Next-Tech News

Houston, Texas – Deepwater oil drilling is in the news every day—unfortunately. Might RFID become part of the solution in the future to make it safer or more efficient? A new tag might revolutionize asset tracking in “downhole” and subsea oil and gas operations. This RFID tag can survive sustained extreme conditions of up to 200C (400F) temperature and 2070 Bar (30,000 PSI) pressure.

Merrick Systems announced its nomination for the prestigious SME Innovation Award from Offshore Northern Seas (ONS), the premier energy conference for North Sea Energy Operations. The winner of the award will be announced during the upcoming ONS Exhibition and Conference in Stavanger, Norway on August 25.

The ONS Innovation Awards rerecognize the vital importance of cutting-edge products and solutions and are given to new technologies and significant improvements to existing solutions for the oil and gas industry. Merrick is nominated for this award with its revolutionary new RFID tag which is designed to survive the extreme rigors typical of down-hole and subsea oil and gas operations. The High Temperature/High Pressure (HTHP) tag is the latest addition to Merrick’s RFID Diamond TagTM suite, designed to meet the unique needs of asset tracking in upstream oil and gas operations, surviving not only extreme temperatures and pressure but also impact, vibration, corrosion and abrasives.

“Merrick is honored to be nominated to this prestigious award, alongside the industry’s foremost innovators and forward thinkers” stated Samina Farid, Merrick’s Chairman. “This nomination validates our continued pursuit of practical solutions for tracking high-value assets in downhole, surface and subsea oil and gas operations, where the stakes are high and asset identification errors can have catastrophic results in terms of human and environmental safety as well as financially. Our new technology provides a reliable method to automate the process of tracking these assets and reduce human errors and equipment failures by allowing immediate access to vital asset information across the globe while greatly reducing operational costs. ” She added.

Merrick’s HTHP tags are consistent with OLF (The Norwegian Oil Industry Association) standards and have been independently tested and proven to dependably survive downhole and subsea drilling operations, where other identification methods failed due to destruction of identity markings by extreme heat, pressures, rough handling and chemicals. Merrick’s complete asset tracking solution launched in 2007 includes Merrick’s suite of RFID Diamond

Tags and rugged readers, along with Merrick’s DynaCap software, to track high value oil and gas assets in downhole, subsea and surface operations. Merrick’s asset tracking system allows immediate operational access to asset location, use and inspection history, physical properties, preventative maintenance schedule and traceability information required for an asset. System elements are certified for Class1, Div1 and/or Zone1 use.

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MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. – Lockheed Martin’s Savi Technology has received a U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) order for 50 Portable Deployment Kits (PDKs) to locate, track and manage RFID-tagged supplies anywhere, anytime in support of expeditionary force surges in Afghanistan.

This most recent order from the USMC Automatic Identification Technology office brings the total number of kits procured to nearly 1,300 kits over the past several years by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), National Guard, NATO and allied international defense forces.

The updated PDKs in the USMC’s latest order operate on dual Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) modes to provide real-time visibility of assets tagged with devices based on pre-existing standards or to new standards the DoD has adopted based on the ISO 18000-7 (DASH7) standard.

The compact “out-of-the-box” system uses RFID, GPS and Iridium Modems to communicate via satellite with DoD’s In-Transit Visibility (ITV) network. The highly portable solution, which can be carried like luggage and used where fixed infrastructure is not practical, enables military logisticians to know where mission-critical assets are located while they are transported to and from supply depots in the United States to the last tactical area in the field of operations.

“The Portable Deployment Kits help war fighters to be properly equipped, especially in remote and austere environments where rapidly moving expeditionary forces need to be self-sustaining,” said David Stephens, CEO of Savi Technology. “In addition to providing end-to-end supply chain visibility, Savi’s Portable Deployment Kit helps to improve operational efficiency, lower transportation costs and minimize inventory and excessive supply orders.”

“There’s a force multiplier effect when civilian agencies involved in rapidly-moving disaster relief efforts can leverage an off-the-shelf solution that links with the DoD’s existing communications network,” Stephens added. The DoD used PDKs and other RFID fixed infrastructure to track supplies shipped this year to Haiti during disaster relief efforts there. PDKs also can be used in the commercial sector where large and complex supply chains extend to remote locations, such as oil and gas exploration and production, construction and mining.

Because of their ruggedized portability, Savi PDKs can be set up anywhere as mobile reader checkpoints, including at transfer locations from air, land or ocean modes of transportation, or at Supply Management Units in theater. Through satellite communications with the DoD’s ITV network, field logisticians can communicate their requirements with supply depots in the United States, which can then better manage both incoming and outgoing inventory. The PDKs ordered by the USMC track everything needed by expeditionary forces, ranging from ammunition and tires to meals and boots.

The PDK integrates in a single carrying case several wireless tracking and data collection technologies, including bar codes, 2D bar codes, active RFID and GPS location systems with satellite communications. It also includes a laptop, handheld computer, mobile reader, printer, software and communications equipment needed for asset tracking, and cargo and personnel manifesting. In addition, the PDK provides active RFID tag read and write capabilities, and prints Military Shipping Labels with updated shipment information.

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