Edinburgh-based Concept Systems, a wholly owned subsidiary of ION Geophysical, has received backing from Scottish Enterprise for a new £1 million research and development project focused on cost reduction, increased efficiency and value add for the oil and gas sector.
This new project will see the company enhance the functionality of its Orca software, a comprehensive survey planning and management tool.
The two year project can go ahead thanks to support from Scottish Enterprise, who offered almost £295,000 of funding.
Senior director for innovation and enterprise at Scottish Enterprise, Jim Watson , said: “Innovation should be at the heart of every business to maximize its growth ambition, a philosophy clearly adopted by ION. It recognizes the importance of innovation to stay ahead of its competitors and secure its position as a leader in the global marketplace. With our help, ION can make this happen.
“As the oil and gas sector adapts to the changing global environment, we remain committed to helping it grow by investing in innovation activities and we are delighted to be supporting this ambitious and innovative company on its journey.”
Chris Usher , executive vice president of ION’s E&P Operations Optimization group, said: “We are pleased to be offered a second grant from Scottish Enterprise to further develop our industry-leading software platform. The Orca enhancements are designed to further optimize survey planning and operations at a time when efficiency has never been more critical. While the workflows are mature, the current tools have functionality gaps and overlaps that create inefficiencies. The primary objective of the Orca project development is to provide a comprehensive survey planning and management tool that links the seismic vessel operational environment to the office. We look forward to rolling out the valuable new software to our customers soon.”