In the resource sector, water represents life; without it, operations at mines, processing facilities, and oil and gas sites would come to a dramatic, and costly, halt. Water is vital in mining for everything from mineral extraction to transportation, and slurry transport to dust suppression.

And in the oil and gas industry, water plays many roles, both in consumption and production. These include drilling and hydraulically fracturing or “fracking” wells, which require plenty of water. Since water naturally occurs in rocks containing oil—sometimes in substantial quantities—this “produced water” is used, re-used, or disposed of after undergoing treatment to remove harmful chemicals, salts, and oil residue.

Other sectors using large amounts of water include coal and nuclear power. Although dozens of countries have agreed to phase out the use of coal, including Canada, Vietnam, and Poland, coal remains the second-largest source of power in the United States after natural gas, responsible for about 22 percent of all electricity generation (natural gas is tops at 38 percent).

In nuclear power plants, water is used for uranium fuel extraction and processing, electricity production, ultimate heat sinks (UHS) used to cool reactors, and waste storage. Under U.S. federal regulations, nuclear facilities must have from 10,000 to 30,000 gallons of water supply per minute available to cool reactors in the event of an emergency.

In the wood processing industry, water serves many purposes. Much like water being used in oil and gas to cool machinery during drilling, it is integral to cooling saw blades and preserving wood.

Although usage of water is significantly less in the renewable energy sector, it is used to wash wind turbine blades and solar panels, a positive consideration in the transition to green energy and the decarbonization of the world’s energy sector.

Sustainable management
Presently needing large volumes of water for extraction, processing and production, the world’s mining sector is actively finding ways of reusing water and reducing its use. And as the world transitions from fossil fuels to renewable sources like solar, geothermal and wind, the oil and gas sector needs to keep up with the times.

Far from slowing down mining, the shift toward renewables is necessitating more and more. A recent report from the World Bank, Minerals for Climate Action: The Mineral Intensity of the Clean Energy Transition, reveals that the push toward a low-carbon future requires more production. Clean energy technologies, including rechargeable battery storage for electric vehicles (EVs), require lithium, cobalt, graphite and other minerals.

The World Bank estimates mining production needs to increase by almost 500 percent by 2050 to supply the manufacture of solar, wind, and other green technologies.

Mining often takes place in developing nations, where water resources are scarce. While the need for water in mineral extraction and processing is high, it must be balanced with local water requirements for sustaining human and animal life, irrigating crops, and sanitation.

Mining stakeholders need to implement “climate-smart mining practices,” according to the report, and “Encourage and advocate for innovation to develop and share new technological developments to green mineral supply chains. This includes developing new methods to reduce water use, increase energy efficiency, deploy clean energy trucks and processing technology, and explore mineral recycling opportunities.”

The high price of illegal dumping
While water in the resource sector is essential, the amount consumed, and how it is used, treated and disposed of must adhere to environmental regulations. Published over a decade ago, Troubled Waters: How Mine Waste Dumping is Poisoning Our Oceans, Rivers and Lakes (Earthwork and MiningWatch Canada), focused on the over 180 million tonnes of hazardous mine waste being dumped in waterways worldwide.

All these years later, many of the findings in Troubled Waters still resonate.

While there have been improvements, the dumping, in bodies of water, of highly toxic heavy metals and chemicals still takes place, and not always in countries with slack regulations. In late 2017, an Australian mine dumped 63 truckloads of potentially acid-forming (PAF) reactive rock. The waste materials combusted, sending hazardous sulphur dioxide, which affects the respiratory system and eyes, into the air.

In 2019, an investigation found that 50 million gallons of untreated wastewater contaminated with lead, arsenic and other toxic metals were dumped into streams and ponds. And just last year, a Nova Scotia mining company pled guilty to contravening the Fisheries Act and was fined a total of CAD 125,000 for “unauthorized deposits of deleterious substances” into fish-populated waters in seven separate incidents. Around the same time, Duke University researchers revealed deadly mercury in water at illegal Peruvian gold mines.

And in Arizona, the Center for Biological Diversity filed notice to sue an international mining company over violating the Clean Water Act after it dumped rocks and dirt into a wash area in the Santa Rita Mountains.

“This wanton destruction of desert washes is unconscionable and inconsistent with the mandates of the Clean Water Act,” said Sandy Bahr, Director of Sierra Club’s Grand Canyon Chapter in a media statement. “We simply cannot stand by and allow this multinational mining company to harm our precious Arizona waters.”

Finding solutions
Unlike the mining and oil and gas extraction of the past, many of today’s resource sector companies recognize the importance of water conservation, including preservation, reuse, and treatment.

Often locally sourced from groundwater, rivers or lakes, water is usually transported by trucks to oil or gas wells for fracking, with each well using anywhere from 1.5 million gallons (5,678,117 million litres) to 16 million gallons (60,566,588 litres).

Mixed with chemicals and sand to boost fracking abilities, large amounts of water are also used for drill lubrication and cooling. While operations usually proceed as planned, older or poorly constructed wells can leak, with contaminated water ending up in creeks, streams, or other bodies of water. To prevent this, water is treated, reused, allowed to evaporate, or disposed of below ground.

Like oil and gas extraction, mining also produces highly concentrated wastewater, often acidic, and full of arsenic, iron, and suspended soils. In the United States, mines must follow guidelines from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) governing extraction and wastewater, which varies with what is being mined.

In his insightful dissertation, Assessment of Impact of Mining on Water Quality and its Modelling—written to attain the degree of Master of Technology in Mining Engineering—Amarendra Sahoo says, “Water is the most essential requirement for life. The most fundamental component of sustainable development is to ensure that the streams, rivers, lakes and oceans are not contaminated due to human activities… The ever-increasing mining activities pose a serious threat to water resources. The awareness of the environmental footprint of mining operations is consistently growing, but it often gets little attention. Environmental pollution is the price that we pay for our everyday use of minerals and their products.”

The resource sector is vital to the global economy and our everyday lives. As technologies improve and environmental awareness increases, we can hope that issues around water receive growing attention and that this substance vital to life of every kind continues to be respected, conserved, and protected.

The post Water, Water Everywhere…<p class="company">… and Everywhere a Concern</p> appeared first on Resource In Focus.

Salmon farming is a type of aquaculture that involves raising fish in underwater pens as opposed to trawling them in the wild. It’s a very big business: on the East Coast of Canada, the sector generates $2 billion in economic output and $800 million in GDP (Gross Domestic Product) annually, while employing over 8,000 people. Atlantic Canadian salmon farmers produce about 350 million nutritious meals each year.

Headquartered in Letang, New Brunswick, the ACFFA has 81 members. Besides fish farmers, members include service providers, research groups, and feed companies. The ACFFA continues to operate the Letang-based Limekiln Wharf Service Centre on behalf of the aquaculture industry.

A return to form
As part of the transition to normality, the ACFFA hosted its annual Research, Science, and Technology forum in St. Andrews, New Brunswick, from October 25^th to 27^th, 2022.

“It was our first time back in person without health restrictions in years,” says Farquharson. The Association opted to retain a hybrid format, offering presentations, seminars, and speakers in-person and online. That way, people who couldn’t travel to the event were still able to take part.

The forum proved to be a big hit, with approximately 150 registrants, two days of events and presentations, and an inaugural Women of Salmon Farming Symposium. The latter event focused on issues relating to women in the industry, with a view toward promoting gender equity and opportunity. Symposium guests included Marie Terese Letorney, a European opera singer turned communications specialist. Letorney ran a well-received session “on how men and women communicate differently in the business world,” says Farquharson.

In a similar fashion, the Association is putting the finishing touches on a report titled, Gender-Based Opportunities and Challenges in Salmonoid Farming in Atlantic Canada. “We had some details from the draft [report] going into the Symposium, but now, with the results from the Symposium and new statistics from Statistics Canada, we want to incorporate all of those into the final report,” explains Farquharson.

The report will show that women in aquaculture tend to be higher educated than their male counterparts, even though educational achievement has little impact on gender pay ratios, she continues. The Association will host a Women in Seafood roundtable at an upcoming Responsible Seafood Summit “to continue the conversation,” she says.

