Bullwinkle is a gargantuan in the Gulf, but its hardware was showing signs of age. The 1,736-foot (529m) tall oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico is operated by QuarterNorth Energy. Installed in 1988, weighing 77,000 tons, Bullwinkle ranks as the third-tallest freestanding structure ever built, surpassing the Sears Tower by 6 feet.
The company faced significant challenges with outdated equipment that led to extended downtime and high repair costs. Decentralized control systems required a large workforce, hindering troubleshooting. Slow system response times impacted operational efficiency, decision-making, and visibility. Full-capacity control and safety systems limited logic expansion, complicating the situation further.
Existing servers were no longer supportable
Regular and unpredictable failures, leading to data loss
Loss of system visibility and HMI called for operational “workarounds”
Loss of system visibility and HMI called for operational “workarounds”
Lack of centralized control, requiring operators to roam the entire deck
Switches and indicators were buried inside PLC cabinets
Enginuity Global implemented a meticulous, two-phase strategy to upgrade the legacy SCADA and aging HMI system to a state-of-the-art Distributed Control System across multiple upgraded PLCs and a refreshed HMI. The upgrade prioritized enhancing flexibility, scalability, and reliability, with a focus on seamless online integration of advanced technologies.
The migration process involved distributed task allocation, optimized resource utilization, and strengthened fault tolerance. Through synchronized switchover, load balancing, and real-time monitoring, Enginuity Global successfully minimized downtime while ushering in a resilient and efficient DCS, resulting in a significant upgrade from the previous SCADA infrastructure.
Modernization of offshore production platform’s legacy control systems and infrastructure for safe, efficient, and profitable operation. We utilized a virtual system deployment offering unmatched reliability and flexibility.
Fault-tolerant server with redundant hardware, no failover time, and no data loss
Consolidation to a single system
Hot-swappable components
Local and cloud health monitoring
Migrated PLC-5 hardware to new ControlLogix PLC to improve accessibility
New master control system with separate Control and Shutdown systems — which entailed implementation of Rockwell Automation PlantPAx® Distributed Control System (DCS). This includes HMI/SCADA and Factory Talk® historian with SQL Server supporting 6,000 I/Os, anti-virus and cluster management software , and redundant Fiber network deployment and infrastructure.
New redundant Ethernet I/O network
High Performance HMI that simplifies and standardizes operations.
In a remarkable achievement, the team swiftly transitioned Bullwinkle from Site Acceptance Test to Facility Restart in just 45 days, extending the system’s life by over a decade. This led to a significant 22% reduction in unplanned downtime and an impressive 1,000% decrease in system response time.
The implementation of a centralized monitor and control system improved yield and safety, and it ensured uninterrupted operations for critical applications. Additionally, virtualization efficiently consolidated 12 applications onto a fault-tolerant system.
Real-time data to help prevent electrical failure
Migrating DeltaV to bring the system into the future
Mitigating operational and personnel safety issues
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