Post-journey reflection (Schlumberger)

Over the course of one and a half days, I visited Schlumberger to learn about the oil rig manufacturing process as well as certain details of what goes on at an oil rig. The trip began as usual, with a briefing of the company's history, the company's branches, what the Singapore branch did as well as the values which the company runs on. We were also required to wear our personal protective equipment at all times. The PPE consisted of a light blue smock, a hard-hat, safety goggles and when necessary respirator masks and ear-plugs. After the briefing, we split into two groups of 8 and were given an overall view of the entire oil-rig component manufacturing process. Our guide told us about the profitability of petrol engineering and a little about himself. He also showed us how the core was made and why the sand involved was called green sand. We visited the foundry on day one but were unable to see the pouring process as it happened to be monday. Wearing the disposable face mask was very uncomfortable, as such, I can symphatise with the company workers who have to wear it for the whole day. Thus, I fully support the companies move to try to find solutions to get rid of the mask. We learned about the impeller and diffuser as well as the keyhole that joins the casing,rotor and impeller together. Sadly, one member of my group felt a little sick after the foundry visit and missed one whole building worth of the tour. After which, we had a short lunch at the skybox and went on the next part of the tour. Here, we saw the gas lift valve which opens and close to allow high pressure gas to enter. This high-pressure gas adds pressure to the oil in the well and allows it to travel aboveground. Gas lifts are about 50%-33% less expensive compared to the ESP lifts, however, they require a certain level of pressure to be present in the well while ESP pumps do not. The components of a gas lift valve must go through rounds of cooling and heating as well as straightening so that it would work to specifications. We also saw the electric motor-winding as well as how gauges are assembled. The gauges are the companies attempts to build up an electronic database of frequency signals so as to better prevent failures from occuring. I was then assigned to machining and job-shadowed Crystal, an engineer around. We learned more about the machines in the machine shops and the differences between modern and older machines such as turners and millers as well as turnmills. We also got the opportunity to sit in during a corporate meeting. The next day, we saw the foundry again but this time around, we were allowed to see the pouring process. We were also allowed to visit the test labs and visit the UV spectrometer lab.

Post-journey reflection(Caterpillar)

So, I went to Caterpillar Reman facility on the 16th of November 2011. First, we got a short briefing on what caterpillar does in Singapore. We learned about caterpillar's business model of "seed, nurture and then harvest". We also learned about the advantages of remanufacturing. Remanufucturing involves taking old and worn-out parts and then re-working them to the same standards and functionability as new products, with the company providing the same warranty as a new product. Remanufactured products usually cost about 50% of what new products cost and are usually just as good as new products. They also happen to be environmentally friendly, with each part being able to be recycled up to 3/4times before it is deemed too used to be remanufactured to an acceptable level. As caterpillar must maintain the standard of remanufactured products, checks are conducted at every stage of the reman process. I was attached tpo an engineer in charge of Quality and was brought around the facility, looking at where they stored the parts, how they cleaned the parts, how they sampled and tested the parts through tests such as the dyno test. We also learned about a program that the quality engineers use to reduce risks. During operations, the quality engineer must come up with the possible risks that could arise and enter it into the program, the program then outputs the overall risk level denoted by an numerical value. The quality engineer then comes up with methods to alleviate or get rid of these risks and then enters it into the program, after which, the program outputs the final risk level after taking into account risks and methods to overcome them. Should a problem arise during the reman process, a thorough investigation is carried out and corrective actions will be undertaken to ensure it does not happen again. The tools used are checked once every month in-house and once a year by external vendors.

Post-journey Reflection (Goodrich)

On the 14th November, I headed down to Goodrich for a learning journey to learn more about the production processes of Goodrich. Goodrich is an aerospace company which produces nacelles for aircraft engines. first, we were briefed and given a brief introduction to Goodrich's company structure as well as the nacelles manufacturing procedure. We were also given a chance to watch a video about how damage to aircraft were repaired. I personally found it quite tedious, it was a lot of work for just one tiny dent. The guy in the video had to repeatedly vacuum bag the entire composite layer to repair the dent. I can hardly imagine the amount of work that has to been done each day with the amount of aircraft flying everyday as well as the enormous amount of effort put into repairs. It would be good if it was possible to automate the whole process. perhaps this could be an area to look into. What was interesting though, is that Goodrich employs 3D software to draw their blueprints and models. This makes it much easier for the engineers to view them and removes the need for multiple models to be drawn in order to illustrate various angles. I also learned about how 70% of an aircraft is made up of composite which will fail suddenly when subjected to adverse conditions. As planes are subjected to external,internal load, stress test must be conducted on the nacelles to ensure they are able to withstand these forces. Also, the plane must be made lightning-proof.