An international event, the Responsible Seafood Summit used to be called GOAL (Global Outlook for Aquaculture Leadership). Co-hosted by the ACFFA, the rebranded summit will take place this fall in Saint John, New Brunswick. This will mark the first time the event has been held in Canada, with British Columbia hosting the summit a few years ago.

“We’ve put a big effort into bringing that conference here,” Farquharson says. “[It will feature] the thought leaders, the CEOs, the executives of seafood companies… government officials, NGOs; they will all gather. We are working closely with the Global Seafood Alliance to co-host.”

Farquharson also attended the North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organization (NASCO) conference in Edinburgh, Scotland from June 6th to 9th, 2022. An annual international event, the conference rotates between countries that have wild salmon (a list that includes Canada, Denmark, the European Union, Norway, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States). Farquharson typically participates in the conference each year as part of the Canadian delegation.

Advocacy, always
The Inner Bay of Fundy Salmon Recovery Project (iBoF) continues to be one of the ACFFA’s flagship programs. This project aims to replenish stocks of wild salmon, and to achieve this goal, wild smolts (salmon that haven’t reached full maturity and can live in saltwater) are raised in custom-built pens, and then released into Bay of Fundy rivers. This huge undertaking involves a partnership between the ACFFA, Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO), Parks Canada, the salmon industry, First Nations groups, and provincial authorities.

Last year, there were “158 returns”—that is, salmon returning to rivers in the inner Bay of Fundy—and things look equally promising this year, says Farquharson.

Advocacy also remains central to the ACFFA’s mission. “I’m always advocating for effective regulatory policies… that’s 90 per cent of my job, communicating for effective regulatory policies and processes in Atlantic Canada. We were really pleased when New Brunswick released its Finfish Aquaculture Development Strategy… Salmon farming started here 40 years ago, so it’s really encouraging to see New Brunswick step up to the plate and want to be leading again in the development of the industry,” states Farquharson.

Finfish include salmon, which is why the report is so significant for the ACFFA. The recently released New Brunswick Finfish Aquaculture Growth Strategy 2022 – 2030 document touches on seven “strategy themes” (land-based aquaculture, governance, competitiveness and science support, fish health, promotion and advocacy, strategic infrastructure, and regulatory efficacy). Presented by the New Brunswick Department of Agriculture, Aquaculture, and Fisheries, the Strategy aims to grow the province’s finfish sector.

As part of its ongoing mission, the ACFFA also works to raise awareness about the importance and realities of Atlantic Canadian salmon farming. “There are still people out there who think we stand on the side of a net pen and throw fish feed in the water with our hands. It’s ridiculous,” states Farquharson.

People are often unaware of how high-tech the field is, employing the latest sensors, computers, automated feeding systems, cameras, monitors, and more. Every aspect of salmon development in aquaculture pens is closely monitored and farmers adhere to strict environmental regulations.

For all that, certain myths continue to prevail, including the notion that aquaculture is bad for the environment and that farmed fish is less nutritious than wild fish.

As the ACFFA points out, aquaculture helps blunt the impact of climate change. According to a 2018 study by the High Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy (HLP), salmon farming releases fewer greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) than terrestrial animal farming (i.e., raising cows, pigs, and sheep on land)—which is a good thing, given that climate change might have a hugely negative impact on oceans and aquatic life.

“I think anybody that says climate change isn’t affecting them is not looking out their window or paying attention,” states Farquharson.

As for nutrition, Farquharson points to a 2020 research paper in the Journal of Agriculture and Food Research, by Dr. Stefanie Colombo (assistant professor of Aquaculture at Dalhousie University, Nova Scotia). Colombo found there was little difference in the nutritional value of wild salmon and farmed salmon. When it came to health, the key factor was the species involved (Colombo’s study looked at six types of salmon, examining each for levels of fat, protein, amino acids, mercury, fatty acids, and cholesterol), not whether the salmon was farmed or wild.

To enhance its public education efforts, the ACFFA developed a 360° virtual reality Atlantic Canadian salmon farming tour. People can don VR goggles and take a virtual tour, starting at a wharf and leading to a salmon farm, hatchery, and fish lab.

In a similar fashion, the ACFFA launched a “Uniquely Atlantic” digital campaign last spring to highlight the merits of Atlantic Canada farmed salmon. As part of the campaign, the Association refreshed its website and created Instagram reels (short videos that are a hugely popular feature on this social media platform).

“This year, we’re going into TikTok,” notes Farquharson, citing another online platform for user-contributed videos that is much used by young people.

Growing the industry
In addition to raising awareness about the salmon farming sector, the ACFFA hopes such efforts encourage more young people to consider taking aquaculture jobs. Like many industries, Atlantic Canadian salmon farming is suffering from a labour crunch. Many older workers have either retired or are reaching retirement age, and not enough young people are stepping in to fill their positions.

To this end, the ACFFA recently hired a community outreach and education coordinator, whose job involves talking to students and developing packages for guidance counsellors about the industry, says Farquharson. Farquharson herself makes presentations in schools, pointing out how the aquaculture sector is rapidly expanding and in need of new workers.

The ACFFA’s messaging seems to be having an effect. Each year, the Association hires a third-party polling firm to determine what Atlantic Canadians think about salmon farming. In the most recent poll, aquaculture garnered an 81 per cent approval rating (up slightly from the usual 80 per cent result).

Asked to provide a five-year industry forecast, Farquharson envisions more post-smolt facilities, larger hatcheries on land, and a growing awareness of the economic, nutritional, and environmental benefits of Atlantic salmon farming.

The post Promoting Aquaculture with Advocacy and Action<p class="company">The Atlantic Canada Fish Farmers Association</p> appeared first on Resource In Focus.

In Alberta, aquaponics research began in 1994, when the association started its first experiments in growing fish and underwater crops under the guidance of then-President Mark McNaughton. Dr. Nick Savidov, a senior research scientist at Lethbridge College in Lethbridge, Alberta, credits the association with enabling him and others to engage in aquaponics projects over the years. Dr. Savidov’s aquaponics project at the college began in 2015 at the behest of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. At that time, he occupied the head position of the greenhouse research program with the Alberta Agriculture department.

The department was given the task of running projects in aquaponics, especially using fish water to grow vegetables, and so got involved with provincial aquaculture specialist Eric Hutchings, who played a great role in establishing the association itself.

“Eric believed that… aquaponics was a technology… which was viable both technically and economically,” Dr. Savidov recalls. In his experience, the association played the role of initiator into the research like what he and Hutchings were doing, and it is still considered an important player in aquaculture and aquaponics development.

Dr. Savidov cites the triploid grass carp project at Lethbridge College from the ‘90s through 2015 as one of the association’s most notable projects in its early years. It undertook the project with the partnership of the Aquaculture Centre of Excellence (ACE), which itself is part of the Integrated Agriculture Technology Centre at Lethbridge College. The project was intended to supply the industry with sterile grass carp to control aquatic vegetation in irrigation channels and dugouts.

Dr. Savidov mentions Clay Boyes as another important figure in the association, as his involvement in the industry led to constructing an aquaculture system to start grass carp and developing Lethbridge as an important industry resource. Another key figure is John Derksen who, along with Boyes, became a major resource for the association by providing important species information through close work with aquaculture specialists like Eric Hutchings, who was later succeeded by Dan Watson in this position.

Lethbridge College’s ACE and Alberta Agriculture worked together with the Alberta Aquaculture Association to tackle problems in aquaculture. They worked to bring new fish species into the local ecosystem by building an isolation / quarantine facility for incoming species to be successfully introduced. This centre was the first of its kind in Alberta and continues to be a great help to the industry, spearheaded by the association.

Recent years have seen more impressive projects being undertaken in Alberta. In 2015, Lethbridge College received a $2 million grant to push research to the next level with Dr. Savidov’s Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada aquaponics project. NSERC also funded another project with support from the association, which resulted in developing carbon-based-filtration systems to aid the aquaculture industry in improving water treatment technology.

Dr. Savidov names Dr. James Rakocy of the University of the Virgin Islands as both “the godfather of modern aquaponics,” and a key figure in helping to build the first research aquaponics facility in 2002. This facility was the first in the world to add an innovative reactor technology that can revolutionize waste treatment across multiple industries. The research centre in Brooks, Alberta has also produced the first zero-waste aquaculture system in the world, which is also the first zero-waste food production system.

