed, monthly rate. Crew can download the
application from the iTunes and Android marketplace – and connect to EMC's WiFi onboard via a secure log-in and password. Minutes and usage are tracked against each crew member's daily allowance for crew welfare, using credits. There is also a commercial model which allows end-users to pay EMC directly for the service using PayPal. Crew members download the application and then purchase credits using a personal form of payment. Both prepaid and postpaid options are available.
New satphone for casual users Thuraya has brought out an entry-level satphone that provides even occasional users with instant satellite connectivity. The device, called XT-LITE, is built to make calls and send SMS messages in satellite mode from anywhere under company’s network.
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It can also be used as a backup for those that find themselves in areas hit by natural disasters ~ which can render terrestrial communications unavailable. It can connect from most of the remote areas that are devoid of, or are under-served by, terrestrial networks. Rashid Baba, director of products, explained: “Thuraya XT-LITE addresses the demands of users who need a simple satellite phone for work or travel in areas
unserved by terrestrial networks. People need to stay connected no matter where they go and we will provide them with the most reliable and cost-effective way of doing this.” The device will work across the Thuraya network which covers more than 160 countries ~ or two-thirds of the globe. It can be used with a Thuraya SIM card or with a SIM card from any of the company’s 360 worldwide GSM roaming partners.
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Diary Dates 23-25 February 2015
The 2nd Oil & Gas Communication Technology Summit Houston, Texas I http://bit.ly/1uFutE0 The 2nd Oil & Gas Communication Technology Summit will highlight industry insights on the most recently developed and implemented technologies to support contemporary oilfield operations including fiber optics, magnetic resonance, VSAT, WiMAX, and satellite communication. Get to network with experts from Shell, Baker Hughes, Imperia Oil, Halliburton, and more as we explore the most highly advanced systems never before seen in this space and evaluate the most viable option for you and your company.
16 – 19 March 2015
SATELLITE 2015 Walter E. Washington Convention Center, Washington, D.C I www.SATShow.com It is estimated that the oil and gas industry will spend approximately US$8bn making its workforce and operations more mobile. With time being one of the greatest costs for international companies, mobility promises a faster and more efficient workforce, therefore saving organisations money in the long term. Join leading mobility experts and explore the impact of mobility on business functions and operations. Learn how your organisation can effectively communicate and roll out a robust enterprise mobility programme while making your business critical functions more fluid and profitable.
19 – 21 May 2015
Critical Communications World incorporating TETRA World Congress Barcelona, Spain I http://criticalcommunicationsworld.com Join us in Barcelona and benefit from being at the heart of the global Critical Communications community. No other event brings together such a varied international audience of users, operators, developers and manufacturers, under one roof at one time. The Congress will offer answers to all of your questions on developing and delivering effective mission critical communications. Learn from 200+ presentations, interviews, discussions and seminars on both public safety and commercial critical communications usage; Network with 4000+ participants; Access the latest equipment and solutions in the exhibition of 130+ companies.
26 - 27 May 2015
Connected Africa Sandton Convention Centre, Johannesburg I www.terrapinn.com Africa’s telecommunications sector is booming! Enterprises, ISPs telcos and partners are under huge pressure to capitalise on the vast opportunities in the African market, before their competitors do. This means that they need to diversify their product offerings, streamline operational processes, improve network infrastructure and source the most reliable and innovative solutions. They need to be connected. Connected Africa is the leading marketplace and ideas exchange for African enterprises, ISPs telcos, government, leading consultants and solution providers.
25 – 27 May 2015
Oil & Gas Mobility Summit Houston Houston, Texas, USA Join leading mobility experts to discover how to use mobile applications to enhance business and operational processes in the oil and gas industry. Major oil and gas operators and contractors, including: Baker Hughes, Whiting Oil, Consol Energy, ExxonMobil, Chevron, Halliburton, and Cenovus, will address these challenges at the event. Register your place by quoting ‘OGMOffcomm’ to claim your 15% discount.
Maximise your presence at any of the events we partner with. Get in touch with Charles via marketing@offcommnews.com for more information.
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Interview
No bandwidth costs for remote communication OffComm News investigates FreeBand with Itzik Wulkan, CEO at NovelSat
OCN: Did we hear you right...? Free broadband? IW: Yes. You heard right. NovelSat FreeBand is a great, moneysaving solution for any organisation that uses a large antenna to distribute content via satellite – for example, broadcast or telepresence video – to a multipoint network and also uses small antennas to contribute content back to the hub. The satellite bandwidth that is used for distribution can be reused for contribution. By reusing the same bandwidth, the contribution content can be delivered without paying again for satellite resources. OCN: How does that work please? IW: The amount of bandwidth that can be allocated for contribution is determined by the antenna and link-budget difference between the hub and the distribution network. With NovelSat FreeBand, upstream transmission from remote antennas does not interfere with or limit the capacity of the downstream transmission. NovelSat FreeBand can really work anywhere in the world where an organisation uses relatively smaller antennas for contribution within the footprint of their satellite distribution network. NovelSat expects to announce implementations with new customers who are already using the solution. For now, I can tell you that every customer who has tested or installed NovelSat FreeBand is very satisfied with their results. The greatest interest is coming from the broadcast industry and specifically from broadcasters who also operate SNG (Satellite News Gathering) vehicles and portable remote units. The model of a central hub with a large antenna communicating bidirectionally with remote sites using smaller antennas is also common in exploration and drilling, military and aviation industries.
IW: Extremely low SNR also makes it impossible for other satellite receivers to lock-on to signals transmitted by NovelSat equipment. Additionally, NovelSat NS3 technology, when implemented, ensures the superior signal resilience that is required for missioncritical satellite communications. Radio interference and intentional signal jamming, prevalent especially in developing countries, degrade signal quality. These factors can be reduced by most satellite transmission technologies. However, NovelSat equipment and NovelSat NS3 waveform, are more resilient to interference – up to 15dB greater than industry standard DVB-S2. OCN: What makes remote management different? IW: As long as a hardware solution is function up to the specifications of the customer, there is little advantage to remote management, maintenance, updates and upgrades. However, although a site is remote, its needs can change over time: more bandwidth, better signal interference mitigation, efficiency standards, etc. When a hardware solution requires hardware updates, the logistics and cost of an on-site visit can be disruptive and expensive. On the other hand, when maintenance and upgrades can be performed Over-the-Air (OTA), new features and fixes can be implemented quickly and inexpensively from anywhere in the world using the satellite network. All NovelSat hardware platforms are designed around a softwareupgradable architecture. The hardware is designed for forward compatibility, with all satellite industry transmission standards, plus NovelSat NS3 waveform technology. Our equipment can also be updated and upgraded with advanced features without adding or changing cards. This is a great convenience for any organisation that relies on satellite communication. But for remote sites, it is a necessity. OCN: What did you have to do to make this solution suitable for remote locations? IW: Actually, we didn’t have to do anything to make this solution suitable for remote locations. All these features are built into the core equipment and software.
