Overcoming Communication Challenges in the Oilfield

8/13/2019 Overcoming Communication Challenges in the Oilfield

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33BUSINESS IN FOCUS

Redline Communications is bringing the power of communication to some of the most

remote and challenging locations worldwide. The companys rugged broadband wireless

products provide high speed, real-time connectivity for critical machine to machine ap-

plications virtually anywhere on the planet.


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Since 1999, Redlines market leading Virtual Fiber tech-

nology has been utilized by some of the most de-

manding industries on earth. Oil and gas companies

look to Redline to connect their digital oil elds; the militaryuses Redline to rapidly deploy secure networks; governments

utilize the companys products to increase public safety. Across

stormy seas, uncharted jungle, or arctic cold no job is too far

offthe grid or too complex.

The Ontario based company has set itself apart by specializing

in demanding industrial applications. Its really an unserved

segment of the market, says Duval Yeager, AVP of Product Mar-

keting. Traditionally, most manufacturers have simply slapped

some weatherproong on a standard solution and called it in-

dustrialized, he explains. You would use a regular switch or

a router from your office in a weather proof box somewhere.

And the same with radios. Companies were putting [their solu-

tion] in a ruggedized box and targeting oil companies or minesor other industrial applications.

Redline, on the other hand, has developed solutions especially

for the industrial market, rather than adapting already exist-

ing ones. What Redline has done is very different, Mr. Yeager

insists. We are focused on what the actual application is, what

they are doing from a data standpoint, what the demands are

in the eld, and what the actual environmental conditions are

and how that affects the radio.

Written by Claire Suttles
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http://www.cobham.com/antennasystems/microwaveantennas


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applications that has as much reliability and quality as would be

found in a more traditional workplace setting. When we take

a network out to the oileld or out to a mine somewhere, we

need to understand that that user experience for each of their

applications needs to be the same as though they are in the

office, Mr. Yeager points out. Essentially, we are bringing the

oil

eld into their offi

ce so offi

ce workers are able to collaboratewith what is going on in the eld.

A top notch R&D department helps Redline deliver outstanding

solutions to unique challenges. We are constantly, constantly

researching. We probably do more research and developmentthan any other telecommunication company of our size. The

[amount] of R&D investment and the number of people that

we have in R&D is just incredible. This effort is necessary, Mr.

Yeager insists, to continually provide the best, most innovative

product. The company puts a lot of faith in the value that our

research brings to the market, he adds. It obviously leads to

better products and better solutions for the companies that

have [networking] challenges.

Redline strives to provide a

solution for remote or challenging

applications.
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The team also goes out into the eld in order to better under-

stand industry needs. Developing the right product for the

specic needs of a particular industry requires a very profound

understanding of all of the challenges [involved], Mr. Yeager

explains, and the team believes that this can only be achieved

through rsthand experience and a close relationship with

customers. We send engineers around the world, Mr. Yeager

reports. Our goal [is] to spend some time with our custom-ers and nd out what they are doing in industrial applications.

The team has studied just about anything, from oil and gas fa-

cilities, airports, and mines to municipal public safety networks

and smart grids. As a result, when we go into an industry we

really know that industry.

Developing strong customer relationships is a key part of this

process. We get to know customers, Mr. Yeager says even

though the majority of Redlines products are sold through

distributors, rather than directly to the end user. But we still

want to get to know these customers, we still want to work with

them and understand what their challenges are. Each time that

we come out with a new [product] we are taking on new chal-

lenges, we are solving different problems and that relationship

with customers is what makes our solution such a good t for

what they do. We really understand what they are trying to doand we put that understanding into our solution.

Indeed, Redlines strategy has earned the company an impres

Top-notch R&D is necessary to

continually provide the best, most

innovative product.
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sive roster of big name customers. And, at the end of 2013,

the team announced yet another oil and gas giant that has

switched to Redline. If you look at the size of the company, Mr.

Yeager points out, being able to do something like [that is an]

incredible thing. These are companies that normally deal with

very large suppliers. And the fact that they are dealing with a

smaller Canadian company speaks volumes about the qualityof our solution and the focus of our attention on what they are

doing and the challenges that they have.

Redline continues to attract industry giants by staying abreast

of the latest industry trends. There are a lot of new technolo-

gies going into the oilelds and other industrial applications

that allow for better collaboration, that increase safety, that in-

crease productivity, Mr. Yeager points out. We have new soft-

ware that is allowing us to better service the newer machine to

machine technologies that are being implemented.

The teams unique skillset also helps them provide socially re-

sponsible solutions. For instance, a customer in Colombia is cur-

rently in the process of rolling out a communications network

but refuses to damage the rainforest in the process. Redline

is eager to support the companys environmental efforts and is

designing a special system that can be implemented without

destroying the surrounding forest. We dont want to bulldoze

down a bunch of the rainforest, Mr. Yeager says. We dont

want to build a lot of towers that are going to be eyesores in the

There are a lot of new

technologies in the oilfields and

other industrial applications that

allow for better collaboration,

that increase safety, that increase

productivity.
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rainforest forever. As a result, the team is developing a radiothat doesnt require line of sight, that can shoot through trees.

A collaboration like this is encouraging, Mr. Yeager points out,

and is a sign of the changing times. These are things that you

might not have heard a company saying forty or fty years

ago. We are proud to be a company that can step up and say

thats a great challenge, lets do that lets design a system so

that we dont have to do what [people] would normally do in

these conditions. Having a commitment to the greater good

and the ability to step up to a challenge means that even thelargest of oil companies are coming to us for their important

projects.

The team is eager to continue pushing the envelope to deliver

the best, most advanced solutions especially when the

project is tough and the stakes are high. Our future plans are

really to continue to focus on this market, says Mr. Yeager. By

keeping people in the eld, keeping people working with cus-

tomers, we know what their challenges are and we will always

keep a step ahead of the trends.
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210 - 1310 Hollis Street | Halifax NS B3J 3P3 | [email protected]

Redline Communications

302 Town Centre Blvd. 4th Floor

Markham ON L3R 0E8

P:(905) 479-8344

TF:1-866-633-6669

F:(905) 479-5331

www.rdlcom.com

PROJECTSUPPORTERS

www.cbrosglobal.com www.theofficeshop.ca www.sandboxdm.ca

www.sigmapoint.com www.cobham.com www.instacable.com

Middle-East

Troy Sullivan

P: +973 39284899E: [email protected]
http://www.rdlcom.com/http://www.cbrosglobal.com/http://www.theofficeshop.ca/http://www.theofficeshop.ca/http://www.theofficeshop.ca/http://www.sandboxdm.ca/http://www.sigmapoint.com/http://www.cobham.com/http://www.instacable.com/http://www.sigmapoint.com/http://www.cobham.com/http://www.instacable.com/http://www.cobham.com/http://www.sigmapoint.com/http://www.theofficeshop.ca/http://www.sandboxdm.ca/http://www.instacable.com/http://www.cbrosglobal.com/http://www.sandboxdm.ca/http://www.theofficeshop.ca/http://www.cbrosglobal.com/http://www.rdlcom.com/

Overcoming Communication Challenges in the Oilfield

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