“Canada has led the way in these developments on a global scale,” Dr. Savidov notes. He feels that the aquaculture industry is facing many challenges as well as many opportunities and admits that so much more is known about fish farming now than was known even a decade ago thanks to the vision and strides made during the lifetime of the Alberta Aquaculture Association.

An ongoing challenge is supply, as fish populations are beginning to vanish, resulting in a greater need for fish farming to provide a valuable protein source to North America. Dr. Savidov lists two ways one can fish, by using net pens in a natural reservoir like a lake or an ocean, or using recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS), which allows for higher density fish catches and does not have limitations on catches produced. Each comes with unique drawbacks, however.

For net pens, there is still an element of pollution as the fish produce waste after they are fed, so some provincial governments across Canada are beginning to put limits on industry expansion by decreasing net pen operation numbers, and this has been a big change in the Canadian aquaculture industry. Although net pens are cheaper to build and operate, the restrictions they are facing make them not ideal.

With RAS, a self-sufficient system can be created with less environmental impact. In these fish production systems fish are produced in separate tanks or raceways and the water is predominantly recycled through the system, having reduced interaction with the natural environment; however, these RAS are far more expensive to build and operate then net pens.

The Alberta Aquaculture Association is very interested in keeping the aquaculture industry alive but acknowledges that there are feasibility issues for both incoming and continuing fish farmers and industry workers. “We are facing a dilemma [with] how we can expand our aquaculture industry,” Dr. Savidov shares, but a potential solution lies in what is called integrated production systems, like aquaponics.

To help offset the cost of a system like RAS, an integrated production system would include other revenue sources for farmers, like producing vegetables through hydroponics that can be sold along with fish and related products. This is a possible answer to help improve the economic feasibility of modern fish farms, an answer that the association has been keeping atop since the early 2000s.

Looking ahead, Dr. Savidov foresees more innovative technologies which will hopefully allow fish to grow with less risk of pollution. “The industry has to adopt these technologies in order to be more sustainable,” he stresses.

He also feels that changing the profile and perception of the industry is important, and this can be achieved by integrating operations and making them more economically efficient for farmers. This trend is already being adopted in Alberta as well as in other provinces like Ontario.

Several big companies involved in fisheries are also interested in this and are becoming more convinced of the benefits of the method. Agriculture, as a whole, is struggling to produce food sustainably, to the point where “we are living at the expense of future generations as it relies mostly on synthetic fertilizers produced using finite resources, such as fossil fuels and rock deposits,” as Dr. Savidov puts it. The recycling of resources such as nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium, is fast becoming mandatory, which is why aquaculture is using hydroponics to recycle water and nutrients, enabling a more sustainable practice.

The price of fish will likely increase for consumers in the short term, but he points out that it still takes less water to produce fish to eat than red meat, and the fishing industry will be much more sustainable in the future. Throughout the challenges to come, the Alberta Aquaculture Association will continue to stress innovation and development to benefit the aquaculture and aquaponics sectors it has been aiding for nearly thirty years.

The post Aquaponics Solutions for a Better Fishery Industry<p class="company">Alberta Aquaculture Association</p> appeared first on Resource In Focus.

Smith explains that there are key differences between aquaculture and fisheries. Whereas fishing is a large industry represented by ocean-caught fish and other seafood, aquaculture has to do with the practice of sea farming. This involves the raising of fish crops from egg to plate, much like a terrestrial farmer. Most farms in the province are family-run businesses and based in rural and coastal communities, to which the association strives to provide assistance in as many ways as possible.

The association provides industry support and advocacy, mostly through working with local and provincial governments as well as the aquaculture sector on regulations and a regulatory framework that serve to move the industry forward. As an example of this, he recounts that this includes attending community meetings about new farms being established throughout Nova Scotia. The association will regularly help with these types of meetings as well as getting out into communities and building public trust and social license around the province.

The AANS also runs many programs on behalf of both the industry and its members. The association has worked with the Atlantic Fisheries Fund to manage a financial assistance program for shellfish farmers. Using this, sea farmers can look to the AANS for funding support for expanding their businesses, infrastructure needs, and new technology developments.

The association also works with outreach projects like the recently completed, third annual Atlantic Canadian Oyster Export Café in New York City. Events like this help to introduce Atlantic oyster farmers to buyers, distributors, and restaurateurs on the eastern seaboard, a highly profitable market for sea farmers.

The aquaculture industry is no stranger to sweeping changes. In Nova Scotia, 2016 to 2017 was a time of major development, according to Smith, as a new regulatory framework for responsible and sustainable development of the province’s agriculture industry was introduced. The association works with its members to understand how these regulations impact aquaculture in Nova Scotia. The AANS also looks to provide advice on improvements that can be suggested to make the regulatory framework more efficient.

One way it supports this is through involved training programs that help farmers establish a farm management plan, which is a regulatory requirement in Nova Scotia. Nova Scotia farms now also require security bonds to protect against any business that shuts down and leaves behind ‘ghost gear,’ as unused farming equipment is known. The AANS has developed a program to support this requirement.

The association now offers a fund to clean up this gear. “We don’t want aquaculture to be the cause of any problems related to debris on coastal communities,” Smith says. These ongoing projects are of great importance, and work is continuing with both government and association members to work with local communities on this program as well as develop community beach clean-ups.

He notes that getting applications through the new regulatory framework is a time-consuming and detailed process, with work still being done to process applications more quickly. Resource-based industries such as aquaculture are experiencing challenges in access to labour, which concerns the association. Association members want to get the aquaculture message out to a wider population with attention paid to young people, visible minorities, and women. Aquaculture “is no longer low-paying manual labour jobs,” Smith assures. “These are good, high-paying jobs for farm managers and workers, researchers, biologists, and technicians.”

To aid this, the association launched a program in 2021 with the Nova Scotia Department of Labour, Skills, and Immigration to encourage new entrants to the industry and to have them stay in the province. The pandemic has also had a significant effect on the aquaculture sector due to restaurants and retail stores scaling back and decreased sales of seafood products outside of Nova Scotia. Smith reports that the industry seems to be coming out the other side with incredibly strong business; in fact, there is now a pent-up demand for good quality seafood farmed in the province. “We need more product in the water and access to new leases and expansions,” which is a key driver of recent initiatives within the sector, he says.

Those within the association are excited about where the aquaculture industry is headed, as it has grown from a roughly $55 million industry circa 2017 to an over $100 million industry some five years later. Smith notes that there are 146 active aquaculture leases active in the province currently, with more than 57 applications for new leases and expansion in development. There is a great deal of interest in investing in Nova Scotia and expanding the aquaculture industry. He mentions an exciting research project in Cape Breton that is examining growing sugar kelp on shellfish lines, a move that will look to increase biomass on these lines. The cultivated seaweed industry is still emerging, and he feels it will be important for aquaculture developments.

The association’s plans illustrate the kind of work the aquaculture industry is most focused on in 2022. First, further efforts will be made in devising a plan to engage Nova Scotians in what aquaculture means from the standpoint of attracting and retaining labour. Smith cites a recently conducted public opinion poll in December 2021 which indicates that residents of the province strongly favour both the aquaculture industry and the provincial government supporting the industry, recognizing the economic and social impact of the industry, especially for rural and coastal communities.

The association is developing strategies to highlight farmed seafood in the marketplace, as polling shows that not all people understand the different products farmed in the province. To change this, the association will be launching a campaign to identify the products and companies that farm seafood products in the province.

The AANS will also be working with the Nova Scotia Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture to produce the 2022 Nova Scotia Minister of Fisheries/Sea Farmers Conference this coming October 12 and 13, which will be held in person this year in Halifax. Speakers will be invited to speak about aquaculture and fishery development around the world, highlighting the importance that the seafood sector has for Nova Scotia’s future.

Smith sees nothing but growth on the horizon for an industry that has come to be recognized as a vital part of the region. “The opportunity for sea farming in Nova Scotia and Atlantic Canada is extremely strong. The opportunities going forward… will yield continued sector growth.” The Aquaculture Association of Nova Scotia will continue to help sea farmers in Nova Scotia through strong program development and mentor initiatives to support the growth they believe is building in Nova Scotia.