This solution takes advantage of the sensitivity of the NovelSat NS3000 modem which can receive signals at extremely low Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR), below the noise floor or the remote station. In cooperation with NovelSat DUET CeC (Carrier Echo Cancellation) technology, NovelSat FreeBand takes advantage of bi-directional traffic at bit rates up to 425Mbps in each direction. OCN: Regarding jamming, interference, and signal piracy mitigation; you say you are ahead of the game here. Can you explain a little more for us please?
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Itzik Wulkan, CEO, NovelSat
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Flash new builds contracts Q4 2014 Client
Vendor
Deal date
Details
Location
Fujairah National Shipping Agency
Grandweld
Sep-14
Contracted to design & build 2x 42-meter CSVs fitted with advanced communication equipment for 31 offshore personnel
Dubai
Jack-Up Barge
Asian Offshore Services
Oct-14
Contracted to build 100 living quarters for temporary accommodation on fleet. Project incl. 70 4/8-man sleeper cabins + 30 general purpose cabins with options for a further 560 beds.
Undisclosed
Maersk Supply Service
Kleven Maritime
Oct-14
Contract to supply six new AHTSVs with options for 4 more, with 52 single cabins
Norway
Naviera Integral
Damen Shipyards
Oct-14
Deal to deliver newly developed FCS vessels to carry 100 people to work offshore
Mexico
Dong Energy
SweOffshore
Nov-14
Commitment to supply 100-person vessel accommodation to Borkum Riffgrund offshore wind farm
The Netherlands
Golden Energy Offshore
Blue Ship Invest
Nov-14
Contracts for 2 x PX121 designed PSVs under construction at Ulstein Verft, due for delivery early 2015
Norway
Undisclosed / Confidential
Havyard Ship Technology AS
Nov-14
Contracted to design and build 2 icebreakers scheduled for delivery late 2016 in deal in excess of NOK 1billion
Undisclosed
Jotron
Teekay Offshore Partners LP
Nov-14
Contracted to supply PAGA, PABX, LAN networks, and entertainment for shuttle tanker conversion
North Sea
Kleven
Mr Graeme Hart
Nov-14
Contract for 116 metre ESV with accommodation for 66 people
Norway
Lamprell Plc
National Drilling Company
Nov-14
Construction & delivery deal for 2x jackup drilling rigs valued cUS$ 365million
Abu Dhabi
Undisclosed/Confidential
ASL Marine Holdings Ltd
Dec-14
Deal to supply two OSVs, one to be completed Q1 2015 & Q3 2015
Undisclosed
Sharjah Ports Authority
Damen Shipyards
Dec-14
Keel laying deal for 2 x new vessels
UAE
KEY PSV
ESV OSV
Platform Supply Vessels
Expedition Support Vessel Offshore Support Vessels
FCS CSV
Fast Crew Supplier Crew Supply Vessel
Preparing Oil and Gas for HTS This past year has brought steady progress on the High Throughput Satellite (HTS) front. For the oil and gas market, writes Denis Sutherland at iDirect, VSAT continues to play a large role in helping to send large data files and support greater use of video for multiple applications. The industry is moving closer to the reality of HTS, with 2014 bringing the planned launch of several programs focused on the enterprise market. But most of all, the market is addressing critical questions that will set the framework for the next step forward. Preparing the oil and gas market for HTS in the year ahead involves two evaluations: network design and business model.
Network Design Frequency will have a direct impact across the ecosystem. The decision between Ka-band satellite and Kuband satellite seems to garner much debate amongst the satellite community. But the reality is that one
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is not better than the other. Satellite operators continue to stand by the notion that it is not only a matter of frequency, but it also is dependent on the planned bandwidth allocated to the multi-spot beams, bandwidth efficiency tradeoffs, frequency reuse scheme and the architecture that determine the high throughput.
Business model Multi-spot beam architectures of HTS have a direct impact on the ground infrastructure and thus are changing the business models of satellite operators. They can no longer just focus just on space, but also need to consider how to build out cost effective ground infrastructure across a multi-spot beam architecture.
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Satellite operators will change their business models to sell Mbps rather than MHz, due mostly to the fact that satellite operators will no longer be able to depend on service providers to build their own infrastructure. With this new focus service providers will be able to cost effectively access HTS via a managed service model. Given the heavy bandwidth demands from users, the oil and gas market will certainly be leaning more on VSAT communications in the year ahead. With all the additional bandwidth to be delivered via HTS, it could be a perfect match for operators and service providers that are addressing some important decisions upfront.
Denis Sutherland, iDirect, VSAT
It is predicted by NSR that by 2023 10% of connected O&G sites will be for exploration and production, and 12% of those sites will utilize HTS capacity.
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Opinion
Sustaining profitability with low oil prices The Digital Oilfield
T
he oil industry is no stranger to volatile oil prices but we are currently looking at levels of $60/bbl or potentially lower and this will definitely threaten the profitability of many operations. The chart below shows the variation of WTI (West Texas Intermediate) crude over the last few years and it demonstrates that we have not seen $60 oil since late 2008. West Texas Intermediate Crude Prices
So how did the upstream industry respond back in 2008? The quick answer is that it hunkered down: projects were cancelled, production and exploration were cut severely, petroleum revenue taxes declined significantly and many staff in operator, service and supporting companies left the industry through redundancy or early retirements. In short, the industry felt extremely sorry for itself. The big question is whether we are going to see the same response in 2015?
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Back then in 2008 the world economy was very different. In the early part of the year, the global demand for oil had been growing rapidly as countries such as China and India were evolving as major consumers and starting to add significantly to the traditional demand from well-developed countries. In the middle of 2008 the world oil market was thrown into financial chaos as many global economies fell into recession. There was suddenly a glut of oil as consumer demand plummeted.
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Dec 2008
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Dec 2012
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OPEC, which at the time controlled about 40% of global oil output, responded by implementing its deepest ever cut in supply but even this did not protect the price. There was just too much oil available compared to global consumption requirements.
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Opinion
In 2015 the oil industry will have to work smarter
Turning point By the end of 2012, statistics from the EIA (US Energy Information Administration) confirmed that the picture of global oil consumption had changed significantly. By this time, China had grown to be the second largest consumer of world oil with Japan in third place and India in fourth. This was a turning point as the new world oil markets could no longer accept major cuts in global production to bolster prices. So, in 2015, it looks as though the oil industry will have to sustain production but at a lower revenue price, which means that it will have to work smarter. One of the biggest technology advances that has benefitted the oil industry since 2008 has been the development of integrated operations or the “digital oilfield” as it is also known. This is enabling operator companies to utilise their staff resources more efficiently through enhanced collaboration, improved workflows and remote monitoring of critical operations in drilling and production. So far, the adoption of integrated operations across the industry has been inconsistent, with some companies making significant strides in this area but with others showing little or even no adoption at all. In the new climate of $60 oil, integrated operations could become the important factor that enables the industry to sustain economic operations.
