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Learn how to use the various features of oil and gas software

You don't have to go to school to learn oil and gas software. Many oil and gas software companies provide comprehensive training. If you don't have time to come to the headquarters of the oil and gas software company, arrange for the training representative to do training at your office. The company's trainer will walk you through the features that the oil and gas production software has. To gain a greater appreciation of the product, the trainer may provide real-world examples. In addition, use the documentation and videos that the trainer provides you.

I recommend: Roughneck Systems provides not only oil and gas software programs, but training. You can download tutorials and documentation from its website. If these materials are not enough, Roughneck Systems has Certified Software Professionals that provide training. Merrick Systems is another company that provides training. You will have to log into the website of this oil and gas exploration software manufacturer company in order to access the documentation.

Learn how to use features in software for oil production by attending trade shows or conferences

Perhaps your company has just installed the enterprise oil and gas software program throughout the organization, but you're at a loss when it comes to knowing its features. One way to find out how to use these features is to attend trade shows or conferences, which can be valuable. The company's representative can demo the product. That way, you can see first-hand how to use the features.

I recommend: Drilling Info has trade shows and conferences. In addition, the company offers training. You’ll have to contact the company for its training schedule. RealFlex Technologies also provides oil productions software solutions. You can either attend training at its headquarters or a trainer will come to your office. This company provides two types of training: engineer level training or operator training.

Learn how to use petroleum software for modeling and data

Your company may need to collect crucial information from digital log data. You may also need software that can produce surface and solid models, maps, or geological and statistical diagrams. In order for your colleagues to become proficient with these functions, they'll need to get training. Some oil and gas companies offers class training, while others offer more customized training solutions.

I recommend: Petroleum Software Technologies offers oil and gas training solutions. You can take advantage of the company’s online help feature or manuals. In addition, the company provides individual or group training. RockWare is another company that offers both workshop and individual training.

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Keep all of your PowerPoint presentations on your oil and gas software. Sometimes the trainer will have screenshots that can help you in learning how to perform a function.

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Understand your company's oil and gas software needs

Petroleum software can aid with both oil and gas production and exploration. You can use oil and gas software for static or dynamic modeling, for seismic interpretation and for facilities engineering. Determine the main goals of your company and what aspects of petroleum software you will need to help you reach your goals.

I recommend: Look at Schlumberger Information Solutions for a wide variety of oil and gas software, such as Petrel for subsurface applications, ECLIPSE for reservoir engineering applications and the Avocet family of software for production needs. Consider downloading free demos of oil and gas software at GAEA Technologies Ltd.

Consider the experience level of your staff when choosing oil and gas software

A staff composed of entry-level geologists and reservoir engineers may need to use a simpler petroleum software program initially. Make sure that the software will allow your staff to ramp up to more advanced applications. If your staff contains experienced hires, you may choose a more complex software program for your business.

I recommend: Consult the petrophysical software providers from the Society of Petrophysicists & Well Log Analysts to find out general information about the oil and gas software applications used by members of your staff. Contact oil and gas software companies such as Seismic Micro-Technology, Inc. or Schlumberger Information Solutions to ask them about the intended users for their products.

Familiarize yourself with the training and technical support provided

When you purchase a suite of oil and gas software or a specific software application from an oil and gas software company, make sure that your staff will receive adequate training on the new software as well as technical support. You will want to check with your software provider to see what services you can either get for free or what services you can purchase for an additional cost.

I recommend: Take training classes on Schlumberger oil and gas software products to learn the software applications and to keep up to date with software improvements and changes. Register for Schlumberger's online support portal for technical assistance with their products. Use web-based support or take training courses from GAEA Technologies Ltd for their petroleum software applications.

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Obtain trials or demos of oil and gas software of interest. Many oil and gas software companies will provide these to you before you make a final purchasing decision.
• •  Be sure that the petroleum software that you purchase integrates well with other software programs used by your company and your company's computer operating system.
• •  Look into any maintenance or reliability issues of the oil and gas software. Make sure that the software purchased has a good track record of being reliable and that the future software maintenance won't cost your business a lot of time or money.

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Learn about best practices that are found in oil and gas software through white papers

White papers can be great resources for finding functions in oil and gas software programs. Some of the functions you want to make sure that the oil and gas software program include are: asset management, incident management, and knowledge management. These functions play important roles in the oil and gas industry as they do in other industries.

I recommend: You can read about best practices for oil and gas production software in a white paper from IBM's Maximo for Oil and Gas. You can learn about both incident and asset management. Bentley also has white papers on oil production software solutions. The white papers cover several topics, such as managing lifecycle data and costs. You can also read about the petroleum software solutions that it offers.

Read the latest news on oil and gas exploration software

You can find solid information on oil production software on the Internet. One way of getting the latest news is to look at the website of an oil and gas software company that makes this kind of software. It's not uncommon to find news on what's happening in the industry as a whole. That way, you'll get a snapshot of the market. Financial news websites are great ways to find the latest on oil and gas software. They may inform the reader as to how much market share the software has.

I recommend: Hart Energy Publishing provides news on software for oil production; get the latest on exploration, drilling, and production. In addition, this news website has articles on how technology has changed this industry. You’ll also want to check out BusinessWeek's Business Exchange, which covers stories on oil and software companies.

Check magazines and newsletters to find articles on oil and gas software

You should consider reading online magazines or newsletters. Oil and gas magazines will contain articles that focus on technology. In these articles on technology, the writer might cover the software the company uses, which can be another great way to learn about a software's features.

I recommend: GE Oil and Gas Solutions has a newsletter on the oil and gas industry that includes articles on software. Oil and Gas Journal also provides good information on not only the industry, but oil and gas software.

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  If the website has podcasts on oil and gas software, make sure you take advantage of listening to them. They can offer insight on features or benefits in using the software.

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Petrophysical software

Petrophysical software gives oil companies the tools engineers need to analyze the vast amounts of data they produce in drilling for and producing oil. This type of software uses algorithms to calculate data like porosity, saturation and volume of a well before workers drill it.

I recommend: For more detailed information on petrophysical software applications, visit PetroWorks by Halliburton.

Operator system

The operator system in gas and oil software usually handles the accounting aspects for the business.

I recommend: Visit WolfPak Software to view the features included in operator system software. Click on the links for more information about specific features.

Dynamic modeling

Dynamic modeling, as opposed to static modeling, involves simulating active processes. Among other things, software for oil and gas production must calculate drill rates and fluid density.

I recommend: GDS Publishing offers an article "Dynamic Modeling of Hydraulics and Well Control," which describes the process.

Seismic interpretation

Seismic refers to the fault lines on the Earth's surface. The fault lines cause earthquakes. Seismic interpretation is essential to determining the safety and ultimate production value of an explored oil or gas drilling site.

I recommend: To learn more about software specific to seismic interpretation, check out Petrel by Schlumberger.

Well log software

Well log software helps manage the immense amounts of data involved in drilling an oil or gas well. It can compute everything from soil porosity to water saturation.

I recommend: The Logic Group describes the wide variety of applications for its different versions of well log software.

Subsurface applications

Before drilling begins, it is important to know what's going on below the surface. Software can help interpret data, so reservoir engineers can make decisions based on what the team is likely to encounter.

I recommend: To learn more about the many subsurface applications that software can calculate, check out UTCHEM by the Office of Technology at the University of Texas at Austin.