The post Helping Sea Farmers Meet Their Business Goals<p class="company">Aquaculture Association of Nova Scotia </p> appeared first on Resource In Focus.

Indeed, the single biggest change since the previous profile has been “the expansion and development of our CLEAR program… We were originally very focused on water treatment—which is still a tremendous part of our business. However, we expanded into oil treatment, then really focused in on the treatment of gas. We dove a lot deeper into the economics versus the strictly worker safety and emission control aspect of it,” says President Steve Martinson.

CLEAR Technology removes hydrogen sulphide from water, sour crude oil, and condensate, while giving the client the ultimate choice on whether or not chemicals are used in supporting the process. It was originally developed as an eco-friendly, safety-enhancing solution for companies doing well-testing, completions, under-balanced drilling, and similar duties. CLEAR’s purpose has since evolved, and the technology can now be used to help oil and gas companies meet environmental, social, and governance benchmarks while reducing costs.

“If oil has H₂S in it, transport routes can be limited. A producer might be very near to a pipeline entry point but that pipeline can’t take H₂S,” notes Brenden Meston, Vice President of Sales.

The company had a client in North Dakota who could not access local pipelines because his oil contained hydrogen sulphide. The client was forced to drive five and a half hours north to Saskatchewan to tap into a pipeline that could handle it. Using CLEAR Technology, AMGAS removed hydrogen sulphide from the oil at the client’s facility, eliminating the need for costly transport.

A company with hydrogen sulphide in its oil can also expect to receive a lower price for its product. “We take away that deduction, so now they’re getting premium dollar for their oil as well as getting the least costly transport option possible,” states Meston.

In a focused effort to bridge the gap between traditional chemical treatment of fluids and mechanical options the company has developed some hybrid or modified solutions. These include the CLEAR Injection System (CIS) and CLEAR Injection System Plus (CIS Plus) products which incorporate CLEAR Technology elements while providing a specific focus on individual project objectives. “It is imperative that we continuously consider the economic, social, and environmental climate in which we and our clients are operating.” Meston adds, “Expanding our offering within the CLEAR line of solutions allows for a weighted approach guided by a project’s specific needs.”

CIS is a “chemical-reduced injection system,” while CIS Plus features “some mechanical portions, as well as the injection system. [CIS Plus] is going be our flagship system and lead AMGAS’ future growth,” he says.

Among other products are the AMGAS Capture Technology (ACT), T-Series Scrubbers, High Gas Rate (HGR) scrubbers, and Truck Mount Scrubbers. You cannot buy these at a retail store. “We have a business-to-business structure. A lot of the time, we work through third-party engineering services. An oil company will hire people to develop their site layout and do planning, and we get involved with them. But it’s always business-to-business,” he explains.

Services cover everything from H₂S management in well activity to turnarounds and shutdowns, sulphur-related services, terminals and transportation, processing and production, and tank gauging, and most of the company’s tasks are self-performed.

“We’re self-service. [We offer] a lot of turnkey services. Our engineering side has really grown and become a big source of pride. It gives us the ability to be flexible and nimble in our offering,” says Martinson. “Our boots on the ground offering has developed even further. We’ve got substantial staffing in America and in the Middle East. That part of it has grown.”

Besides oil and gas, the company serves the pulp and paper and agriculture sectors. The firm has also been doing a great deal of work with biogas. Biogas consists primarily of methane derived from decomposing organic matter such as manure, wood chips, plants, and solid waste. It represents a green way to produce fuel out of material that might normally go into a landfill. Going forward, biogas “has the potential to represent a big portion” of the company’s business, according to Meston.

Including the Calgary head office, AMGAS maintains five branches in Canada; one in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates; and two in the United States—in Texas and North Dakota. AMGAS acquired two Alberta-based companies—Roundline Transport and Impact Industrial—to expand its footprint and services. Roundline is a transportation and logistics company while Impact Industrial provides a wide array of fabrication and design services.

Total employment across all branches and acquisitions stands at around 120 workers, about the same number as this time last year. Martinson cites “attitude, a safety-first mindset, and a willingness to learn,” as the main prerequisites looked for in new hires.

“We love it when new team members have experience; we love it when they have education, but we’ve always been a bit of a niche business and the amount of in-house training that’s going to happen regardless of someone’s background is pretty substantial,” he points out.

The company rewards loyalty with in-house opportunities for advancement and promotion. “We’ve set this company up so it can be a career for people, as opposed to a job,” he says. “As we grow, we’ve developed different avenues for people in sales, marketing, engineering, and operations.”

Capitalizing on industry-leading in-house engineering expertise, and through acquisition and internal development, AMGAS is proudly adding combustion and incineration services to its solution offering. The company will “target incineration in high H₂S environments,” says Meston, and will provide these incineration / combustion services at customers’ worksites.

“The addition of incineration and combustion solutions really increases our ability to fully service our clients’ needs,” states Martinson. “Incineration and combustion can be a tremendously effective solution when it’s applied in the right situations. It opens the door for a tremendous amount of offshoot opportunities for energy capture and energy re-use.”

During the COVID crisis, AMGAS introduced health protocols and safety measures to keep its staff from getting infected. As “a truly essential service,” the company “had no choice but to keep going” when the lockdowns were most stringent, he recalls.

The pandemic might have peaked but COVID is still wreaking havoc on the company’s supply chain, and inflation has proven to be another hindrance when it comes to buying supplies. Still, with the worst hopefully over, company officials are pleased that trade shows, which briefly became online-only events, are once again allowing people to attend in person.

“I would say we’re back to business as usual, and we do love the ability to be able to see and talk and interact with people,” he affirms.

AMGAS has been going to as many shows as possible and plans to participate in events in Alberta, Texas, Southern Saskatchewan, Southern Ontario, and the Middle East. “We’re doing a broad sweep on the conference tour this year,” notes Meston.

It remains heavily involved in charitable endeavours. The company regularly takes part in the STARS and SPURS Gala Campaign. The latter is an initiative by Enserva (formerly, the Petroleum Services Association of Canada), to raise funds for a medical air rescue organization that serves rural areas. It also helps local charities in the communities in which it works.

He says staffing is one of the company’s biggest non-COVID-related challenges. The firm has not been immune to the labour crunch impacting industries across North America, as the current workforce ages and not enough young people enter skilled trades to take their place. Market uncertainty is another pressing issue. Oil and gas have become controversial energy options in some quarters, subject to public protests and political opposition. Such a reaction can be anathema for capital markets and project investment, says Martinson.

Nonetheless, he offers an optimistic forecast based on the fact that AMGAS solutions are both environmentally responsible and highly economical.

For the future, he anticipates “growth and expansion,” in terms of “our manpower and product offering… Our solution offering will continue to evolve and grow.”

The company’s ownership structure will likely remain the same, however. AMGAS is currently a family-run business celebrating nearly 35 years innovating the H₂S management space. AMGAS sees a traditional “family first” mentality as a foundational core value for the company. This mindset extends beyond the ownership group to the greater “AMGAS family” and is the basis for AMGAS’ HOMESAFE safety program. “Of the many sources of pride that are generated for me from this company, the HOMESAFE program and its commitment to our people and their families has to be number one.”

Meston lists two specific future objectives: “Our goal, over the next few years, is to transition [CLEAR Technology] from what was originally a safety device to more of an integrated solution for our clients, where they benefit and they can get an ROI as well as environmental [benefits],” he says. “In five years, I would love to see us significantly more integrated with initial production companies and be working with the development of oilfields in addition to increasing operations at the plant.”

The post A CLEAR Commitment to H2S Management<p class="company">AMGAS</p> appeared first on Resource In Focus.

Blue Flame Crew was founded in the spring of 2013 when founder and President Tim Boos contacted several people in the industry whom he had worked with over the years so that they could come together professionally under a unified banner. Boos and the five men who would become his associates as Blue Flame Crew had enjoyed working with each other in the past and sought to build a company to pool their business knowledge of the gas sector.

Today, the business operates from a corporate office in Naperville, Illinois, with further field offices and centers in locations like North Carolina, Kentucky, Missouri, Florida, and California. Its services range from landfill and natural gas to syngas (a synthesis gas fuel mixture) operations. When it comes to what the company specializes in and its strengths as a gas systems provider, Vice President of Construction Dan Sawyer counters with a question: “What don’t we do?”

