Controls Development for Customer Products
In exchange for a small percentage share of Safe Influx - Finesse developed a PLC based control system for Safe Influx’s now patented Automated Well Control System. This has enabled the company to demonstrate conclusively on simulators and on rig trials that the system radically reduces the risks to personnel, the environment and the bottom line of the drilling companies and asset owners, in the event of an uncontrolled release of pressurised subterranean fluids or gasses, often referred to a “blowouts” which can cause catastrophic damage.
The automated system developed by Finesse for Safe Influx, detects potential release of fluid or gas earlier than even the most vigilant driller is likely to, then proceeds to automatically coordinate the actions of various pieces of machinery the driller would normally have to control, in order to safely stop activity and close in the well.
By removing the variable human reaction time and the need for a cool head in a crisis, the system can guarantee that a predefined sequence is followed quickly and efficiently minimising the risks on route to achieving a safe condition.
Finesse working closely with a local manufacturer of agricultural machinery have developed the control system for their soil sterilising machine. The machine creates a continuous process with soil entering at one end and leaving sterile at the other.
The control system Finesse developed controls the movement of the soil through the machine and the injection of steam to ensure the temperature of the soil reaches the critical level and is maintained high for sufficient time to ensure any roots, spores, seeds or other living or dormant organism have been killed.
Deep Tek – An innovative small lean family subsea salvage company, were innovators in the use of positive buoyancy nylon rope for subsea lifting operations. In experimenting and innovating for their own salvage operations they found as they went to greater depths the size of Steel wired rope lifting members grew exponentially as they needed more strength to lift the weight of the cable than the subsea equipment. They had similar issues with composite umbilical cables containing controls and lifting members in the same cable.
They came up with an innovative solution using buoyant nylon rope lifting and created a winder mechanism to spin control cables and elastic wrap around the rope as they deployed and unwrap as they recovered.
Having effectively trailed the concept on a record braking deep water salvage operation they realised their equipment required a very slow, manual, labour intensive and highly skilled operation to deploy and recover the subsea equipment. They approached Finesse to develop a prototype PLC control system which monitored tension in each product and synchronised the various winder components to enable a much less demanding and more efficient operation.
Finesse supported a university spin of company in the design and development of the control system for a newly patented concept machine which it was hoped would significantly raise the bar of expectations across the oil industry, concerning the cleanliness of water discharged to the sea or other watercourse (for land rigs) as a by-product of Oil & Gas production.
Using Ozone Injection in this environment had never previously been tried but was proved by CWSL to be safely achievable and to remove virtually all residual hydrocarbons as well as many other contaminants left behind once all the commercially recoverable material had been extracted. The highly reactive Ozone – oxidises (effectively burning within the water) any pollutant hydrocarbons, leaving clean water and carbon dioxide.
Finesse designed and built the control system for the first commercial unit. Unfortunately though technically successful, due to commercial issues, as the only return on investment from this technology was in terms of environmental regulations, CWSL ran out of funding without having managed to establish this product in the market.
How our process works
Other experience:
- Pneumatic brake assembly machines
- Burnishing and conditioning machines for brakes
- Brake lifespan analysis machines
- Dynamic performance testing machine
- Machines for research and development
- Life cycle torque testing
- Failure testing machines
- Automated handling and assembly equipment – from intricate assembly of small parts to handling larger components
