Managing Contractors & Survey Data Presented by Bruce Carter

Data acquired by field survey for a specific purpose is the “basis” for the entire project! Quality and detail are essential; not only from the spatial positioning of the event, but the collection of the supporting information associated with the elements, foreign lines, and surface features An “as built” survey of the exposed pipeline (open ditch or subsea) is critical to developing the most complete database relative to the project possible. Field Data Acquired by Survey

A set of detailed general guidelines and standards that have been adopted by the client’s management for the data acquisition Thorough and clear communications of the Scope of Work specific to the actual project acquisition requirements and deliverables Legitimate QC/QA of data acquisition and processing Key Elements to Managing Survey Contractors Coordination between data acquisition activities and other operations in the project area (SYMOPS)

Positional accuracy requirements covering survey and mapping activities relative to the project Competency requirements for the various levels of contractor skill sets HSE requirements relative to contractor’s work history, survey procedures to be implemented, and personnel’s “fit to work” General Guidelines and Standards Deliverable formats and requirements for raw and processed survey data relative to the project

The end result and intended use must be defined before the scope of work can be derived Detailed description of work to be performed must be clearly communicated to insure that the appropriate results are achieved While the scope of work must be clearly defined, it must also be a “flexible” document with the understanding that some details may change to accommodate unforeseen circumstances when identified as the acquisition is being conducted Project Specific Scope of Work Scope revisions must be uniformly communicated and documented so that all parties are on the same program

Local HSE requirements and procedures Scheduling around other activities (construction, drilling, completions, etc.) Regulatory Simultaneous Operations (SYMOPS) Surface notifications and restrictions

Field coordination to maintain consistency in data acquisition, recording, and reporting procedures Daily production reports Collection and “independent” processing of raw acquisition data QC/QA Comparison of acquired data with other existing database information (redundancy)

Data acquired by field survey for a specific purpose is the “basis” for the entire project! RESPECT THE EFFORT AND EXPENSE THAT’S BEEN AFFORDED TO THE INTEGRITY DURING THE ACQUISITION! Quality and detail are essential! The integrity of the data begins with the knowledge and experience of the user of the data mapping and management applications; not the application itself. Maintaining the Integrity of Data Acquired by Survey Mapping applications provide the user with many options. Manipulate the data because you “need” to; not just because you “want” to, or worse, just because you “can”!

A set of detailed guidelines and standards that have been adopted by the client’s management for the data acquisition Thorough and clear understanding of the client’s intended purpose and use of the defined deliverables as well as delivery schedule Implement industry standard applications and procedures for processing required deliverables Key Elements to Managing Surveyed Data Respect the “hierarchy order” of data integrity when manipulating and managing data

Defined data formats and positional frame of reference (CRS) requirements relative to the project deliverables Third party data delivery and accuracy requirements should that be a part of the required deliverables General Guidelines and Standards Amount of “creative license” can be determined from the content and detail demonstrated by the client’s documents

Detailed use of deliverables must be clearly discussed to insure that the appropriate results are achieved Delivery timelines are critical to the client; whether you are a consultant to an operating company, or a company’s internal service provider, you have a client dependent upon the final product Scope of Anticipated Use and Delivery Schedule The time to revise the deliverable formats or time lines is before the processing is initiated; not afterward!

The hierarchy of data is determined by the quality of the source The quality of the source is determined by the acquisition specifications and procedures Proprietary field surveyed data Hierarchy of Data Proprietary remotely sensed data with ground control survey Documented third party field survey Remotely sensed data with documented ground control survey Documented table top generated data Undocumented data from any source should be considered only under special circumstances

The time has passed for implementation of non-standard applications for generating deliverables in the industry Beware of potential issues with some industry standard applications that could possibly delivery erroneous spatial data Question application providers to insure that spatial data conversion engines contained in their software are GIGS (Geospatial Integrity of Geosciences Software) compliant Industry Standards and Applications

Questions/Comments

Bruce Carter Member of the “Gray Haired Brigade”