Increasing productivity through transition management The greatest challenge that most operators face in implementing a successful digital oilfield strategy is effective people engagement. This is an important focus area for Geologix Systems Integration, whose staff have many years of experience in delivering digital oilfield training and assessing transition management needs from within oil and gas operator companies. Many client staff will never have considered the consequences of digital oilfield ~ increased collaboration, remote working, information sharing, “out of hours” decision making, etc. It is important that staff personalise the digital oilfield and look at it from their own perspective, which is likely to be very different from the company’s perspective. Typically, this will be a more
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significant transition for more experienced staff than for younger staff. The following will be major concerns:• What does my job look like in a digital oilfield environment? • Will I feel satisfied or will it feel as though I am losing control? • How will I relate to younger staff who are likely to adapt much more quickly? • Will I be giving away personal power by sharing information so widely?
Author, Dr Julian Pickering, CEO, Geologix Systems Integration Ltd
• Is all this really necessary as I have been doing my job perfectly well for the last 20+ years? • Am I willing to be a strong advocate of the digital oilfield or will I take every opportunity to demonstrate that it was the wrong decision? A digital oilfield implementation is one of the most complex projects that an oil and gas company can undertake because it has such a profound effect on its business. It’s about building collaboration between all the discipline sectors in an operator company. However, if that company has not worked in this way before ~ and instead has functioned as a number of discipline silos, the effect on staff will be significant. Training should be a planned activity and must be regarded as a key component of all digital oilfield implementation projects. The most effective training will be delivered by those who have been through the transition themselves. Our approach to transition management is focussed workshops and training courses.
A digital oilfield implementation is one of the most complex projects that an oil and gas company can undertake because it has such a profound effect on its business.
So can we function profitably at $60/bbl? This is not going to be a comfortable time for oil and gas operators but it does provide an opportunity to smarten up our operations and to focus on increased drilling and production efficiency, as well as long-term recovery. This in turn will help us to build a sustainable industry exploiting both conventional and unconventional reserves for the benefit of all our customers and future generations. It is time to start viewing the digital oilfield and the smart operations it brings as “business as usual.”
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Top Operators “The past two years have been challenging ones for the satellite business and the teleport sector that uses satellite to deliver complex network services.” Robert Bell, executive director.
World Teleport Association Publishes Top Operator Rankings for 2014 The World Teleport Association (WTA) has published its annual rankings for the Top Teleport Operators of 2014. Since 1985, the association has focused on improving the business of satellite communications from the ground up. The Top Operators survey asked independent operators about their spending on satellite capacity as a percentage of revenues. The report reveals that average spending across the operators equalled 41% of revenues and 90% of respondents reported spending less than 60% of revenues on satellite capacity. There was no obvious pattern of spending based on company size or market niche: the leading service providers to the media & entertainment market showed a wide range of spending as a percentage of sales, from more than 50% to less than 15%. “The past two years have been challenging ones for the satellite business and the teleport sector that uses satellite to deliver complex network services,” said executive director Robert Bell. He noted that, of respondents to the 2014 survey, 63% reported year-over-year revenue growth, while 37% saw flat revenue or revenue declines. This compares with the average of the prior three years, in which 82% of respondents reported revenue growth and 18% reported flat or declining revenue. The biggest declines were reported by companies with significant exposure to US government and military spending, which has sharply pulled back its spending as it winds down deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq. Companies in other sectors are showing single and doubledigit growth year over year.
The Independent Top Twenty
The Global Top Twenty
The Fast Twenty
Ranked teleport operators based on revenue from all sources. The list focuses on the independent operators at the core of the business, excluding companies whose primary business is ownership and operation of a satellite fleet or terrestrial network.
The Global Top Twenty ranks companies based on revenues from all customized communications sources and includes operators of teleports and satellite fleets.
The Fast Twenty ranks all teleport-operating companies based on year-over-year revenue growth in their most recent fiscal years. Emerging Markets Communications was the fastest of the fast with 76% growth.
In order from largest to smallest: 1. Harris CapRock (USA) 2. GlobeCast (France) 3. Arqiva Broadcast & Media (UK) 4. Encompass Digital Media (USA) 5. Telespazio S.p.A. (Italy) 6. TeleCommunication Systems, Inc. (Govt Division) (USA) 7. Globecomm (USA) 8. Emerging Markets Communications (USA) 9. RR Media (Israel) 10. Spacenet (USA) 11. du (Emirates Integrated Telecom) (UAE) 12. Essel Shyam Communication (India) 13. Signalhorn Trusted Networks (Germany) 14. Axesat (Colombia) 15. SatLink Communications (Israel) 16. Jordan Media City (Jordan) 17. NewSat (Australia) 18. Infrasat (Angola) 19. Onlime (Germany) 20. Elara Comunicaciones SA (Mexico)
In order from largest to smallest:
*Independent: does not operate satellite capacity
Ranked by revenue growth:
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1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20.
Intelsat S.A. (Luxembourg) SES (Luxembourg) Eutelsat (France) Telesat (Canada) Harris CapRock (USA)* EchoStar Satellite Services (USA) SingTel Satellite (Singapore) GlobeCast (France)* Arqiva Broadcast & Media (UK)* Encompass Digital Media (USA)* Optus (Australia) Hispasat (Spain) Telespazio S.p.A. (Italy)* Thaicom Public Company Ltd (Thailand) AsiaSat (China) TeleCommunication Systems, Inc. (Government Division) (USA)* Globecomm (Services revenue) (USA)* Emerging Markets Communications(USA) * Telenor Satellite Broadcasting (Norway) RR Media (Israel)*
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20.
Elara Comunicaciones SA (Mexico)* Axesat (Colombia)* Gazprom Space Systems (Russia) Cobbett Hill Earth Station (UK)* Infrasat (Angola)* Global Data Systems (USA)* Milano Teleport S.p.A. (Italy)* Jordan Media City (Jordan)* Emerging Markets Communications (USA)* STN (Slovenia)* Echostar (USA) Encompass Digital Media (USA)* Santander Teleport S.L. (Spain)* SingTel (Singapore) RR Media (Israel)* Essel Shyam Communication (India)* Telesat (Canada) Onlime (Germany)* Eutelsat (France) du (Emirates Integrated Telecom) (UAE)*
* Independent: does not operate satellite capacity
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Feature: Data In Data Out Part 1
Optimising data transfer from remote locations Are we making the most of our networks in remote areas? The volume of data available to remote industries is increasing. And so is the pressure on the networks used to send that data to other locations. However, methods for optimising such traffic are also growing. But will that ease the strain on networks used by remote or offshore industries? Vaughan O’Grady looks at the options in the first of two features addressing getting data in and out of these remote locations.
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o, are we making the most of our networks in remote areas, notably those served by oil and gas? According to Martin Jarrold, chief, international programme development of the Global VSAT Forum (GVF), we are ~ or should be.
