ACADEMIA

Stratos Global has announced it has joined forces with its new Channel Partner Zedi to deploy the world's first large-scale SCADA network based on Inmarsat's BGAN mobile broadband satellite service.

Stratos and Zedi recently began deployment of an IP-based SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition) network for a major oilfield-services company. The total network will enable several hundred remote unmanned sites to be monitored and controlled from the customer's global operations center. Those sites currently utilize technologies such as electrical submersible pumps, as well as downhole pressure and temperature gauges in the production of oil and gas. The deployment will be expanded to include progressive cavity pumps and other upstream facilities. This network will replace the end-user's older-generation Inmarsat GAN mobile packet data service.

BGAN (Broadband Global Area Network) uses highly portable, lightweight terminals to provide simultaneous, high-speed IP data (up to 492 kbps) and voice connectivity anywhere in the world. BGAN is ideally suited to enable communications in areas where terrestrial or cellular networks are damaged, congested, or non-existent.

This customer network uses Addvalue's SABRE Ranger, a ruggedized compact BGAN terminal that was developed by Addvalue in partnership with Stratos and the end customer. The Ranger is specifically designed for permanent fixed-site deployment and 24x7 network connectivity in the harsh environments associated with remote SCADA deployments. The terminal delivers high-speed IP data (up to 492 kbps) and voice connectivity anywhere in the world. Stratos is the exclusive Inmarsat Distribution Partner for the SABRE Ranger. Addvalue Technologies is a leading designer and global supplier of BGAN terminals.

For this customer deployment, Zedi connects BGAN terminals to the Zedi Intelligent Network to achieve a SCADA solution. The highly reliable and accurate data is then delivered to the desktop through Zedi Access, a secure web portal. By using Zedi Access, the customer is able to make better-informed decisions and effectively manage more wells. Zedi professionals are seamlessly integrated with Stratos Customer Support for all network management.

This BGAN SCADA network relies on Stratos Dashboard to enable optimal network productivity and affordability by providing real-time traffic reports, cost control and online provisioning for new terminals. Stratos Dashboard is the foundation of The Stratos Advantage portfolio of value-added services.

"This groundbreaking global deployment is the result of a strategic partnership between Stratos, Zedi, Addvalue and the end-user that included nearly two years of rigorous testing," said Stratos President and CEO Jim Parm. "Before this deployment, BGAN-based SCADA networks of this scale did not exist. This high-profile network firmly establishes Stratos as the leading provider of BGAN SCADA services."

Parm added, "Stratos has a long history of successfully deploying mobile satellite services (MSS) and microwave solutions to the worldwide energy industry. Our Houston-based Broadband Services Group and global MSS delivery teams have managed critical systems for many of the world's leading oilfield-service companies. Our new BGAN SCADA service extends and reinforces our commitment to offer innovative SCADA solutions to support the upstream oil & gas, utility, mining, water-management and tower-monitoring markets."

Zedi President and CEO Matthew Heffernan said, "The integration of our field-proven Zedi Access platform into this custom BGAN solution ensures this prestigious end-user will benefit from high-performance SCADA connectivity in the most remote areas and harshest weather conditions. We look forward to working closely with Stratos to deliver this pioneering service to many of the world's other premier oilfield-services companies."