Advanced vessel fleet monitoring and fuel management system for offshore oil and gas operations

This project won the Grand Prix at the IoT project of the year 2024 contest. Explore the article and learn more about all the winners.

Problem

A marine transportation and logistics company from Nigeria, Dewayles International Group, leases vessels and marine jack-up barges to Chevron, one of the world’s leading energy companies, for use on offshore oil and gas work locations.

Dewayles needed to implement real-time vessel GPS tracking and a fuel monitoring solution to meet Chevron's specific requirements. Both companies were interested in gaining control over the fleet, reducing potential fraud, and improving the efficiency of the vessels.

Solution

ActiveGuard Telematics, a Wialon partner through its subsidiary company Hypercom Network, took on the project to help Dewayles optimize its fleet operations and comply with the key client's requirements.

Project components

ActiveGuard offers vessel fleet monitoring and GPS tracking of boats, barges, and other related services to many clients. With 25 years of expertise, they were able to select tried-and-tested components for the project, namely:

• Coriolis flow meters were installed on the fuel lines of the main engines, auxiliary engines, diesel generators, and boilers/heaters. They were chosen for this project due to the client's demand for a high level of accuracy and reliability.

Coriolis flow meters on the fuel lines are needed for in-depth fuel control as part of a vessel monitoring system

• Mechatronics fuel level sensors were installed in the fuel tanks to deliver real-time data on the fuel levels in the starboard and portside tanks.
• GPS tracking devices from Galileosky collect information from the fuel tracking equipment and send it to Wialon, the fleet management platform, together with information about location, speed, and data from other sensors. In Wialon, the fleet owner and their client can monitor vessels in real-time and build reports on vessel movements, fuel usage, carbon emissions, etc.

The system provides real-time alerts on the engine status, ensuring the team is informed of issues without running a detailed health check

• Starlink Internet was deployed on the vessels to provide Wi-Fi connectivity throughout the ship and enable remote viewing of the onboard CCTV/IP cameras.
• 21-inch Android-based displays were installed in the boat wheelhouses. In partnership with Geoservice, a custom Android application for onboard displays was developed. The app shows all vessel engine data and real-time tank and bunker information to ensure the crew is also on top of the current situation. This live engine fuel data helps the crew operate the vessel more efficiently, optimizing performance and reducing emissions.

ActiveGuard is setting up the displays and other devices before mounting them on the fleet owner’s boats

Additional services

ActiveGuard provided the client with a formal onboarding process and trained all the boat crews on how to generate daily fuel reports and use the system and Wialon in general.

The crew was also provided with documentation explaining the various components, enabling them to understand and operate the systems effectively.