He argues: “In exploration, fixed and mobile VSAT solutions are vital for the transmission of ever larger volumes of data – for geologists, geophysicists, drilling engineers, seismic data analysts, etc., who not only locate new oil and gas reserves but assist in developing more effective and efficient techniques for yielding them from beneath the ocean floor — produced by cutting-edge applications used on exploration platforms. This extends to maritime VSAT solutions required by research and support vessels.”
satellite-based solutions, particularly for the oil and gas sector, if the limitations of the (currently) largely Ka-band service can be addressed. There’s also the question of latency, though MEO orbits may help some constellations to overcome this. Also, said John Tkaczewski, President at FileCatalyst, which provides software-based solutions designed to accelerate and optimise file transfers across global networks, “the connectivity is getting better and better. For example, four years ago rigs had maybe 128kb satellite connections to the main office. These days this is at 256kb — even 512kb is very common. So as the connectivity is improving the ability to move this big data via a link becomes a lot more possible.”
Other parts of the oilfield development process (construction, production and transportation) may be less bandwidth-intensive; but sensor-based operations like M2M, preventive maintenance, ship management operations for tanker fleets and crew welfare will all make demands, however modest.
Approach
The good news, if satellite is your main communications outlet, is that there are more satellites being launched, not least high throughput satellites. HTS could mean greater deployment of
The rest of the big data gathered on site, however, may need other techniques. Ty Garner, business development executive, oil & gas, at MTN, a provider of communications and content services for remote
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Such connections should be enough for crew communications and some highly targeted data. More mission-critical voice and video calls can benefit from techniques that ‘clean up connections’, addressing pixilation for example.
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Feature: Data In Data Out Part 1
“The rate at which data is growing is exponential. We are talking trillions of gigabytes a year across all industries ~ and the oil and gas industry will be a big part of that.” Roy Woodhead, HP
Vaughan O’Grady, author
locations around the world, suggested: “Bandwidth must be optimised, cached and managed with the latest technologies on land to deliver that same land-based experience on ships at sea.” With this in mind, MTN’s communications ecosystem converges satellite with terrestrial network access for lower latency and faster data transmission. “We combine our hybrid network access with a smart computing infrastructure and with software development. Our optimisation technologies increase application and data transfer performance up to 100 times,” said Garner. This communications ecosystem delivers not just optimised bandwidth and throughput, he said, but “seamless switching between satellite and broadband wireless networks for continuous connectivity, data security through a private fully redundant network, rich content delivery at sea, as if it were on land.”
TCP & Path Conditioning
Ty Garner, MTN
“Bandwidth must be optimised, cached and managed with the latest technologies on land to deliver that same landbased experience on ships at sea.”
Martin Jarrold, GVF
When it comes to data transfer optimisation techniques, overcoming the limitations of TCP is often mentioned. Tkaczewski, FileCatalyst, highlighted an offering which, instead of using the TCP protocol for moving data “which is slow on high latency and packet loss networks”, uses its own protocol based on UDP. He said: “We built our own protocol to transfer the data. Our protocol ensures that all the data sent via UDP will arrive without errors. Our protocol only acknowledges the exceptions ~ that is, if something goes wrong. If everything goes right, we continuously send the data over the wire. The acceleration part comes from the fact our protocol is immune to the latency on the network.” “Our protocol has been proven to work in some extreme network environments where packet loss can be as high as 25%. Even in those tough network conditions, the throughput degradation was linear to the packet loss." Another approach to TCP comes from WAN optimisation specialist, Silver Peak. Tony Thompson, VP of marketing at the company, suggested: “There are a number of techniques within what we call TCP acceleration or network acceleration… that more or less make that existing connection perform faster.” Another technique is path conditioning, which includes things like forward error connection and packet order correction. This is more relevant for real-time applications, like voice and video, where quality rather than speed is a concern.
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Also, said Thompson, “if you’re using things like satellite or you’re using broadband internet to connect to remote locations, you’re going to be dealing with a high degree of packet loss. We can repair those problems [degradation in quality] in real time without having to do retransmissions, which would otherwise create additional congestion on that network.” Compression is a part of most optimisation solutions but Silver Peak also addresses deduplication. “We use a technique called network memory, which identifies within the network the communications that are not redundant — and we only send what’s not repetitive information.” Echoing MTN’s earlier point about network convergence, Thomson refers to ‘multi-pathing’ a remote location using a satellite connection and then also using, say, LTE or 3G. “We offer what’s called dynamic path control. This allows the organisation to combine the power of those two networks and make them perform like one bigger network.”
Helpful advice On a less technical level, a useful brochure from MTN entitled, Optimising Communications Dos and Don’ts: Oil and Gas Edition, offers some downto-earth advice on: choosing a VSAT service, establishing cost per megabyte, and understanding shared contention among other topics. It also provides a checklist for your onboard needs. These examples of optimisation techniques are just a few of many. They vary a great deal ~ and not just by provider. Garner said: “MTN’s implementation techniques for data optimisation are proprietary and can vary depending on the customer and their requirements.” This choice implies a strong market for approaches that will free up capacity and limit spend on any remote enterprise anywhere - except that they probably won’t do so for long. Whether you’re a cruise line operator, a rig, a fishing company or a floating production vessel, the more data you can send the more you probably will send. As Thompson, of Silver Peak, said: “Compute and storage costs are dropping at rates much faster than bandwidth is dropping in price. So there’s still going to be a requirement for optimising networks.” Roy Woodhead, value creation manager, oil and gas industry at HP, puts it even more starkly: “The rate at which data is growing is exponential. We are talking trillions of gigabytes a year across all industries ~ and the oil and gas industry will be a big part of that.”
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Data in Data out
For the digital oil field, the time for real-time is now Data is everywhere in today’s oilfield. From downhole to pipelines to production facilities, it flows in volumes that can rival that of the product being extracted. Moreover, along with it comes a revolution in the way that this information can be used. By Ben Plummer, Vice President, Datawatch.
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reviously, data could only be analyzed historically. Information flowed first into databases and then got charted in spreadsheets or some other traditional business intelligence application. Today however, information flowing from the wired oil field can be visualized in real-time, before it gets to the data warehouse. This scenario can incorporate other real-time data feeds, as well as historic data for context from any number of disparate sources, to build a full picture of the production process as it is happening.
At a practical level, why does the ability to visualize data in real-time matter? For those running operations on the ground, it is the difference between driving a car by looking through the windshield or trying to do so by staring intently into the rear-view mirror. That rear view (spreadsheet and static bar-graph analysis based on historical data) was a big help when it was first introduced; quantifying and clearly illustrating trends, but with serious lag time built into the process. It’s why you don’t see air traffic controllers managing take-offs and landings with a spreadsheet, as high speed jets on intersecting flight paths are a real-time management problem. Today’s oil production, transport and processing operations are, in many ways, just as real-time sensitive. Let’s talk about a simple example to illustrate where a real-time view really matters. One of our customers, a Fortune 500 oil and gas exploration and production company, is using real-time data visualization to monitor steam generation and steam injection for its fracking operation in California.
