Exploring Tarantella
 For
Petroleum Geo-Services (PGS), owning the industry's largest multi-client
3D seismic library is not without challenge. Covering over 250,000
square kilometers of the world's most prospective and prolific basins
– PGS products at first glance look like complex screens of lines
and squiggles. But in the hands of a geophysicist that data is a
goldmine, and oil and gas companies use this valuable 3D, time-lapse
and multi-component seismic information to explore new reserves,
develop existing reservoirs, and manage oil and gas field production.
PGS needed a way to quickly and cost-effectively access and transfer
data to and from anywhere in the world. So they turned to the experts
at Tarantella, Inc. 
Changing
an Industry
With corporate headquarters in Oslo and Houston, PGS is an oilfield
service company specializing in geophysical seismic services and
production services.The company acquires, processes, manages, markets
and provides associated data management solutions. Additionally,
PGS owns four floating production, storage and offloading systems
as well as operating numerous offshore oil and gas production facilities.
Changing the way the oil and gas industry does business is what
drives PGS – discovering innovative technologies to improve efficiency,
productivity and cost-effectiveness. In order to do this, PGS needs
access to the right information, in the right place at the right
time. And that requires secure, personalized access to server-based
applications and valuable data – exactly the type of business-altering
technology that Tarantella delivers.
So in 1999 when Tarantella Premier Solution Provider, Scientific
Computers, gave PGS' Global Manager of Technical Computing, Richard
McNally, a first-hand look at the Tarantella software, it was no
surprise that a follow-up product evaluation was close behind. "We
compared different solutions and liked the flexibility Tarantella®
Enterprise 3™ software gave us," McNally recalls.
From 20 Hours to 5 Minutes
McNally first deployed Tarantella Enterprise 3 software in the
PGS global operating centers to run graphical applications remotely.
McNally found this particularly attractive because it bypassed the
many difficulties inherent in rolling out proprietary software.
All he needed were browser-equipped PCs.
It wasn't long before PGS added Tarantella servers to its Oslo,
Perth, London and Houston centers.
And PGS found even more uses for the Tarantella solution. With
a fleet of high-performance Ramform seismic vessels exploring the
oceans from the South China Sea to Nigeria, being able to share
data in seconds is a real coup. "That's the real benefit of Tarantella
Enterprise 3 software – the fact that you can do something you've
never been able to do before," says McNally. "There's no way historically
you could run an application on the boat and receive the data in
five minutes, which you can do with this solution. Previously we
would have to transfer large data files – which could take 20 hours
and the performance of heavily graphical applications between offices
was virtually unusable."
Today the company interacts with its powerful on-board processing
systems in real time, whereas before implementing Tarantella software,
it could only make text-based connections to the ships. Historically,
McNally recalls, "We have used this feature to allow customers sitting
in our Oslo office to view his data as it was being collected. We
used to run the applications very, very slowly. And now between
London, Aberdeen and Oslo it's literally as if you're sitting next
to the machine," notes McNally.
A Scalable Solution
McNally says the Tarantella deployment on the ships and in its
main centers was so successful that the natural next step was to
install Tarantella servers in new sites in Abu Dhabi, Aberdeen,
Scotland and Kazakhstan. "(We did that so) geophysical experts could
log into those remote locations and collaborate with local staff
to look at seismic data," he explains." The other benefit (of the
global access capabilities of Tarantella software) is that our engineers
can remotely manage production systems using the GUI applications
provided rather than text-based commands. Our Aberdeen office is
our first truly remote center. The large production systems are
located in our London processing center and the geophysical staff
run remotely over a 2Mbit WAN connection at speeds that make you
think the data is sitting on your local disk.“
Secure, Managed Access
In addition to remote access, McNally is also impressed with the
performance of the Tarantella software, as well as its stability
and ease of management. "With the latest versions of Tarantella
Enterprise 3, we have been able to replace PC X-emulators on our
desktop PCs as the performance is equal or greater for the user,"
he says. "The flexible Tarantella solution eliminates the requirement
to install and license software on every desktop. Management and
stability have never been an issue as once the initial service is
started there is seldom a need to do any further maintenance."
Once PGS started using Tarantella Enterprise 3 software, McNally
found even more areas in which the company could benefit. "The latest
technology we have introduced is combining Tarantella Enterprise
3 and SecurID, from RSA, to enable secure access to our NT and UNIX
applications via the Internet," explains McNally. "This means a
salesman can either sit in an airport or a customer's office and,
using a secure pin number, access PGS and run any application from
seismic displays to email. Home PC users can run any application
within PGS. The advantage of Tarantella Enterprise 3 is that you
don't have to transfer large amounts of data around the world to
see what you want to see."
Managed, secure access to the Enterprise.
Thanks to Tarantella.
|
|
The Challenge
PGS needed to transfer seismic data quickly, cost-effectively
and securely from its offshore exploration fleet, to its operations
centers and client offices anywhere in the world.
The Solution
Running intensive graphical applications remotely
using a PC and a web browser.
The Benefits
Speed, convenience and cost-efficiency: seismic
analysis can be run and received up to 200 times faster. PGS employees
securely access a variety of applications and data via the Internet
anytime, anywhere.
Customer Testimonial
"That's the real benefit of Tarantella - the fact that you can
do something you've never been able to do before. There's no way
historically you could run an application on the boat and receive
the data in five minutes, which you can do with Tarantella."
- Richard McNally, PGS
Executive Summary
Petroleum Geo-Services, headquartered in Oslo,
Norway and Houston, Texas, is a technologically focused oilfield
service company principally involved in two businesses: Geophysical
Operations and Production Operations. PGS acquires, processes and
markets 3D, time-lapse and multi-component seismic data. PGS' advanced
geophysical technologies allow oil and gas companies to better characterize
and monitor their reservoirs to enhance production and ultimate
recovery of hydrocarbons. In its Production Operations business,
PGS owns four floating production, storage and offloading systems
and operates numerous offshore production facilities for oil and
gas companies.
|