The name of the business has come to define the operations of Blue Flame Crew, as it particularly deals with the burning of landfill gas. As such, it does practically everything there is to do with landfill gas systems with attention paid toward combustion systems like flare systems and compressors.

Its focus and qualifications have always been suited best to those with an electrical background, Sawyer adds, as the original team were mostly electricians, and the first few jobs of the Blue Flame Crew had to do with the electrical end of gas combustion and control systems. From there, the company has grown and expanded into pipework with gas and leachate collection, pumps, and controls. Its strong hand with control electricians has also allowed it to venture into telemetry systems, remote monitoring, and supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems, the latter of which are software systems that control industrial processes. These and other processes like sandblasting or emergency repairs make up the vast catalogue of services that Blue Flame Crew has excelled in offering for nearly a decade now.

In the past few years, the company has signed several master service agreements with major waste companies in America, which has brought in much work for the business. Although Sawyer admits that waste companies can be hard to initially enter into business with for various reasons, being able to do so successfully will afford Blue Flame Crew bigger projects and contracts with more waste companies in the future.

The COVID-19 pandemic initially affected how the company proceeds with its work, as it brought complications with the normal bidding process, as well as in dealing with project managers and clients. Sawyer chuckles that it has also led to far more Zoom meetings in the past two years. Thankfully, the company’s work was a necessity during the pandemic, as there is always a need for implementing and maintaining environmental control systems.

He also touts the hard-nosed nature of the company workforce as a consistent advantage and notes that the business very rarely had to make allowances for COVID-related pauses in work. “Our guys are very tough; they worked through stuff,” while keeping their distance in the workplace, Sawyer remembers. The company came out of the worst of the pandemic all the better.

Sawyer defines the company’s approach to safety as one that is steeped in tradition, involving employees through in-house safety training and regular refresher courses. These include the intensive Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER) standards training and other Occupational Safety and Health Association (OSHA) certifications. Employees also undergo periodic training for specific tasks that need building up, as well as online training, daily tailgate safety meetings, and even company-wide newsletters on safety topics. The company keeps an experience modification rating (EMR) of 0.85 and is firmly dedicated to keeping its workers as safe as possible.

Having had a variety of experiences working across the industry, Sawyer says that the inherent excitement of working for an emergent company like this is a reason why people in the trades should be considering it for career opportunities. There are many chances for growth, especially for a company that started with only a few positions.

Blue Flame Crew is always seeking new incentives to offer its workforce, especially ones that appeal to younger workers. One of these incentives that Sawyer mentions is tuition reimbursement, to promote continuing education among employees and even help them pay back student loans.

Similarly, the company is focused on building great relationships with its clients through maintaining its workflows, as well as through one-and-done projects. These relationships often involve a degree of brutal honesty, which Sawyer highlights as a big part of any lasting relationship, as is not taking on more than one can handle. Company higher-ups are also always open to the opinions of the workforce and those in its inner circle, extending the desire for honesty inward.

“We look to our younger project managers to throw out ideas [and] think outside the box on solutions,” he affirms. This is especially important as, according to Sawyer, it can be easy in an industry like this to be stuck in one’s ways and less open to outside views, even ones that can benefit the business. If Blue Flame Crew employees are dedicated to serving the company’s client base and put themselves forward as dependable and forthright, they will likely be a good fit for the organization and have their voices heard.

Sawyer and company management are beginning to observe supply chain problems around the industry coming into play lately, particularly lengthening lead times. As everything in the company is made up of parts, missing or delaying even one can mean a hold-up in processes. Transportation issues have also cropped up because of this and a lack of drivers and rising fuel costs, but these are challenges not at all new to the company, and there is still a great feeling of confidence internally.

Sawyer feels everything in the sector is moving forward well right now. “We’ve seen recessions [but] it takes quite a bit to see a dip in the work that we’ve done.” Projects are waiting in the pipeline as there is still a great need for the exceptional services that Blue Flame Crew has always provided.

Blue Flame Crew is always focused on client satisfaction, its main goal since it began ten years ago. “We want to do work better than the other guys and put out a better product,” Sawyer states. The company will always be chasing steady and controlled growth, taking on just the right amount to push itself to the next level. This will be in tandem with keeping eyes out for the next opportunity and another fresh face to add to the team. Now that the effects of the pandemic have begun to settle, the road ahead seems steady for Blue Flame Crew and its dedicated group of workers.

The post “What Don’t We Do?” This Crew Celebrates Continued Success<p class="company">Blue Flame Crew, LLC</p> appeared first on Resource In Focus.

In the United States, close to 11 million jobs are linked to the gas and oil industry. With approximately 600 members, the American Petroleum Institute has represented this vital sector for over a century.

So important and effective are these standards that they’re not limited to use in just the U.S. With the goal of enhancing operational safety, sustainability and environmental protection industry-wide, API’s canon of standards is used worldwide.

Continually revised and updated with new editions, these standards and technical documents are developed by API and industry experts. API’s rigorous process is accredited by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI)—meaning they abide by practices to enhance transparency and consensus, and use the best available science. Plus, documents undergo review at least every five years.

“We review our standards on a rolling basis to make sure they are still applicable and relevant for the industry,” says API’s Alexa Burr, Vice President, Standards and Segment Services in the Global Industry Services (GIS) Division. In her current role for over three years, Burr was previously the association’s Director of System Programs, GIS, and responsible for many assessment and safety-based programs, which draw upon API’s library of standards.

Prior to coming to the American Petroleum Institute, she spent seven years with the American Chemistry Council (ACC)—the nation’s oldest trade association—where she worked on global regulatory and technical issues, leading international advocacy efforts, and also the ACC’s Responsible Care® program, a voluntary initiative driving safe practices in chemical management and environmental health, safety, security and sustainability.

Also in Burr’s portfolio is the standards development department, responsible for developing and maintaining API’s portfolio of standards; the intellectual property and distribution group, who sell and distribute standards around the world; and work with the industry “to make sure we are digitizing our standards and meeting our members’ needs and how they receive our standards.”

Another key initiative of the API is its statistics group. Responsible for the collection of data relating to both safety performance and general industry performance, information is used to produce the Weekly Statistical Bulletin (WSB), which publishes accurate petroleum data every Tuesday afternoon and has existed since 1929. “Our goal is to enhance the industry operational performance through the use of API programs and standards around the world—helping the industry perform safely and sustainably,” says Burr, who also oversees the association’s global strategy.

The American Petroleum Institute was founded in 1919, just after World War I, and based in New York City before relocating to Washington, D.C. in 1969.

The pressures of the war itself were among the reasons for the organization focusing on developing industry standards, with the first being published in 1924. The American petroleum industry had put its considerable strength behind the war effort in Europe, but there were continual stoppages and slowdowns in vital operations at drilling sites because of equipment shortages and mismatches.

“There wasn’t a uniform standard for things like pipes, threads, and coupling,” says Burr, “so API took on the challenge of developing industry-wide standards for equipment, making sure equipment made in the U.S. could be used in Europe and vice versa, to help improve performance. That’s how we started as an actual standards-setting organization.”

And in the decades to come, API would develop hundreds and hundreds of standards and recommended practices for all segments of the industry, from upstream oil and gas exploration and production to midstream transportation, downstream petrochemicals and refining, and manufacturing and supply.

One of API’s recent initiatives on behalf of the petroleum sector was the release of its Climate Action Framework (www.api.org/climate) in 2021. The global need for more energy comes when the world’s population is growing—projected to rise to almost 10 billion by 2050—and the push toward a lower-carbon future is “massive, intertwined and fundamental,” according to the API.

Addressing the growing energy needs of the future and the need to simultaneously reduce carbon emissions, the API has created a five-point action plan.

This plan aims to accelerate technology and innovation to reduce emissions while meeting growing energy needs; further mitigate emissions from operations to advance additional environmental progress; endorse a carbon price policy by government to drive economy-wide, market-based solutions; advance cleaner fuels to provide lower-carbon choices for consumers; and drive climate reporting to provide consistency and transparency.

