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Forum discusses oil safety

Cougar News Services

Offshore oil platforms ­ the veritable skyline of the Gulf of Mexico ­ are becoming safer places to do the dirty work of extracting oil from the ocean floor.

Increased safety is reaching new heights because of the development of "virtual oilfields," which can remotely monitor the activities aboard a platform. 

The development of those systems is the topic of todayis UH Global Energy Management Institute forum.

Oil industry executives and engineers will focus their discussion on safety and implementing possible changes.

Virtual oilfields extend a degree of management and control to land-based corporations. Oil and gas production can be closely monitored through computer technology. 

Jane Sloan, the UH-GEMI executive chair, argues that virtual oilfields bring safety and efficiency to the oil industry.

"Companies are in the early stages of adaptation, so there are still challenging issues that face the industry," Sloan said in a press release. "At this forum, UH-GEMI … will be examining the business aspects on how to integrate old systems with new ones."

The forum is co-sponsored by the UH Information Systems Research Center.
 

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