Learn more about the ALRDC Gas Well Deliquification Workshop.

If you would like to schedule a meeting with our staff during the show, please contact us at sales@etcorp.ca.

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People often mistake ETC for a plunger lift electronics company or even a plunger lift service company. The reality is that this couldn’t be further from the truth.

ETC does not employ any service technicians, nor have we historically had in-house plunger lift expertise. The reality is that ETC is an electronic controls and sensors company with strong relationships with service companies that happen to specialize in plunger lift.

Back in 2001, ETC was formed by a group of engineers and computer scientists with ties to the oil and gas industry. A plunger lift service company called Advanced was looking to solve a number of common issues with plunger lift controls. Their knowledge of the application and the market combined with ETC’s knowledge of electronics design led to a product that neither company would have been able to create on their own.

Even though Advanced and ETC only worked together for a couple of years, this same formula has worked time and time again. ETC has worked with a number of plunger lift service companies over the years.

Each time, they provided the direction on how the product should operate and ETC came up with the design to make sure it would be rugged, reliable and safe.

Now ETC is expanding into other vertical markets by continuing to do what we do well—understanding our customer’s problems and coming up with unique, reliable electronic designs to solve them. Our internal skill set is focused on hardware, software and mechanical design with a focus on low power, wide temperature ranges, and hazardous locations. These core competencies position us to work in almost any industry.

Our latest success story?

We worked with VIM Injection Management to develop a chemical injection management system that could retrofit an existing pump. It automates the management of the injection, provides scaling based on temperature, and gives the ability to manage injection rates remotely. Once again, partnering with a company that had industry specific knowledge led to a solution that fits the customer’s needs.

VIM was subsequently acquired by Profire and the product was rebranded as the PC180. This is only one example of ETC successfully working with service companies to help them achieve their goals based on their specific needs.

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As a general industry standard, properly torqued EUE lubricator threads fail at around 125,000lbs and Bowen box threads tend to release over 200,000lbs. That being said, industry standards for plunger lift lubricators have come a long way. Today the industry is close to a new API PL 11 designated standard for lubricator metallurgy, weight, configuration and spring metallurgy (NACE compliant, engineered compression ratios ect).

Nevertheless, there is still a gap. While you can engineer a lubricator to survive rogue impacts, it is preferable to eliminate those impacts altogether, through advanced monitoring, warning, and preventative action controls. This will ensure the lubricator’s integrity is not compromised, people are unharmed and overall equipment maintenance can be minimized. With ETC’s Sasquatch plunger velocity sensor, you can ensure that the lubricator is never exposed to dangerous impact and that safety is maintained with its intelligent plunger lift advanced warning system.

Testing

The Sasquatch plunger velocity sensor has been in field testing for the past six months. During this time, ETC validated Sasquatch on production wells by performing real time monitoring of plunger arrivals and correlating well conditions (average velocities using traditional plunger arrival sensor and casing, tubing and line pressures) with instantaneous velocity. What was noted is that instantaneous velocity can far exceed average velocity at the point of impact.

Results

When tied into a control valve, the Sasquatch safety sensor will be able to shut the system down, preventing further catastrophic impacts. You will note in the graph below that during most cycles the instantaneous surface velocity was notably different from the average velocity, and in some cases dangerously so. The deeper the well, or the higher the permeability and porosity of the formation, the more potentially violent the impact.

The Sasquatch is the next step in the protection of our people, production and environment.

The post Sasquatch Real Results appeared first on Extreme Telematics Corp..

We often get asked how we are managing to grow during this downturn in the oil and gas market. Being an equipment manufacturer, we see a lot of pushback on sales and customers asking for price reductions. There are some things that you can do to help stem the downward pressure on the business and not only survive, but thrive.  Here are some of the things that we do at ETC to continue to grow the business during tough times:

Build and sell products that still excel in a low price environment

Many products might be a “nice to have” item.  They make life easier, but only get purchased when there is a budget. By focusing on developing products that create more income for producers and that pay for themselves over a short period of time, you can avoid being overlooked because of a lack of budget.

