Sybase accelerates the application development case of BP exploration

Working in a software environment that allows you to quickly create robust, flexible applications is the dream of every developer. SAIC, which runs the IT operations of BP Exploration, believes it has turned this dream into reality by combining Sybase's relational database management system with Sybase's PowerBuilder application development environment.

Finding a suitable solution is a very difficult task. BP Exploration is the largest operating agency in the North Sea oil and gas field, with more than 20 offshore platforms and land-based offices in Aberdeen, Grangemouth and London. BP exploration outsourced most of its IT support and development tasks to Saic,saic, a High-tech, research and engineering company headquartered in the United States with more than 23,000 employees worldwide.

Since BP Exploration implemented its Strategic Software Environment (SSE) as the basis for client/server computing, BP Exploration and SAIC have been developing in Sybase and powerbuilder environments for more than four years. The implementation of SSE separates the data from different applications and improves the distribution of information throughout the organization. It facilitates data interaction between platforms and applications, eliminates costly data redundancy, and greatly enhances the quality of information.

In establishing this client/server architecture, BP exploration and SAIC have made great efforts to ensure that the desired component integration is chosen. SSE is the basic architecture of all the distributed computing of BP exploration. "We are concerned that core products cannot be synchronized with the development of the BP exploration or do not support future applications or technologies, and are therefore constrained," said Bill Muir, a system engineer for SAIC. ”

All the software that SAIC has created for the BP exploration is now developed using the SSE preferred tool. Sybase's relational database management system is the core component of the development environment, and all other components rely on the Sybase ASE database for fast, secure data storage and retrieval.

After two years of evaluation, Sybase's strengths emerged and were selected as the core database for this important project. The BP exploration has thoroughly reviewed the current database technology and analyzed the future trend. The company's goal is to streamline work processes, improve access to high-quality data, and reduce costs. Two years after the initial decision, a follow-up review by the BP exploration Internal audit team identified the preferred position of Sybase products.

Once the Sybase ase,bp exploration was selected, a three-year, 1.7 million-dollar implementation and redesign plan was carried out to allow BP exploration to use database technology reasonably. By centralizing resources for open Sybase architectures, companies have reduced costs, eliminated repetitive and obsolete systems, and BP exploration has been able to use the new system infrastructure to radically change the way it operates.

On the other hand, the selection of the PowerBuilder development toolset was initially for one application only. It has now become the primary development option for SAIC, and the company has built a strong PowerBuilder skills library through the execution of numerous projects. "One of the best features of power Builder is its ability to integrate with a variety of different databases," Muir said. ”

SAIC has made extensive use of stored procedures in software developed for the BP exploration. In most cases, the software routine invokes the stored procedure in the database management system, and then the database management system returns the results back to the PowerBuilder client rather than writing the query in PowerBuilder. Muir added: "While integration is a bit more complex, we can use PowerBuilder to invoke stored procedures in other databases, which provides a huge advantage." ”

Using stored procedures allows the BP exploration to make the most of its limited network bandwidth. Only critical data is passed to the user, which reduces the traffic between the Onshore office and the offshore platform, and avoids performance problems. Processing queries on the database server greatly reduces the time required to run certain features and makes applications more efficient to users.

Another major reason for adopting PowerBuilder is that it supports object-oriented development. "Inheritance gives us the ability to create a common application for each of the 20 browsing or editing windows," Muir, "if we need to change something in all these windows, just change it once in the parent window, which undoubtedly speeds up the development progress." ”

As the number of application development projects required by BP Exploration has grown rapidly, SAIC has adapted to this fast-paced pace by reusing software objects and components. Standard component libraries, such as browsing windows, login screens, query screens, and report templates, are reused in different applications, saving a lot of development time.

Muir added: "Reusing PowerBuilder components helps us create a unified interface for all applications developed for the BP exploration." "This reduces the training required by end users and makes applications relatively easy to maintain and enhance." Personally, Muir appreciates the potential of PowerBuilder as the RAD (Rapid Application Development) tool for creating client/server applications, which increases the efficiency of the project team.

BP Exploration has a variety of applications developed using the Sybase ASE database. However, SAIC's database administrators are more satisfied with the performance of applications developed by Sybase databases, regardless of size. The existing system will be hosted on the UNIX platform of Sun Microsystems.

SAIC developed its first application for BP exploration using Sybase SQL Server and PowerBuilder in 1994. The application, called Optimus, is a device tag register that holds the details of all the electromechanical devices and cables on the BP exploration Bruce oil field platform. Optimus tracks the location and maintenance history of various devices and holds millions of records.

During its 18-month system development, SAIC developed another 5 systems using a variety of Sybase and PowerBuilder technologies. The Forties Corrosion Management System (FCMS) enables chemical engineers to monitor the operation of the BP Forties oil pipeline and help them detect the corrosion of the pipe wall and perform preventative maintenance. The FCMS database holds data on all aspects of the pipeline's oil delivery, while the PowerBuilder application allows engineers to run complex computations to predict potential problem areas. FCMS implementation has been in operation for many years, it is considered as a large project by BP exploration, but the development work is completed in only 6 months. The database now holds 60多万条 records, and continues to grow, although the company archives regularly.

The latest application to develop is the valve monitoring system, which allows engineers at BP's Bruce and Miller fields to use data from the past three years to monitor trends in valve switching times. This allows them to determine the possible failure and need to replace the valve. The application requires the use of data fed into the external SCADA system responsible for monitoring the valves. "One of the great advantages of the Sybase architecture is how it integrates with these external applications," Muir said. ”

SAIC also implemented two management systems using Sybase ASE and PowerBuilder. The Polaroid system is responsible for storing the security card photos and the personal data of all 4,000 employees of the BP exploration. The Aberdeen Telephony database management maintenance and query system replaces another incompatible Windows-95 application. The application preserves telephone extensions and room location information for all staff in the Aberdeen office, and allows you to quickly identify the fire warden, security representative, and other emergency personnel.

Based on the characteristics of drilling operations in different areas of the North Sea, BP Exploration is a decentralized organization, and remote access computing is critical to them. Through SAIC, the IT department is currently analyzing how to use Internet technology to build a corporate intranet. "The Web features that Sybase has built around the connectivity of Sybase ASE and PowerBuilder further demonstrate that the initial decision to adopt these products as the core of our strategic software environment is entirely correct," Muir concludes. ”