Business Analytics: Better, Faster and More Informed Decisions

By Brian Grote

In the fast-paced oil and gas industry, businesses need to be able to make well-informed decisions quickly. To achieve this, oil and gas companies all over the world are implementing new business analytics systems that ingest data from multiple sources to provide real-time insight into their business data.  

"Business analytics" goes beyond simple data collection; it involves thorough analyses and measurement of historical data, current trends and detailed forecasts. Business analytics tools provide businesses the ability to consolidate information into meaningful reports that allow you to make better decisions, faster.

Answers at the Click of a Button

Business analytics in the oil and gas industry allows executives to mine and analyze large amounts of data collected from multiple data sources such as sensors; operational logs; and quality, accounting, production, and distribution systems. Business analytics can allow operations personnel to make informed decisions during operations management on the spot, in real-time.

While business analytics is applicable to many industries, its impact on the oil and gas industry is significant. For example, oil and gas companies rely heavily on sensor data to capture and record system parameters for trending analysis and alert processing--typically using threshold-based approaches. During production, temperature, pressure, and low rate are monitored at various points in the well, with the wellhead having the greatest collection of sensors. However, this large amount of data is currently not used to provide real-time insights to operations staff running the operations center. 

If the operations teams could integrate, manage, and analyze data from disparate systems (demand management, quality, production, accounting, etc.); comprehend and adjust data differences properly; and apply appropriate human subject-matter expertise, real-time changes could then be delivered to downstream, midstream and upstream business processes, dramatically impacting costs and profits.

Your Data, Your Way

While organizations will continue to need standardized reporting for some use cases, business analytics is the type of technology that can allow business users to pursue their own path to insight, make discoveries collaboratively, and arrive at a whole new level of decision-making. The technology doesn't have to be intimidating, either - many platforms are quick to deploy, easy and fun to use.

Business analytics allows you to make decisions based on multiple sources of insight - data, people and the environment - and explore up, down and sideways rather than only drilling down in predetermined ways.

For more information on business analytics, contact your Eide Bailly professional.