Over the years I have been able to work on many different software projects. Some of these applications were standalone, others were client server applications that made good use of local networks. A lot of web development and work with web technologies also played a role. All of these projects were challenging but not as complex as the software industry with its myriad of languages and technologies – crazy jargon and seemingly endless acronyms. That was until now.
As you can see, you have now plunged into the world of the giant oil and gas industry. They have their own languages and enough acronyms to make even a hardcore software guy shudder. When you come across terms like datum, TVD (True Vertical Depth), mudlogging, RT (Rotating Table Height), MSL (Mean Sea Level), MDRT (Measured Depth From Rotary Table), KB (Kelly Bushing), AHD (Australian Height Datum), plus many, many more – you have to stop and scratch your head.
Although as a software industry professional with many years of experience and qualifications, it is much easier to deal with database tables with fields like first name, last name, street address, and phone than with fields like Calcimetry_mg, AGSO_Id, iC4, LagDepthMD, and Dolomite. If you are a geologist or work in the oil and gas industry, these terms may already be familiar to you. However, most of the people are completely dumbfounded when they encounter such conditions. I know I am.
When making database mappings from one format to another, it’s much easier to look at the FirstName and LastName fields in the source database and then ensure that they must be joined to fit the single CustomerName field that belongs to the destination database. This is not easy when you do not understand the geological meanings of the terms and what they mean.
To some extent, you can still apply the knowledge you have from the software industry that has no immediate effect from any external source. So, for example, you know how to set up Apache config files or modify IIS to configure geology site and that requires no knowledge of well site geology terminology at all. Know how to create a class and the reference does not change. There are many other aspects where the complexity of the field in which you operate does not hinder your software, database and system skills.
All said and done, I find my introduction to the oil and gas industry not without incident and its fair share of activity. There is nothing sleepy about this industry as it seems to work 24/7 and doesn’t stop on the weekends.