Latest Technological Trends in the Oil and Gas Industry

Oil and gas industry has witnessed significant changes in the recent past due to new entrants in the market from South America, and China. Companies today are trying more than ever before to make the best use of technology to minimize waste during the exploration process. Oil and gas suppliers meet almost one-third of the world's energy needs. Due to varying demand and supply of fuel in the market, oil and gas prices fluctuate frequently. Hence, advanced systems are required to keep track of inventory in this continually changing environment.

Technological advancements in the oil and gas industry

1. Enterprise data management

As energy companies start depending heavily on hardware and software technology, there is a massive amount of data collected every second. As company databases grow exponentially, there is a strong need to manage and analyze data to gain useful insights into the exploration process. This large amount of data that gathered over time can help in predicting machinery breakdown and forecast demand and supply trends in the future. As enterprises use the latest data management techniques, an exchange of information can occur among various systems, including fuel distribution networks, plant machinery, and global information system.

2. Blockchain technology

Interestingly enough, blockchain technology is creating disruptions in the oil and gas industry as well. The digital coins that have been primarily used to perform e-commerce transactions or cryptocurrency trading are now used to materialize energy contracts as well. One of the significant benefits of utilizing blockchain in the energy sector is it requires minimum intervention from human resources. Smart contracts allow companies to automatically buy raw material from vendors based on threshold levels defined in the inventory system.

3. Robotics

One of the best examples of technology implementation in the oil and gas industry is the use of robots in energy plants. Companies are trying to formulate hybrid working models at their premises which allow human resources to work closely with robots. An interesting example of ‘no-collar’ workforce is multiple robots employed at a fuel exploration plant to pick up products form the shop floor and load them on to delivery trucks. Robots not only reduce payroll costs, but they are also able to enhance the efficiency of the overall system. Robots can also be used during offshore energy exploration projects to dive deep into the ocean in order to repair underwater machinery.

4. Technology core

With so many technology concepts being introduced in the market, companies have started defining a technology core for their business. This brain or central system uses different types of computing technologies including cloud computing, Internet of Things, Blockchain and others to form a completely integrated online operational network. These technologically advanced computing networks allow organizations to monitor their assets lying at any remote location and helps in storing large amounts of data while incurring minimal costs.

By leveraging technology, oil and gas companies can reduce their cost of production, and automatically manage their inventory levels based on endless variations in the demand and supply of energy resources. Oil and gas companies that are able to adapt to changing technology quickly will gain a competitive edge over their peers in the future energy marketplace.