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EPCIS Technology Improves Visibility for North Sea Oil Service and Supply Companies
Aker Solutions supplies offshore oil-drilling operators with maintenance and operation services, using its own equipment and labor. In some cases, Aker rents Swire containers to transport its equipment. The containers and equipment can weigh as much as 15 tons.
Like Swire, Aker Solutions often has trouble anticipating equipment's arrival at its Norwegian well service depot; the equipment is typically delivered by a third-party freight company. Aker's staff members rely on field service personnel to notify them by phone when equipment is departing the offshore drilling site, but that process is not entirely reliable, as field workers may not always make the calls. "We have a big black hole as an asset leaves the site," says Håkon Falnes, Aker's equipment and maintenance manager. "We were looking for something more predictable."
Spartan's Phalanx Mobile Logistics and Service software allows Aker and Swire to track the movements of their equipment and containers. Phalanx enables reader data to be interpreted in the companies' ERP systems, where shipment orders and movements are tracked. What's more, Spartan's EPCIS-based Horizon software enables both firms to share that data via the Internet.
The two companies, which began installing the system this summer, intend to use it not only to track when their assets leave and arrive at their depots, but also to share that data with other firms handling those assets. Eventually, Weatherby says, with the participation of other companies, there will be data records for all of the equipment's movement from offshore drilling sites, as well as from the cargo base and Swire's or Aker's depots.
Yard management personnel at both firms are currently using Motorola handheld computers, which contain built-in RFID interrogators, to enter data regarding the shipment or arrival of containers and equipment. Swire is utilizing the Phalanx system at five yards in Norway, with workers reading RFID tags, scanning bar codes or manually inputting serial numbers printed on the containers before they are shipped. That data is then transmitted wirelessly to Swire's ERP system, which employs Spartan's software to interpret it and make it available to Aker, and to any future participants, using a password to log onto the Horizon application via the Internet.
In addition, Aker is using the Motorola handheld device at one operations depot in Norway, with plans to expand the system to its other yards throughout the country. Like Swire, Aker utilizes Phalanx software, which integrates the RFID data with its ERP system, and uses the Horizon application to share that data with Swire.
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Like Swire, Aker Solutions often has trouble anticipating equipment's arrival at its Norwegian well service depot; the equipment is typically delivered by a third-party freight company. Aker's staff members rely on field service personnel to notify them by phone when equipment is departing the offshore drilling site, but that process is not entirely reliable, as field workers may not always make the calls. "We have a big black hole as an asset leaves the site," says Håkon Falnes, Aker's equipment and maintenance manager. "We were looking for something more predictable."
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| Håkon Falnes |
The two companies, which began installing the system this summer, intend to use it not only to track when their assets leave and arrive at their depots, but also to share that data with other firms handling those assets. Eventually, Weatherby says, with the participation of other companies, there will be data records for all of the equipment's movement from offshore drilling sites, as well as from the cargo base and Swire's or Aker's depots.
Yard management personnel at both firms are currently using Motorola handheld computers, which contain built-in RFID interrogators, to enter data regarding the shipment or arrival of containers and equipment. Swire is utilizing the Phalanx system at five yards in Norway, with workers reading RFID tags, scanning bar codes or manually inputting serial numbers printed on the containers before they are shipped. That data is then transmitted wirelessly to Swire's ERP system, which employs Spartan's software to interpret it and make it available to Aker, and to any future participants, using a password to log onto the Horizon application via the Internet.
In addition, Aker is using the Motorola handheld device at one operations depot in Norway, with plans to expand the system to its other yards throughout the country. Like Swire, Aker utilizes Phalanx software, which integrates the RFID data with its ERP system, and uses the Horizon application to share that data with Swire.