A good example of this is an optimizing controller, such as the ALiEN2 Plunger Lift Controller.  The product itself gets more production out of an existing asset.  In many cases, even getting and extra 5 – 10% will make a very compelling argument. We have even seen instances where a well’s production increased 100%, giving the producer a payback period of two days.

Ensure your offerings are based on value, not price

When commodity prices are up, many people just want to take the easy road. They use whatever they know and don’t focus on value. When prices are low and every purchase is scrutinized, there has to be value. Without value, the customer will simply want a lower price. A value-based product may last longer, improve production, require less operator intervention, be safer, use less power, or do all of the above.  All ETC products are rugged, reliable, low-power, hazardous location approved, and work in extreme temperatures.  These are all attributes that make purchasing ETC products a sound investment.

Innovate

One way to avoid price pressure is to have products that no one else does. When business is slow, spend your efforts innovating. Create products that solve problems in a unique way, providing extra value for your customers.  If you can convince customers that there is a better way that will save them time and money, or improve the safety of their operation, you will get the inside track on your competitors.

ETC is in the midst of releasing the Sasquatch Plunger Velocity Sensor which is poised to change the way that plunger lift wells are run.  Instead of relying on average velocity, producers will finally be able to measure instantaneous velocity of the plunger at surface.

Provide exceptional customer service

One thing that a lot of companies cut back on first is administrative resources and customer support.  These are typically seen as overhead.  By keeping resources consistent and finding ways to enhance your customer service, you will retain your existing customers and attract new ones. Building strong relationships with your customers will position you well as the market improves.

We have always invested in technical sales people, documentation, simulators, training materials, and other tools to make sure our customers and resellers get the best support in the business.

Grow sales and marketing

This is another thing that a lot of companies get wrong. They cut back on marketing or cut sales people for poor performance in the hopes of cutting expenses again. Instead, use the time to pick up quality people that are out of work and put extra money in the budget for sales and marketing. Making people aware of the value of your products and how you can help them will allow you to gain market share. This will help counteract a shrinking market. Once again, this will not only pay off in the short term, but position the company well in the long term.

ETC is actively adding more sales and marketing staff as we speak. We have also increased money spent on resources, training and advertising to help our customers and resellers.

Start with money in the bank

Investing in new products, customer service, and sales and marketing efforts all takes money. In order to do these things, there must be the appropriate financing in place as well as the risk tolerance to follow through even though things may not look good.

We have managed to find great banking and investment partners along the way to help us grow the business. This combined with our mandate to continually reinvest in our people and technology has positioned us to thrive during this period of low commodity prices. We are continuing to grow and expect the rate of growth to accelerate as the market improves.

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Sasquatch is the first plunger lift sensor specifically designed to protect the artificial lift system, known as plunger lift, from dangerous high velocity impacts. The technology of the Sasquatch is built on the foundation of our plunger arrival sensor Cyclops. Sasquatch not only detects the arrival of the plunger, but also measures and stores the instantaneous surface velocity of the plunger. The power of the Sasquatch sensor resides in its ability to not only proactively alleviate potential health, safety and environmental catastrophes, but to also reduce overall plunger lift operating costs. This leads to a more transparent and safe plunger well operation that will optimize production.

Sasquatch is certified for safe use in Class I, Zone 2 (Div 2) hazardous locations, with a rugged design to sustain extreme cold and hot temperatures. Sasquatch operates reliably from -40°C to +70°C (-40°F to +160°F), and includes the ability to adjust sensitivity for total accuracy with a wide variety of plungers and surface equipment.

Sasquatch is now available for presale. Please contact your preferred ETC reseller for more information.

The post Extreme Telematics Corp. releases plunger lift’s first ever velocity sensor appeared first on Extreme Telematics Corp..