Oracle warehouse before being pulled into the dashboard for visualizing. Now, with real-time capability, they can connect directly to the OSIsoft Pi server and visualize the data in-flight. The switch to real-time lets them continuously monitor the health of generators, optimize steam use, improve generator efficiency, and identify operational issues as they develop. Output qualities, rates and pressures can be monitored in real-time for each steam generator individually and in aggregate. With these significantly enhanced steam injection surveillance and management processes, as well as the ability to identify optimization opportunities and troubleshoot problem areas in real time, the company expects to reduce steam cost three to five percent in a single year, saving millions in operation costs. In terms of where else might real-time can matter in a material way, we can identify group metering. Being able to calculating realtime production deviation by comparing current projected value throughout the day to an average of “Inferred Production Yesterday” would help operations make changes in the field before they become a bigger issue. Or, perhaps, field balancing, where measuring total fluid injection against oil and water production of wells in real-time is now possible. Similar potential value can be found in real-time insight across the organization ~ from exploration to drilling and production, trading to executive insight.
Previously, using a traditional visualization tool, 24 hour latency was the norm. Data first had to flow overnight from an OSIsoft Pi server to an
Ben Plummer, VP, Datawatch
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Data in Data out Part 2
£ £ £
£ £ £ £ £ $$$$ £ $ $ S E $ O E D M U L O V A DAT €€€ MEAN €€€€ € DATA VALUE ? ££
The sheer volume of data, voice and video traffic sent and received by industries in remote locations is increasing. Oil and gas in particular can look forward to vast growth in bandwidth usage levels. But, does all this communication need to be happen in real time? Vaughan O’Grady investigates.
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n May 2014, at the Oil & Gas Communications Brazil event, infrastructure and logistical services specialist Brastrading predicted that maximizing the successful operation of the oil and gas rigs of the future will depend on a bandwidth usage level of 100 times that of today.
Even now, as Martin Jarrold, chief, international programme development of the Global VSAT Forum (GVF), said: “Many types of oil and gas installations and vessels ~ fixed, remote, and mobile ~ are requiring ever-increasing amounts of satellite bandwidth to meet the industry’s communications needs.” That goes for exploration platforms and ships, drilling rigs, floating production units, offshore support and supply vessels, tankers, pipelines and more. And, he continued: “At the very core of increasing bandwidth demand is the ‘here and now’ of the digital oilfield.” This means cloud server applications that are increasingly going to enable the transfer of oil and gas field IT infrastructure, and IT personnel expertise away from various offshore, or other remote
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locations, to centrally located areas, in support of what Jarrold calls, “fully integrated operations which comprise ‘always-on’, real-time, well-head and drilling measurements and data networking or sharing; along with video-based equipment and instrument monitoring, video-based remote surveillance for safety and security, and video conferencing.”
There’s yet more data headed towards us Much more data is becoming available. Roy Woodhead, value creation manager, oil and gas industry at HP, said: “The data explosion is coming from sensors telling us things we’ve never been able to measure and know previously; the digitisation of documents such as well-logs, and new information caused by combining older data such as linking various logs to reservoir models to augment our interpretations and understanding.” All of which means more integrated information, yielding better insights, and improved decision-making.
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£ £ £ Data in Data out Part 2
$ $ $ $$ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $$ € € € € € € €€€€€ €€€ Replication and Regulation
But all of that data isn’t just going to be operational. For example, Tony Thompson, vice president of marketing with WAN optimisation specialist, Silver Peak points to replication and backup of data for disaster recovery and protection; while Ty Garner, business development executive, oil & gas, of MTN, a provider of communications and content services for remote locations around the world, highlights regulation.
££££
John Tkaczewski, FileCatalyst
“We built our own protocol to transfer the data.”
Tony Thompson, Silver Peak
“There’s still going to be a requirement for optimising networks.”
can be retrieved and analysed these days, and not all of it can be assessed quickly on site. Thompson, SilverPeak, offered: “We’re seeing cases where key stakeholders in the business want to analyse sensory data in realtime from remote sites hundreds or even thousands of kilometres away. They want to get real-time data into their systems, they want to analyse that data, but with the data getting heavier and growing in size, the network is becoming the bottleneck.”
Garner said: “Many of our customers in the oil and gas sector are being required to do more at sea for longer periods of time with increased requirements from their customers for documentation of progress, from regulators and for transmission of data related to safety standards.” Crew access to personal communications, while not mission-critical, is also important.
A more prosaic driver for real time systems, he added (echoing Jarrold’s point), is avoiding the need to have a lot of staff out on the rig sifting through the data. Given the continuing recruitment problems of the oil and gas industry in particular, it might be hard to get them there in any case.
But how much data, and when?
On the other hand why not put data on a drive and then in the mail, or on a ship? As Tkaczewski pointed out: “If your ultimate goal is to utilise the network link to send this data then your best benefits are to send it as quickly as you get it because you’re saving yourself time later on.”
Given the sheer volume of data that you’re likely to be dealing with, if you’re in a remote location with limited access to communications, you may ask yourself how much information should go out to a central location ~ and when. John Tkaczewski, President at FileCatalyst, a company that provides software-based designed to accelerate and optimise file transfers across global networks, points out that: “If you’re going to be running any kind of simulation, or any kind of analyses on this data, then you usually need a big data centre; and I think that's where the problem comes in. Big data centres do not exist in remote locations.” Production or equipment monitoring will often involve very small amounts of bandwidth. Much on-rig decision-making ~ whether to drill to the left or the right, say ~ might be managed on a portable computer. However, says Tkaczewski of the exploration side (reservoir analysis, marine applications, seismic and so on): “those are much bigger options,” with much more data, some or all of which may need to go to one of Jarrold’s “centrally located areas.”
Real-time or later? But does it need to go back in real-time? Security and surveillance video material can probably wait, but there’s a lot more data that
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However, he added: “We work with exploration companies ~ mostly marine exploration or drilling exploration ~ and their approach to data transfer is: collect the data, and do data processing onboard on a vessel or rig to minimise the amount of data you've got to ship. But then eventually you’ve still got to ship that.” Managing large volumes of, say, exploration data ~ real time or not ~ is going to need optimisation techniques, which are discussed elsewhere in this magazine. Suffice to say these probably don't come cheap ~ but they are almost certainly a lot cheaper than sinking unnecessary drill holes because a lack of timely data. In any case, if you can send data in real time, why wouldn't you ~ especially if you’ve spent a lot on exploration? As Woodhead, HP, puts it: “At the heart of oil and gas are big financial investments made under very high levels of uncertainty. The more knowledge we have the less uncertainty we face. This is what is driving the growth of data through visualization technologies, new ways to measure, new ways to know what is going on with respect to working safely and environmentally responsibly, with levels of security and in ways that produce value.”