The plan’s focusing effect on the industry has come none too soon because it’s projected that, by 2040, natural gas and oil will still remain lead providers of the world’s energy with a share of 46 percent, followed by other renewables at 18 percent, then hydro (13 percent), coal (10 percent), nuclear (nine percent), and bioenergy (four percent).

“This is a robust, comprehensive policy framework that talks about what the industry and the government can do to address climate change while continuing to meet the growing energy needs of the world,” says Burr. “This is a significant step forward for the API and the industry.”

Another program that showcases the industry’s commitment to sustainability and safe operations is API Energy Excellence® (www.api.org/oil-and-natural-gas/api-energy-excellence).

Consisting of 13 core elements, including Leadership Commitment to Operational Integrity, Safe Work Management, and Stakeholder Engagement, the elements apply to members’ operations, and drive operational improvement, including safety, environmental protections, sustainability and security.

“It’s a management system framework that commits every single API member company to implementing and achieving progress against the 13 core elements of API Energy Excellence,” comments Burr. “We are building on our long history of standards development, and help the industry move forward with improvements in our operational integrity, as well as make progress against the challenge of climate change.”

Although many may think that the American Petroleum Institute’s 600-strong membership consists mainly of large, multi-national companies, most API members are small and medium-sized companies of about 50 to 250 employees, many of them in supply and manufacturing. These include inspection companies who perform audits on some larger operators, independent upstream companies, and multinationals, representing all segments of the industry.

Considering the global use of its standards and programs, API has been working to extend its partner networks globally. “We work closely with many other global partners, especially on the environment, health, and safety side of things,” says Burr.

However, to be eligible for API membership, companies must be based in North America, and have some relation to the oil and gas industry.

Despite the petroleum sector’s vital role in powering the world, misconceptions still exist. Some forget the contribution the industry makes to quality of life in the United States.

“Many countries around the world don’t have access to electricity and energy like we do,” says Burr. “In many developing countries around the world, if you talk about turning on the light switch, folks don’t necessarily know what that means.”

From providing the energy used to heat our homes and power our businesses to manufacturing everything from cosmetics to cars, petroleum continues to shape the world, and API continues to support its members who are the ones producing this vital energy and related products—delivering standards to enhance energy efficiency and operational efficiency, while protecting the environment and the health and safety of industry workers.

As the world moves toward low-carbon technologies, some API members are exploring low-carbon technologies and renewables to add to the energy mix.

“We know that going forward, oil and gas is going to be part of that energy mix,” comments Burr, “but we are going to have to add in other renewables and low-carbon technologies like hydrogen and CCUS [carbon capture, utilization and storage] to help meet the energy demands we are facing,” she says.

“The world population is growing at a very significant rate, and we need affordable energy to meet those population demands, many coming from emerging countries that don’t currently have the energy access they need to support their population.”

Looking at how the industry can help commercialize new technologies and accelerate technologies like hydrogen and low-carbon liquid CO₂, the API and its members are helping leverage the lessons learned from traditional oil and gas operations to new technologies that commercialize them.

On the wind front, the API is working with another association, the non-profit Offshore Operators Committee (OOC), to explore standards and offshore wind structures in the U.S., and how to develop and apply them to the industry.

With a long history of prioritizing safety and innovation throughout the petroleum industry, the API will continue supporting member efforts such as low-carbon emissions; advancing sustainability and safety initiatives in oil and gas operations; and ensuring members are diversifying their workforce throughout the industry.

This includes the development, in recent years, of programs to support the industry’s workforce. API has a program with minority-serving institutions where the association provides its full library of standards free of charge to help their engineering students become familiar with API standards even before they graduate, giving them a leg up when they enter the workforce.

With a century-long legacy, the American Petroleum Institute is known worldwide for its commitment to the industry, especially its many standards, and for prioritizing safety and environmental protection of workers and communities. By working with regional offices that have local connections, the API continues to educate and lead the global industry.

In schools, the association gets kids familiar with the industry and its benefits at an early age. And outside the U.S, the API partners with other industry trade associations to increase the use of API’s standards to help the global industry perform safely and sustainably.

“We’ve done a lot to broaden our global footprint and will continue to do that and advance our industry’s safety performance,” says Burr.

The post Setting the Standard<p class="company">American Petroleum Institute</p> appeared first on Resource In Focus.

Hosseini has a history of creative problem-solving showcased through the next-generation technology available through his company. So, it comes as no surprise that the technology wizard was inspired to launch another product when confronted with a frustrating lack of communication while on vacation. “The idea came that if you use the LoRa communication, and somehow we harness the communication in a way that we can connect it to our smartphone, that may help us communicate in the area that the cellular and Wi-Fi is not available,” Hosseini remembers.

Invented by the company Suntech, LoRa—short for Long-Range Wireless Technology—enables long-distance transmission with low power consumption, making it a foundational component of Hosseini’s new invention. While Bluetooth can connect over distances of no more than one hundred metres or so, LoRa’s range is an astounding four kilometres in urban areas and sixteen kilometres in rural regions.

“Initially we developed it for peer-to-peer or point-to-point communication, but came up with the idea to use it for people communication when there is no network available,” Hosseini says. “Our goal, from the start, was to create a powerful and affordable communication device to help us communicate with each other in places where there is no cellular or Wi-Fi coverage.”

The result is the exciting new product Orange Fob Pro. The technology harnesses the power of LoRa, combined with the low power and accurate GPS, to send text messages or short voice messages when other means of communication are not available. The durable, waterproof Fob is easy to take anywhere; it can be worn like a wristwatch, on a lanyard around the neck, slipped into a pocket, or attached to a keychain.

“We make it as small as possible to easily be carried around,” Hosseini says. The battery lasts more than forty-eight hours, and it has wireless charging capability. If users misplace their Fob, it will signal its location, making it easy to find. Users can communicate with another Orange Fob up to ten miles away, and using multiple devices within the area will increase that distance, since messages can be passed through devices to extend the range.

Orange Fob opens a wide variety of possibilities for people in areas without reliable cellular coverage. “The only limitation is you only communicate with your peers [that have] that Fob and are in your vicinity,” he notes. The applications are endless, from rock climbing, skiing out-of-range slopes, and cruise ship travel to road trips, sailing and boating, working in remote locations, and outdoor excursions.

“For example, you go hiking or camping with family and friends and you are in an area that either there is no cellular coverage or coverage is bad,” Hosseini says. “So you can have this Fob with you and the other person, or other people can have the Fob, and as long as you have it connected to your smartphone by Bluetooth and you run the app, you can text message everyone in your group or a specific person in your group. And you can send voice messages.”

This technology can be of critical importance if group members are separated with no other way to regroup. “When you go outdoors and to remote areas, you always have a fear of what can I do if I get lost?” he says. “How I can message my friend or family?”

Orange Fob eliminates these concerns. “From time to time you hear someone in the middle of some trip is lost and nobody can find him for a certain amount of time, or someone left a group [on a] mountain trip and they could not find that person, and, unfortunately, somebody lost his or her life because of that situation but if you have the Fob, you can send the Fob into the mode of help; you send messages to another Fob.”

Not only can people communicate on the go without cellphone coverage, but they can also share their location. For instance, “sometimes you go and travel with multiple cars, and you don’t know if your friends are behind you on the road or past you already.” Typically motorists rely on cellphone communication to stay in touch. “But if there is no cellular coverage, which may happen sometimes, you get lost,” Hosseini points out. “With the Orange Fob, you can also share the location,” allowing travel companions to find one another quickly and easily, and, if travelers are lost on the road or in the wilderness, the app can load offline maps, so they never have to rely on data and cellular connectivity to find their destination.

Overseas travelers find the technology particularly convenient and cost-saving. “When traveling abroad, you need to pay excessive money for roaming and access to text messages and voice,” he explains. “Especially when you are not in your hotel, as hotels usually provide free Wi-Fi. But by using Orange Fob, you can text message to your family and friends while all travelling together. You can share locations with each other and be connected.”

Orange Fob uses a private wireless network, eliminating security concerns. “One of the other major worries we have is cyber security,” Hosseini says. “Is anyone listening to our voice messages? Or can [they] see our text messages? Anything [that] goes on Internet will be recorded on multiple clouds and telecom systems, while when you use Orange Fob, there is no possibility [of] recording or even intercepting your text or voice messages.”