After the briefing, we were given an opportunity to check out the various workstations in Goodrich. I personally found them quite interesting and enriching. The first station I went to was the kitting room. The room was kept at a low temperature-around 17 degrees celcius to preserve the shelf life of the composite material. Goodrich employs a conveyor belt type kitting table, though other kitting table exists. The kitting process maybe quick, however, the setup time takes quite a while. The next station I went to was the vacuum bagging station. Vacuum bagging is done by hand and is a very tedious process. The engineer has to lay layers upon layers of various material to prepare just one layer, while the aircraft usually uses up to 30 or more layers. As mentioned before, automating the process would make things alot easier.The last station I went to was the laser diode station. Here, two projectors utilises 6 laser diodes to display .ply files in real time to show the engineer just exactly how and where to place various composite materials. It even accounts for height differences when a layer of composite is added.

I can relate the use of thermocouples in the repair process of damaged aircraft to what we learned in school. The thermocouple is used to monitor the temperature of the heating blanket to ensure the cure cycle is correct. This is in line with what we learned of the thermocouple being used as a thermometer. Also, free-body diagrams are used to represent the forces which are acting on an object. We are taught to simpler free-body diagrams to represent forces as well.

About me

Name:Chua Jie Han

Class:3S2

CCA:English Drama

Interests:Computer games and reading

Dislikes:Waking up early in the morning

Interesting fact:I am actually absolutely incapab;le of consuming most forms of spicy food, which makes me the odd one out in the family as my family actually loves spicy food

What I would like to embark on this learning journey: In this vast and everchanging modern world, industries have become more and more integrated in our life. Many industries, siuch as the power industry drives many of our daily activities. Through this learning journey, I would like to find out more about these idnustries and the recent advancements that have been made to better them.

Pre-journey reflection(Schlumberger)

Founded:1926
Industries involved: oilfield services
Schlumberger is involved in oilfield services which is vital for the obtaining of oil which provides our industries, businesses, schools and houses with electricity. It is the largest in the oilfield industry. The many steps involved in oilfield harvesting really interested me. What was most interesting is the precision required in locating oilfields, which is still an important factor even on a macro scale. The current hydrocarbon recovery rate is only about 35% and that a 1% increase in the recovery rate equals to 3-4 years of worldwide consumption.

This is a video of an employee from Schlumberger named Omar:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMcUALmdH2Y

Omar is a Cell Leader and Field Engineer Trainee (FET) at Schlumberger Well Services in Oklahoma. He supervises other Field Engineers working on Fracture Stimulation jobs, during which various substances are injected at high speeds and pressures into prospective oil or gas wells to stimulate production.

Here is a video of Schlumberger in action:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=acIGmOKGbbU

Through this learning journey, I hope to be able to learn more about the steps in locating oilfields and what kinds of research is being done to actually increase the recovery rate of hydrocarbons.

Pre Journey Reflections(caterpillar)

Caterpillar

Founded:1925
Industries involved: heavy manufacturing, finance & training

Caterpillar is a manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, as well as a company providing financial services to other companies. Locally, Tractors Singapore is tied to Caterpillar. Caterpillar also manufactures branded footwear.

Here is a link to an introduction to caterpillar:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pMCAS5Ei1M
The design of Caterpillar excavators emphasises the safety and comfort of the person operating the excavator. Features such as the Automatic Climate Control adjusts temperature and flow and determines which air outlet is best in each situation. The hydraulically adjustable cab tilts back to further improve upward visibility and to allow the operator to adopt a more comfortable body position.

One of caterpillar's machines in action:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9JBDC2ah5E

I think what really "wowed" me was the scale of the operations of the company. By being a MNC, I already know that its scale of operations would be vast, but it was only after I researched the history of the company that I could really grasp how large it really is, having been a crucial asset to so many projects and cleaning-up efforts, such as the Trans-Alaskan Highway, Three Gorges Dam.

I would like to learn how these machines are made as well as their operation methods.