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Neil Cross, Advanced 365
Data Legislation
Top Tips for organisations working towards compliance Businesses deemed to be in violation of the GDPR could face fines of up to €100m
Assess existing data storage arrangements Organisations must first establish what data they hold, where it is held and the geographical location of the data centres they use. Hosting data outside of the EU could, in some cases, contravene the new legislation, so businesses must act now to understand how they are affected and seek new hosting facilities where required. Data migration to a facility which will ensure compliance is a lengthy process; a project which is underway ~ but not complete ~ may not be enough to satisfy the regulator.
New EU data security legislation Top tips for ensuring compliance in 2015 Major changes to EU data security legislation are coming. Yet, despite the threat of heavily increased fines, many are at risk of being unprepared for when the legislation hits. Businesses deemed to be in violation of the General Data Protection Legislation (GDPR) could face fines of up to €100m (£780,000 or US$1,218,895) or five percent of their annual worldwide turnover. Here’s a quick look at what can be done now, by both companies and their cloud service providers, in readiness for compliance with the new laws.
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n important amendment aims to standardise data security regulations across all 28 EU member states. Once the law has passed, data breaches must be reported to regional officers ~ within 24 hours ~ and organisations will be subject to audits to ensure that they are indeed, compliant. Those organisations with more than 250 employees are likely to be required to appoint a dedicated Data Protection Officer. Neil Cross is the managing director at Advanced 365, a company that provides IT managed services including security and data management. It has been working to build a compliant environment to support
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the new regulations ever since the framework for it emerged.
Review existing security policies CIOs need to look carefully at how data is accessed and processed and examine their existing security policies to ensure they support a compliant solution. For example many organisations hold data security accreditations that only apply to specific regional divisions or departments as opposed to the business as a whole yet wherever data is accessed it will fall within the requirement for the same level of control.
Formalise reporting
Cross offers that the new rules also usher in an opportunity to take stock of existing data and look at how this can further drive business intelligence. But, he also warns: “For many businesses, outsourcing data hosting will be the most practical and costeffective means of achieving compliance, however, CIOs and their teams must ensure that potential suppliers are themselves fully compliant with the new regulations. Organisations which suffer data breaches caused by negligent cloud service providers will share liability with them. Due diligence has never been so important.”
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Businesses should implement a breachnotification process so that any infringements are reported as soon as they are identified. This needs to be conveyed ~ within 24 hours ~ to the relevant data protection authority in the country in which an organisation is based.
Promote best practice Every employee from the top down needs to be aware of the severe implications of data security breaches. Establishing staff training programmes is imperative if data usage policies are to be enforced.
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Antenna updates
New tool addresses interference downtime caused by VSAT VSAT systems cause approximately 40% of all interference, and are responsible for 50% of downtime due to interference. SatGuard, a tool for identifying the source of adjacent satellite interference (ASI) and cross-polar interference (XPOL) caused by VSAT terminals, has just been launched by VeriSat. It works by determining the ID of the specific terminals causing interference, so that a network operator can shut down the unwanted transmission. “According to our statistics, VSAT systems cause approximately 40% of all interference, and are responsible for 50% of downtime due to interference,” commented Martin Coleman, executive director, the Satellite Interference Reduction Group. “This development from VeriSat is extremely significant for VSAT interference, an area which is particularly difficult to solve.” The provider of VSAT test equipment and solutions, VeriSat, worked closely with SES on development of SatGuard, which uses software radio technology and off-the-shelf hardware to capture and analyze the signals from the operational and interfered links. The system finds the terminal ID from the signalling information in the operational satellite links and correlates this information with the bursts detected in the interfered signal. This information can then be sent to the VSAT network operator where the necessary actions to stop the interference can be performed. “Interference issues caused by VSAT MF-TDMA systems are often time-consuming and complicated to resolve,” commented Chris Grogan, senior vice president of customer services delivery at SES. “It was apparent that we needed a method of making that process more efficient and we started a dialogue with VeriSat earlier this year to find a solution. We are extremely pleased with the outcome.” Tests show that interference levels as low as -10 dB SNR can be measured, corresponding to a level where the interference is no
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longer an operational problem. The technology will be enhanced in the coming months and will allow nominal interference levels to be monitored for terminal line-up and commissioning applications. Auto switch C to Ku-band in seconds with next gen VSAT antenna A flexible VSAT antenna service for offshore vessels and platforms has been released by Cobham SATCOM. The Sea Tel 9711 IMA (Integrated Maritime Antenna) system is a next generation antenna that can switch automatically from C to Ka-band in seconds. “It is a reliable, flexible solution that forms the platform for intelligent operations within the realms of today’s digital oilfield,” said Jens Ewerling, the company’s director of maritime VSAT. Offering cost-savings for end-users in the oil and gas sector, it also supports satellite service providers in delivering reliable connectivity. “Providing high performance and reliability on both C and Ku-band, the system ensures connectivity is always available regardless of environmental conditions or location. When high precipitation or moving a vessel or rig to a new location means changing bands, you no longer have to wait for your connectivity services to be manually re-activated, or pay for a technician to come and do it for you. It’s business as usual from the moment you arrive,” said Darren Manning, senior product manager, maritime products, Cobham SATCOM. The antenna is suitable for high-end networks used on advanced offshore vessels and platforms, where significant requirements for bandwidth and reliable communications are required. Switching between VSAT bands is fully automatic due to sophisticated software and a precision mechanical system on the antenna itself. The result is that there is virtually no offline time for a vessel or platform’s connectivity.
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The Art of Communication:
February 23-25, 2015 Houston, Texas
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www.OilGasCommunicationTechnology.com | 1-800-882-8684
Redline Communications bags US$2.6m wireless oilfield network deal Redline Communications Group Inc. (Redline) has received a $2.6million contract for the first phase of a wireless network expected to bring cost-saving automation to hundreds of oil wells in an oilfield in the Middle East. This new (undisclosed) customer, one of the largest oil producers in the region, will be implementing an advanced production monitoring and control system to make oil production more productive and efficient. It will utilise Redlineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s wireless network offering to provide the real-time connectivity that makes these bottom line benefits possible. The new network will incorporate advanced process and control automation systems connect sensors at every well, making ongoing status updates on production available to people and systems at remote locations. It will also enable functionality to remotely and, in real-time, change an increasing number of production parameters to optimise production rates almost instantly. With the ability to change parameters at the well sites, remotely over Redlineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s wireless network, operators can continually optimise production quickly and without adding additional costs, such as sending people out to check well sites for problems.