This is not the case with standard cellular communication. “When you send a text message from your phone to your friend, as on the cellular network, what’s going to happen?” he asks. “The message would be saved on your phone. Second, the message would be transferred to cellular wireless, to a telecom tower. And from the telecom tower, it will be transferred to the telecom cloud. And from that telecom cloud, it goes to another telecom cloud associated with the receiver and then would be saved there. And then from there, it goes to a local tower close to your other party. And then, from that, goes to your receiver phone. So these text messages would be recorded all over the place. Even if you delete them from your phone or even if your receiver deletes them from their phone, still there is a record with times and details all over the place.”

But with Orange Fob, if you delete the message, “It’s gone forever. Nobody can track it.” This feature makes the technology popular with companies that need to keep proprietary information safe from competitors. “They have much higher security when they use this fob, rather than communicating to a typical cellular platform,” Hosseini declares. “Imagine you have a company that has a headquarters somewhere and you have a bunch of researchers and they like to communicate. It would be much safer if you use our system to communicate rather than just normal cell phones or computers. If they’re really worried about the safety and security of their data, that’s one of the possible applications of our system.”

Orange Fob also gives the option for messages to be automatically deleted immediately after being read or after a specified amount of time. Users simply choose which security setting to apply to read messages in the easy-to-use app.

How much does this must-have technology cost per month? The answer may surprise you. “When you use a typical cellular network on your phone, you have to pay depend[ing] on what kind of plan you have,” Hosseini says. “But using the Fob, you don’t need to pay anything. It’s just buy the device and use it. There is no payment.”

Arshon Technology will launch Orange Fob in the second quarter of this year. It will be sold in a pair, with the option to add additional Fobs to the order so that multiple people can stay connected—no matter where they go. Not surprisingly, pre-launch feedback is good and it seems only a matter of time before the new product makes a mark on the industry.

The post Keeping Us Connected<p class="company">Arshon Technology Inc.</p> appeared first on Resource In Focus.

Headquartered in mineral-rich Sudbury, Ontario, Jannatec Technologies has made a name for itself with mining companies in Ontario and across Canada, and will soon be doing the same in the United States through its association with MineConnect.

A long-time member of MineConnect – the voice of Ontario’s mining supply sector – Jannatec has established wide-ranging business relationships through its ties with the association. MineConnect was known as the Sudbury Area Mining Supply & Service Association (SAMSSA) until it underwent a rebranding.

Recently, the association decided to set up MineConnect USA. Based in the world-famous gold mining city of Elko, Nevada, MineConnect USA, together with MineConnect, will keep advancing the important role its members play in this vital sector.

“We were eager to participate,” says Mark Burnett, Jannatec project manager, of the decision to be part of MineConnect USA. “The opportunity to grow our business in that area is really exciting.”

For Jannatec, the new U.S. location means the Ontario company will have a local presence and the ability to provide services and generate business in the Elko and Nevada area.

“We see no reason why our products can’t work in a state and mining area like Nevada, which is similar to Ontario in the number and diversity of its mines. There are still a lot of mines that aren’t in the 5G or LTE Wi-Fi area, who still use old-school, leaky-feeder communications underground.”

Unique products

Established in Sudbury in 1983, the company is led by Chief Executive Officer Wayne Ablitt, one of the founders.

With a handful of employees, Jannatec Technologies began applying its knowledge of radio communications to mining applications. This started with the company’s first product, the Johnny Light, a combination lamp and radio made rugged for the mining industry.

Later versions saw other technologies incorporated into the product. Through innovative design, Jannatec eliminated the need for individual radios, tags for tracking, and assorted other devices to be lugged underground by miners by continuing to incorporate these into one single device.

“We’ve become experts in incorporating many devices into one, so miners are not carrying multiple devices and they can’t lose them,” says Burnett.

Burnett notes that cap lamps are mandatory for underground mining. Ruggedly designed, Jannatec’s product line today includes The ONE Cap Lamp, the TWO GO Cap Lamp, the Johnny Light Series Radio Cap Lamp, and the ENSO Generation 1 Smart Helmet, the JAWS Proximity Detection application, the SCAS Collision Avoidance system, portable and mobile radios, and more.

Unlike anything else on the market, the ENSO Generation 1 Smart Helmet is customizable, comes in different colours, and can be equipped with high visibility LED lights for superior visibility, RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) tagging, SENA Industrial’s hands-free Mesh communications and rechargeable batteries. Future versions will incorporate a camera where images and video can be transferred via USB to a computer or streamed live depending on available infrastructure, enabling operations to have the capabilities of a ‘connected worker.’

Communications and safety

To make its products, Jannatec continues working with industry giant Motorola, using its high-quality radio components. In the 2010s, Jannatec began expanding its offerings, moving from communications and technology to proximity detection technologies, and is now moving forward with collision avoidance, which has become an increasingly talked about requirement.

“I think a lot of people when they hear the name ‘Jannatec’ might think we are a communications company – but a larger part of our company now is safety,” says Burnett. “We are more of a safety company than a communications company, especially now that we have proximity detection and offer collision-avoidance systems. The things we offer take advantage of communications but also provide a much safer work environment.”

As safety becomes a bigger part of the mining industry, so do devices made to protect people and machinery. Demand for these systems has resulted in Jannatec creating new and innovative projects like JAWS, the Jannatec Advanced Warning System.

Attached to personnel, fixed hazards, and below-ground vehicles, JAWS uses a radio frequency transceiver to detect potential hazards and issue warnings, helping prevent accidents before they happen by enhancing worker and operator awareness. Since it operates as a standalone system, JAWS does not need any external infrastructure or power to function like a leaky feeder system (a standard underground communications system).

Ideal for underground and open-pit mining, the newly available SCAS (collision avoidance) system is also ideal for other applications, including improving safety and productivity in rail yards, warehouses, shipping yards, and many other areas where people and machinery work in close proximity.

The SCASII Collision Avoidance System, developed by sister company Schauenburg Systems out of South Africa – where collision avoidance is mandated – is becoming a very hot topic of conversation at many operations and Jannatec is already in the process of providing demonstrations to both surface and underground mining operations.

With safety becoming a bigger part of mining, companies, often industry giants like Vale – which has had a presence in Sudbury for over a century – have bought into the company’s proximity detection system. By partnering with Schauenburg Systems, Jannatec has increased its potential client base tenfold, since it can now provide safety systems for both surface and underground applications.

Despite considerable competition in the proximity detection and collision avoidance arena, Jannatec’s system boasts many advantages, since it suits virtually any operation.

“Our future is looking really bright in terms of what we can offer,” says Burnett. “It’s just a matter of getting out there, getting those leads coming in the door, talking to people about our solutions, and showing what our product can do.”

Safety, the flexible way

Recognizing that not every mining company has the same equipment or budget, Jannatec’s proximity detection and collision avoidance systems are flexible. Collision avoidance is costly, but it doesn’t mean it has to be implemented in one fell swoop. Clients can put in a proximity detection system and slowly build on it as needed, depending on the size of their fleet, their budget and any mandated timelines set by management.

“Depending on our clients, we look at their budgets, and what their plans are,” says Burnett. “Having a long-term relationship is what we’re looking for with all our clients. There’s so much variability in what the equipment is at the mine that we are the company which can go in and say, ‘whatever you have, we can put this system on it.’”

Opening new areas

With about 95 percent of its business in mining, Jannatec’s position in the sector is secured.

Nevertheless, refusing to sit still, the company is active in other areas, including construction and industrial communications, where the activities are ideally suited to “Smart Helmet” use.

“Part of our plan for growth is to extend our vertical markets in those areas,” says Burnett, adding that the company’s industrial line of communications is a natural for factories, manufacturing plants, and other facilities where workers can talk to one another without actually being linked to any type of network.

Since the company is in the business of safety and technology, Jannatec’s senior management keep their fingers on the pulse of new developments through LinkedIn, various publications, direct discussion with communication giants like Motorola and Ericsson and more importantly, by continuing to discuss the ever-changing needs of the mining industry with their clients.

