Drilling Managers – what’s keeping you up at night?
At Kabal, we know drilling managers have a difficult job and spin many plates. We also understand the problems that can stop you from being your best. The solution to many of these problems is improved drilling logistics. We’ve spoken to hundreds of drilling managers about their main concerns and below we share what we know about how a digital logistics solution can solve them.
1. Where’s my drillbit?
It’s a common situation. Multiple, identical containers are delivered to your rig. You can’t tell them apart, or what’s inside each. All you’ve got to go off is a manifest or excel spreadsheet with a generic description of what’s been delivered. So, you’ve got to waste time lifting each one on deck and inspecting it.
A logistics software customised for complex drilling rig logistics gives you full visibility of where everything you need (including your drillbit) is at all times – in real-time.
With Kabal, the vendor digitally provides a detailed description of every item being shipped to you and attaches documentation that is automatically transferred to the manifest. That way, you know exactly which container holds the tools you need for your next job, when it will arrive at the shore base, which vessel it’s on, when it will be on site, and even where it’s located on your deck.
One operator estimates they saved $1.2 million from working efficiencies, including knowing where their stuff is.
2. How can I reduce non-productive time (NPT)?
NPT is a key performance indicator. And if you can’t find your stuff, you can’t do the work.
A vast amount of non-productive rig time and expense is wasted by waiting for equipment to arrive. It can put you behind schedule. If you calculate the cost of rig hire, idle equipment and under-utilized personnel that can range from $500,000 to as much as $1 million a day. And when you’ve got multiple rigs, the problem gets worse.
A logistics software like Kabal gives you 100% planned visibility of all the tools you need for your operation. That means you can verify you’ve got everything before you start, reducing NPT.
3. Why do we spend so much on rental tools?
Maybe you don’t have full visibility of all your rental items on-site.
Many operators only track high-cost rental tools, so they have them just in time for when they’re required and send them straight back. That could be about 200 items for a campaign.
But they don’t track the lower-cost rental tools and there could be thousands of those on your rig-deck throughout the campaign. These could be waiting to be deployed because of a scheduling error or used tools ready to go back to shore. Either way, leaving them idle racks up unnecessary expenses on rental cost.
One operator we worked with thought their average rental tool time was six days. When we checked and added all the rental tools they were using we found it was 40 days. Another said they’d cut their rental tool costs by 50% – several million dollars – from just two rigs.
A logistics software provides cost effective drilling equipment transportation. The Kabal system is connected to your operations and has a just-in-time tracker that shows green if a tool should be there and red when it’s no longer needed.
4. How can we reduce high-risk operations?
One way is to cut down on cargo movements during a drilling operation. By offering full visibility of your cargo, Kabal eliminates your need to load and unload containers to find the right equipment. You can put items it in the right location straight away. It also ensures regulatory-compliant transportation and appropriate staging at the shore base to avoid unnecessary trips and meet oilfield safety protocols.
5. Why is my deck always jam-packed?
Maybe you’ve too many rental items that need to be returned. Once the rig deck is full of equipment you must hire boats for warehousing your drilling equipment. That creates collision risks for your asset while the warehouse vessels add to costs. A software-based logistics solution will tell you when the equipment’s ready to go back.
6. Have I got everything I need for the next section?
With Kabal you have full visibility of the master equipment list – what’s coming on to your rig and even digital deck plans of where everything is located. This prevents NPT caused by delayed or missing equipment.
7. Oops, did I forget to send back my wireline tools?
Kabal’s just-in-time tracker is linked to your operations. If an item shows up green, it’s in the right place. If it shows red, then it’s time to send that item back. The system is also linked to the people using the tools so they can flag when they’ve finished with them.
Choosing an industry customized logistics software like Kabal can make your job easier and save your company millions of dollars. Don’t just take our word for it, come and speak to our customers. We hold product demonstrations around the world for existing and prospective customers. Why not join us?