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Home from home
HTS and the impact on crew & welfare communications systems Why crew communications might need 10 Mbit/s
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Home from home
HTS and the impact on crew & welfare communications systems From Calling Cards to Access Codes By Hub Urlings and Simon Pryor Before the introduction of satellite communications, in the early 90’s, crew members on ships relied on a ship's radio personnel to either send a telex or patch through a radio-to-telephone message once at sea. Remote teams on land also had to rely on the sparse radio connections available on-site. With the introduction of Inmarsat-A to the maritime market, vessel owners and other companies with personnel at remote locations were able to offer crew calling schemes to make jobs more attractive, and to raise morale (and productivity) during long periods at sea or abroad. These schemes, often organised around ‘Calling Cards’, gave remote staff the ability to make low cost voice calls or send messages to family or friends frmo wherever they were. Using satellite for crew and welfare communications became common practice in the government market (e.g. peacekeeping missions), the corporate market (e.g. remote construction or mining sites) and the energy market (offshore and onshore sites). A new era began where working at sea or at a remote location around the world did not mean you could not stay in touch with home. A lot of creativity was used in those times to keep crews in touch with their families using narrow band communication links. The famous Christmas campaign, in the early nineties by Station 12, allowed crews to use discounted Inmarsat-C messages to order and send flowers home to loved ones, for example.
Crew calling in times of broadband satellite services With the introduction of Ku-band based broadband internet, via satellite to every location on earth, bandwidth costs at remote locations dropped dramatically. In many markets, we see that Lband connections are complemented by Ku-band systems for crew comms, bringing more bandwidth at lower costs.
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Crew welfare communication is often a driving force behind the purchase of VSATs in remote locations such as maritime, mining, or at energy extraction sites. Often, a separate VSAT is set up on the vessel or remote location especially for welfare connectivity, providing a full range of services to the remote crew. The advantage, of this approach, is that there is no interference with the business-critical communication requirements at a remote site. With the introduction of High Throughput Satellites (HTS), at fixed locations like the offshore market in the North Sea, existing Kuband systems are now complemented with Ka-band services that bring more bandwidth for a lower costs. Crew welfare comms become a driver for the use of new (Ka-band) satellite services once again.
The right time This comes at the right time. An occasional call home is no longer enough to stay in touch as we live in a world where the internet connects everyone-to-everyone in real-time. People (ask your kids) now consider that such connectivity is a basic requirement, both at and while away from home. Further, the explosion of pocket devices, with the ability to get online anywhere, anytime (access depending) has dramatically changed communications patterns . Many, including the target group of highly educated workers that companies need at their remote sites, feel that connectivity has become their ‘right’ as they use a wide range of mobile apps to stay in touch with their friends and family.
How does a state-of-the-art crew & welfare communications system work? The impact of broadband IP availability on crew communications is comparable to the changes in consumer internet, i.e. the transition from dial-up to broadband internet. A much broader service package for crew connectivity has emerged.
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Home from home
t eren Diff ications nt l app differe e hav width d ban s. d nee
Card based crew calling systems have evolved into sophisticated welfare systems that offer not only phone calls and messaging, but also browsing, email, and access to all kinds of social media apps. Video is also increasing. But this is only possible by combining broadband satellite connections with a clever onboard infrastructure and network management (for QoS); so let's have a look at that infrastructure:
Managing the network Between the VSAT and LAN at the remote site, there is a bandwidth and network management system to handle consumption ~ often over multiple satellite and terrestrial connections. The system has optimization functions and takes care of the management of the internal network when allocating bandwidth to specific crew or applications. Different applications have different bandwidth needs. VoIP calls are cost effective but need a prioritized stable connection with low jitter. To avoid overloading, with multiple Skype calls for example, it is better to offer them more bandwidth-efficient VoIP phones or VoIP client software solutions. For internet browsing, TCP and HTTP acceleration can also improve their experience.
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Additional mechanisms can be used to optimize the broadband connection, like blocking of advertising, the use of local caching of web objects, and restricting inappropriate content. For email, there are messaging and compression tools that allow users to send emails, e-faxes, and SMS messages reliably and cost-effectively. The crew and welfare communications system often works in a multi-network environment, typically having bonding and load balancing, together with optimized proxy functionality that can handle multiple satellite connections (e.g. VSAT in combination with Iridium or Inmarsat) as well as terrestrial or 3G/4G connections when available. Such a system, certainly for larger sites with large numbers of crew or staff, offers maximum stability of the connection and an increased traffic throughput. For access to the network at remote locations or onboard vessels, local WiFi hotspot internet zones have become the norm. The whole remote site is now often covered with a WiFi network, allowing crew to use their smartphones to go online and check Facebook, Whatsapp, or email. At larger sites, we see multiple network configurations ~ each with their own audience and bandwidth allowance.
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Home from home
About the authors Hub Urlings is an international satellite product-marketing consultant with a specialisation in satellite applications like satellite video and M2M services. He is co-founder of M2sat, a satellite system integrator and service provider. Simon Pryor is an authority in the area of video communications via satellite with his own consultancy company, r'treive. Both Simon Pryor and Hub Urlings are members of the European Professional Satellite Association.
A recent welfare system on board a working vessel for the construction of North Sea wind turbines, developed in co-operation with M2sat/MediaMobil GmbH in Germany, contained three separate networks: • One for the 50-strong ship crew to operate the vessel (business critical) • One for the end customer, having an office on the vessel (business critical) • And one for different contractor crews housed in office containers (crew welfare comms)
Changing requirements Using broadband IP satellite services, where available bandwidth continues to increase, and by smart optimization, crew and welfare communication systems have taken calling home to a whole new level. The new systems offer a state of the art of experience of "staying in touch with home" based on a wide range of multi-media communication services.
any been m e e v a h e ygon Ther since b apes s e g n a ch eo t hen vid ter days w n by helicop w lo il f o e wer n the rews o to the c North Sea the rigs in
Core to that are the existing basic services but internet access is now equally important, providing browsing, email and IP-based messaging services. One of the most important ways to stay in touch with family and friends is currently Facebook, so decent internet connectivity to upload 'selfies' and other mobile phone photos is very important. Where SMS was popular in the past, IP-based chat/message systems like WhatsApp allow users to stay in touch at low cost.
Video on the fly An important contribution, for the "staying in touch with home" experience, also comes
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from the video applications that are coming online for the crew communications at remote sites. One of the first applications in this area was video mail messages that were recorded during the day and sent during the night when bandwidth was available. Now, when properly planned, live video chat service can be available during periods where the network is underutilized. To stay in touch with the world, TV is still the most important medium for news or live sport and events. Satellite TV is traditionally part of the crew communication services at remote locations, as in the offshore industry where standard DTH TV receivers can be used to receive TV channels. For entertainment and on-demand viewing (VoD), there have been many changes since bygone days when video tapes were flown by helicopter to the crews on the oil rigs in the North Sea, as an example. The crews there enjoyed the very latest movies because the platforms are situated outside of territorial waters, and therefore didn’t have to wait for the different per-country release dates. However, the changing non-linear TV viewing patterns (catch-up TV, VoD) has created new demand from remote crews and staff as well. They now expect video content to be available everywhere and anytime via video on demand services to their smartphones, tablets, and laptops. We will see a growing number of Smart TV solutions based on IP connections, for nightly updates of on-demand video content to a caching system, that can be accessed via wireless networks at the remote sites.