With a relatively small staff of about 22, including an R&D department that works on software and a service team performing repairs, Jannatec has diversified itself accordingly with companies bringing in 4G, 5G, and other technologies. “We are always looking at how we can change and readjust our focus to make sure we are where our clients need us to be,” says Burnett.

As for many other companies, finding qualified staff is challenging. For Jannatec, this is especially true because of its location and the unique nature of its technology. “Not a lot of people know what leaky feeder communications systems are, or how to work with them and install and maintain them, so we train people from scratch,” Burnett says.

Loyal to its Sudbury roots, Jannatec’s radio lamps and proximity detection systems are in virtually every area mine. Not limiting itself to Ontario, the company also has clients in Manitoba, Nunavut, British Columbia and Labrador’s Voisey’s Bay. No matter the location, Jannatec professionally serves all customers, big and small.

“The big key that we stress with clients is that we are not looking to get a customer for one sale. If I get you as a client, my goal is to keep you forever. I don’t want to sell something to you and just walk away next year.

“I want to plan and see what you need next year and for the next five or ten years. We help clients plan their communications and their safety.”

The post Safety Matters<p class="company">Jannatec Technologies</p> appeared first on Resource In Focus.

The company’s latest product, the cutting-edge VortexPrime™ system, offers high-powered pumping, a small footprint, low operating costs, reduced emissions, and ease of use. “VortexPrime™ is a technology that we say checks all the boxes,” states Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Seth Moore.

Released earlier this year, VortexPrime™ is the first frac fleet of its kind to use direct-drive turbine technology. The term “frac fleet” is industry lingo for the equipment used in hydraulic fracturing such as trucks, pumps, mixing equipment, manifolds and vehicles.

VortexPrime™ offers power and efficiency in a single package. Moore measures efficiency in terms of fuel consumption and human capital— the number of workers required to transport, install, operate, maintain then dismantle a hydraulic fracturing system.

This revolutionary solution can be directly attributed to Catalyst’s spirit of innovation and open-mindedness. The company was officially founded on April 23, 2018, by Moore, Chief Executive Officer Bobby Chapman and Chief Financial Officer Mike Morgan. From the start, the co-founders aimed to do things differently in a traditionally conservative industry.

“When we came up with the idea for the company, we had a blank canvas. We could kind of do what we wanted to. We searched out a lot of different technologies and possibilities,” he recalls of the company’s early days.

At first, the company used conventional Tier-4 final diesel-powered hydraulic fracturing systems to serve clients. However, the desire to break the mold remained strong. Out of this came an idea: why not couple a military-grade turbine powered by natural gas directly to a pump? Other companies have tried to develop similar systems, but Catalyst was determined to take the lead on this concept.

“We partnered with some great people, sat down with whiteboards and markers and designed the VortexPrime™ from the ground up. It wasn’t something we purchased off the shelf. It wasn’t something that we gave to an equipment design company to go build for us. It was something built by us and the partners we contracted with,” says Moore, with a touch of pride.

Creative as they were, the development team was also cautious. A VortexPrime™ prototype was built and put through extensive field tests to see if it fulfilled expectations. Only after testing was complete did the company create a final version which was released commercially in February of this year.

VortexPrime™ generates plenty of horsepower but is also “very agile. We can move it. This equipment moves every two to five weeks, so you need a fleet that can be set up and taken down in a relatively short time frame,” states Moore.

He stresses again that most of the work on this solution was done in-house. “We manufacture it ourselves. We have a manufacturing center in Odessa, Texas where we build these units.”

The fully-self-contained VortexPrime™ solution is compact, requiring eight frac pumps, versus twenty on conventional frac fleets, and offers up to twenty-percent-reduced systems cost compared with a conventional system. VortexPrime™ requires less maintenance, produces up to forty percent fewer CO₂ greenhouse gas emissions than conventional Tier-4 fracturing fleets and can be set up in hours rather than days, as with a traditional fleet.

There are fewer pieces to haul, and fewer trips back and forth from the worksite are required. The system can reach a maximum treating pressure of 11,900 psi with an average treating pressure of 9,210 psi and a maximum treating rate of 120 barrels per minute, with an average treating rate of 95 barrels per minute. Using VortexPrime™ also results in a “ninety-plus percent reduction in waste stream,” adds Moore.

Other benefits include a kill switch feature that drastically limits idle time—it takes roughly five minutes to get the system back online compared with potentially hours for conventional frac fleets—automated software, and the ability to access small, remote locales.

While it is a revolutionary product, VortexPrime™ is not currently available for sale; instead, the system, along with Catalyst crews, can be rented out on an hourly basis. Using VortexPrime™ or convention diesel equipment, the company performs hydraulic fracturing for clients.

“We’re focused on providing a service. We charge typically by the hour. The customer is not buying the VortexPrime™. They are renting our service, and we use the VortexPrime™ to complete that service,” Moore explains.

The company has kicked around the idea of producing VortexPrime™ frac fleets that customers could purchase for themselves but has not pursued the notion yet. Among other things, COVID-related supply chain woes have made Catalyst a bit wary about moving into large-scale manufacturing for the hydraulic fracturing marketplace.

“The global pandemic really upset the supply chain… We had a case a while back, where we needed a water pump for a diesel engine. That water pump took us almost 120 days to get. We had this very expensive unit waiting on a very inexpensive water pump… That’s been a challenge, being able to keep things running at a time when the supply chain has been so stressed,” Moore says.

Content to remain a technology company and service provider, for the time being, Catalyst is also firmly focused on the Permian Basin. Located in Southeast New Mexico and West Texas, the Permian Basin contains vast oil and gas deposits. Catalyst has worked on projects in other places but finds there is “so much growth potential for us here, we’re not actively marketing outside the Permian Basin. We see a lot of opportunity within our backyard,” he states.

Indeed, there is so much opportunity that Catalyst has been growing at an explosive clip. From roughly 110 employees this time last year, it now employs between 175 and 180 people. Employee benefits include dental, vision, and major medical insurance, 401(k) savings plans, paid holidays and vacations, competitive salaries, an Employment Assistance Program, and more.

“I think the VortexPrime™ has driven our growth. I think the market has driven it too. There’s an old saying that a rising tide lifts all boats,” notes Moore.

Anyone interested in joining needs to meet some high standards. The firm wants new hires who demonstrate “a desire for excellence. We also like people who are competitive, who hate to lose. These are intangibles. People can have experience, and we value experience, but it goes much beyond that. You want people to share in a vision of greatness, a vision of innovation,” he says.

It also values hardworking people who can focus on routine tasks. Transporting, installing, operating, then dismantling hydraulic fracturing fleets requires close attention to detail and consistent results. Catalyst aims to always provide top-notch service, including maintenance and troubleshooting.

Employees undergo rigorous safety training and receive regular safety updates. This makes sense, given that the firm specializes in equipment that extracts oil and natural gas. Having said that, “the most dangerous thing we do is drive. We move a lot of equipment,” notes Moore.

VortexPrime™ is not the only alternative fracking solution on the market. Electric-powered fleets or e-frac, are another contender. These use electric-powered pumps rather than diesel-powered ones. Not hugely common at present, e-frac systems do offer certain benefits; according to Drilling Contractor magazine, e-fracking drastically reduces greenhouse gas emissions and fuel consumption.

Environmental benefits aside, e-fracturing has its disadvantages, says Moore. Simply plugging an e-frac system into an electrical grid is not a practical option for large-scale hydraulic fracturing, he says. The resulting power draw would cause strain on any grid and would pose a particular challenge in Texas, which has an independent electrical grid that is not connected to grids in other states. Onsite generators can produce electricity for e-frac systems, but they are expensive and such equipment adds more steps to the hydraulic fracturing process.

Given Catalyst’s rapid growth and the launch of the VortexPrime™ frac fleet, it is not a surprise that Moore is bullish about the future. “We’re excited about the industry. We’re excited about the direction we’re headed, and we’re excited about the role we play. We are a small player and have to try hard. We look forward to continuing to grow,” he states.

He makes it clear, however, that Catalyst has no intention of resting on its laurels and relying solely on VortexPrime™ to build revenue. “We’re going to continue to innovate. This isn’t the last cool technology that Catalyst is going to release. We’re going to do other things.”

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