The better way to safely and optimally operate a plunger well is to use surface velocity. The speed at which the plunger enters the lubricator determines the amount of impact on the anvil and spring. This is what should be monitored because this is where fast plungers can do the most damage. There is a new breed of sensors emerging that will tell you not only when the plunger arrives, but the velocity the plunger is travelling at. But how do we know if this is accurate?

At ETC, we have run many different plunger types at many different speeds. Collectively, this adds up to tens of thousands of plunger runs that have been monitored and recorded by the Cyclops plunger arrival sensor and Sasquatch plunger velocity sensor.

The plunger is pulled through a short run of tubing into a lubricator using an electric motor. The speed of the motor can be varied to move the plunger at a faster or slower velocity. The approximate speed of the plunger can be calculated based on the speed of the motor.

To further validate the velocity that the Sasquatch is reporting, independent measurements are taken using photo sensors. Multiple sets of holes are drilled along the tubing and photo sensors are inserted.  These sensors are made up of two parts, a light emitter and receiver. This creates a beam of light across the tubing that is broken when the plunger passes by. We then take the timing between each set of sensors tripping to get the actual velocity as the plunger passes by. This can only be done in a controlled testing environment as holes cannot be drilled into tubing in the field, but it further validates the speed at which the plunger is travelling at the surface of the well.

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1. Seamless integration

The modern plunger lift controller comes with the ability to be controlled remotely. Whether connecting to a cell modem or the RTU, a plunger lift controller just becomes part of the system.  This makes it accessible from the control room so that you can do anything you need without visiting the site.  From a remote operator’s perspective, it doesn’t look or act any differently than any other part of the automation system.

2. Local display and control

A lot of operators are frustrated by the lack of local interface on most RTUs.  They are forced to call into a control center or connect remotely with their laptop when visiting the site.  It is much simpler to walk up to the controller on site, scroll through the history, make any tweaks, and immediately try them out.

3. Advanced optimization

Maybe you have static times in your RTU or maybe you have an optimization routine based on pressure or plunger arrival time. How do you know it is the best? What if you had a controller with a number of different types of optimization that were already developed, tested and refined?  Many of the controllers on the market have algorithms that are proven to dramatically increase the production of a plunger lift well.  There is a good chance that a smart controller will pay for itself as well as the rest of the automation system.

One more thing to consider is the arrival of the plunger velocity sensor.  Undoubtedly, your RTU is not programmed to make use of a well head velocity sensor. Using a controller that can connect to a velocity sensor, use it for alarms and optimize it will increase the safety and production of the well without having to reprogram your RTU.

4. Operational flexibility

Have you ever wanted to switch optimization types, connect other devices, or make changes to how the RTU works, only to find out that you don’t have the right build? The feature you want is maybe in another program or missing all together. Controllers that are application specific often have many more configurations available and can readily adapt to the specific well needs.  Simply turn on the feature you require without reprogramming.

5. Less maintenance costs

One often overlooked cost is the development time to add to your RTU plunger program.  This can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.  Even once the development is done, you also need to consider the cost to test the program and then roll it out to hundreds or thousands of sites. When you think long-term, the couple thousand dollars for a plunger lift controller doesn’t seem so expensive.

6. Safety features

RTU programs are typically very basic. They have to be with the limited amount of room available for the plunger program.  At minimum there should be the ability to shut in on a number of consecutive fast trips or a single dangerous trip.  Beyond that there should be the ability to react to non-arrivals, low battery conditions and prolonged spikes in line pressure. These are relatively standard features in a good plunger lift controller.

7. Lower cost peripherals

If your RTU is Class I, Div 2 (Zone 2) and the sensors are located in the Class I, Div 1 (Zone 0/1) area you are likely using explosion proof solenoids, pressure transducers and arrival sensors.  If you include a plunger lift controller, you are going to be able to use intrinsically safe devices that are much more cost effective. These devices do not need to be as rugged and can use simpler wiring.

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