Oil and gas is a 6,585.54 billion dollar global industry, making it a huge contributor to the economy and employment of several countries, particularly the Middle East and GCC. These sites use several underground equipment spanning hundreds of miles, including pipes and underwater oil extraction technology. Oil and gas sites require round-the-clock monitoring with automated alerts in case of any mishaps for immediate attention and response.
Why is Video Surveillance so significant for Oil and Gas Businesses?
The smallest spark can lead to a huge explosion in the volatile environment of oil and gas sites. Thus, these sites are prone to several hazards affecting human safety and the protection of assets. The reason behind this is the amount of mechanical-intensive work involved, the precariousness of the materials they extract from beneath the surface, and their storage in a safe and secure facility.
Installing the latest surveillance systems has various benefits from a business standpoint. Firstly, these cameras, with integrations like IR and motion detection, provide added safety against theft and vandalism. Even from a manager’s standpoint, the cameras help him remotely monitor the crew operations, ensuring minimum lapses and increasing productivity. Furthermore, from a financial perspective, the cameras help detect any anomaly in operations, like potential equipment failure, so that it can be rectified before it causes a major accident at the site. In doing so, surveillance cameras insure companies from accidental costs and liabilities, thus promoting business growth.
Key Advantages of Video Surveillance for the Oil and Gas Industry
• Safety monitoring
Video surveillance solutions protect the crew during risky processes involving dangerous tools and exposure to lethal chemicals, especially when working in confined spaces. Besides explosive materials and working in an atmosphere where fire and electricity may pose a threat to human lives, real-time visual monitoring can be a perfect tool to improve safety and keep a vigilant eye over unsafe activities. The constant security monitoring can boost the quick response time in unpredictable situations, while at the same time offering detailed visual feeds for the first responders, who would then be in a better position to take appropriate action with the best possible strategy.
• Adherence to safety compliance
Another pertinent role that the video surveillance system plays, especially at the extraction points for gas and oil, is adhering to the government-provisioned code of conduct. Most industries consider OSHA as the ideal safety body and train their employees as per their specifications. This compliance prevents accidents and serves as a strong impetus for industries to keep their working environments up to that standard. Similarly, the adherence of workers to these standards make them compliant with safety measures, like avoiding entering a hazardous area unprotected.
• Remote monitoring prevents unauthorised entry into the site
The video surveillance system creates new avenues for remotely observing industrial sites in many ways. Firstly, the system helps the safety team cut down the risk of unauthorised entry, either deliberately by an intruder or by an employee or lost visitor with low-level clearance, straying into a facility, such as an oil and gas plant.Secondly, security monitoring of critical areas such as oil wells, rigs and gas lines is extremely important. Although regular inspection of these sites is very important, project managers might want to consistently monitor or avoid multiple visits to such sites by using video surveillance to keep things in check. As per a report by Navigant Research, such advantages of video security monitoring is exactly what is transforming the oil and gas industry, as demand for such equipment continues to rise. The report also stated that as and when the oil and gas prices drop, management in these industries will try to explore new ways such as video surveillance to improve safety and operational efficiency. And it is possible that in the distant future, remote drilling using video security solutions might become a reality.
• Enhanced resiliency using mesh networking and wireless technology
Though the oil and gas surveillance system is helpful in the oil and gas industries, it can be further enhanced by using other technologies. For instance, by integrating mesh topology in security monitoring. Through this technology, multiple nodes in infrastructure are directly and non-hierarchically connected, allowing smooth flow of traffic. The use of mesh networking in combination with video surveillance can be extremely useful in huge drilling sites or at an expansive power plant, particularly when an incident of outage or emergency occurs.Similarly, wireless technology can also enhance video surveillance in certain circumstances. For example, wireless surveillance solutions such as IP-based cameras can be used to remotely observe offshore oil rigs. Their ease of deployment and flexibility can prove to be beneficial to the safety of workers, security, and general operational efficiency. Read full article