SPRING 2015
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Petrochemicals Workforce Development
Home from home
Conference & Exhibition April 28-29, 2015 | Double Tree Greenway Plaza, Houston, USA
Skills shortages impacting North American petrochemical market Workforce development is reportedly the single biggest challenge impacting growth in the North American petrochemical market. Unprecedented market growth is predicted; over $100billion in new petrochemical projects capitalising on the domestic feedstocks available from shale plays are planned in the US – with over two thirds of this investment focused on the Gulf Coast.
Not only this, but with the majority of the existing petrochemical and construction workforce either at or nearing retirement age, there is a critical need for to attract and retain the new generation and pass down the industry knowledge to make sure projects are completed on time within budget as well as ensure they operate productively once complete.
However, severe skill shortages have huge potential to impact predicted growth if left unchecked; project delays and cost escalation will cost companies millions of dollars each day if they do not have a defined strategy to attract the manpower required.
The Petrochemical Workforce Development Conference & Exhibition is specifically tailored to address the HR workforce challenges. Workforce team leaders from the major petrochemical operators and construction firms will join economic alliances, legislative workforce planning commissions and educators in Houston to discuss business-critical strategy for developing the required workforce – including working with schools and colleges as well as immediate staffing solutions through community engagement and tapping existing talent pools.
By 2017, it is predicted that there will be a shortage of 2 million workers for planned projects alone, This is the most pressing and important issue facing the US petrochemical and construction industries - it is more important than ever to form a successful staff strategy.
Half of UK’s youth 'completely lost' without an internet connection Research from the UK may hold some clues as to the lack of interest in working in remote places. A study of 2,000 smartphone users has revealed that the younger demographic struggle the most when without an internet connection, with 50% of 18-24 year olds admitting that they would feel “completely lost” if they are out and about and could not get online. According to a new survey by Telenav, developers of Scout - a free sat nav app with offline functionality - 37% respondents in the 18-24 age bracket say they use an internet connection on their handheld more than any other feature, including making calls. Socialising is what 18-24 year olds are doing the most: 46% regularly keep in contact with friends through apps like WhatsApp and nearly 30% are frustrated if they can't access social media accounts such as Facebook or Twitter. The younger generation is also embracing more practical uses for their handhelds, with 45% using maps on their smartphone to navigate and a third admitting they'd be totally reliant on the internet to find their way around in a new place. With just 15% of respondents admitting to being comfortable getting to a destination by reading road signs and 85% admitting they can't read maps, it's no surprise there's an increasing reliance on online mapping solutions. But problems arise when there is no access to data. Unsurprisingly a significant number of people get frustrated when 3G/4G isn't working, and this is a continuous problem as 23% of the UK landmass has no access to 3G at all. And in offshore locations it’s going to be a hindrance. But at least they will be able to find their way to the heliport.
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SPRING 2015
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News
New portal enables access to satellite site activity IsoTropic Networks, a facilities-based provider of satellite internet services and iDirect Host Network Operator (HNO), has launched a new maritime portal that provides up-to-the-minute information about satellite connectivity such as: access to review sites, update settings, site notifications, and a forecast service for potential upgrades or downgrades.
groups focus and dedication to exceeding our clients’ needs,” said Hank Zbierski, chief catalyst at IsoTropic Networks.
“We intend to make the VSAT airtime experience convenient, educational and most importantly, reliable. This portal is just one more example of our maritime
To experience the latest portal for yourself, visit http://bit.ly/IsoTropic_Portal_Reg to request an account.
Available at no charge for IsoTropic maritime customers, the portal is the first of a range of new products and features scheduled for 2015, says a statement from the company.
RigNet acquires oilfield comms company, Munaicom, in Kazakhstan Global provider of managed remote communications and telecoms systems integration services to the oil and gas industry, RigNet, Inc., has acquired 49% in shares in Timas Munaicom TOO (Munaicom), an oilfield communications company based in Almaty, Kazakhstan.
The deal positions RigNet to provide remote communications services in the region ~ as well as setting the scene for further expansion in Central Asia. Munaicom will remain a licensed telecommunications provider in Kazakhstan, and will continue to operate under the same name for the time being.
Multraship and Damen confirm deal for 3x ASD tugs Leading towage and salvage specialist Multraship, and Damen Shipyards Group have confirmed an agreement for three new Azimuth Stern Drive (ASD) tugs. Leendert Muller, managing director of Multraship, said: “Multraship continues to expand its client base in the offshore energy sector as well as in its harbour towage operations. All three ASD tugs are highly suitable for these markets whilst their FIFI 1 fire-fighting equipment makes them especially valuable for emergency response. We are delighted to have collaborated with Damen on our fleet expansion programme. We are both family-owned companies with a Dutch heritage and an international outlook, so we make a good fit.” After delivery in Vietnam, scheduled for the end of first-quarter 2015, two state-of-theart ASD Tugs 3212 will operate for Multraship as sister vessels to the 83-tonne bollard pull Multratug 19, also built by Damen. An ASD Tug 2810 Hybrid is also scheduled to be delivered in Romania in first-quarter 2015.
New maritime ICT cloud enables shipping sector Ericsson’s new Maritime ICT Cloud could help shipping owners with stipulations set by the Maritime Labour Convention. Currently, operators are required to provide broadband connectivity for crew communication, entertainment, training, and telemedicine. Ericsson’s approach includes a multi-service communication platform with optimised connectivity and bandwidth for different types of traffic, combining industry applications, enabling services that facilitate voyage optimisation, cargo monitoring, and crew welfare. At present ships rely on manually updated traffic, cargo, port, weather and safety information that is sent point-to-point ~ rather than made available to all parties simultaneously via a network. This is a time-consuming process and the lack of access to real-time data can increase the margin for error. The Maritime ICT Cloud will connect vessels at sea with shore-based operations, maintenance service providers, customer support centres,
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fleet/transportation partners, port operations and authorities. It also enables services used to manage fleets, monitor engines and fuel consumption, oversee routes and navigation, and ensure the wellbeing of the crew.
Orvar Hurtig, head of industry & society at Ericsson
Orvar Hurtig, head of industry & society at Ericsson, says: “Vessels at sea do have systems in place that allow them to monitor critical functions and fuel usage, set and maintain an optimal course and ensure the welfare of their crew, but they are not particularly well integrated with fleet management systems onshore and they do not maximize the potential of realtime data. As the driving force behind the Networked Society and the world leader in telecommunications, Ericsson is the right partner to help connect these disparate systems and enable them to share information with low latency.” Ericsson will provide everything from satellite connections to application support in one complete package, and manage operation of the Maritime ICT Cloud on behalf of its customers.
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