When Ex~i Flow Measurement originally designed the SFC3000 flow measurement computer, we knew it would need to be flexible and adaptable enough to accommodate the changing needs of the worldwide liquid hydro-carbon and gas measurement industry without the need for the hardware to be further updated to accommodate these requirements.
Since its creation in 2009, the SFC3000 has undergone many major software updates to improve its functionality and add new features. The revisions were driven by a number of factors, such as expansion into different areas of application, advances in the industry, new standards and innovations by our team and our customers.
Industry Advances and Expansion
Originally, the SFC3000 was created to measure natural gas but we quickly extended its capabilities to measure most types of gases. We went on to include the capability for it to measure liquids and prover products. Since then, we have seen a significant rise in the need to measure products such as liquid natural gas and bio-methane, as well as more standard products used in the energy generation industry.
As new types of meter and gas chromatographs or transmitters are added by other product manufacturers in the industry, we have added communication drivers and interfaces so the SFC3000 is able to connect without issue to any measurement device. The diversifying needs of our customers has led to user option boards expanding from three types for input/output at launch and communication being extended to seven different types with many new input/output and communication options added.
Changing Standards
Changes to regulations and updates to ISO standards such as ISO 5167, which regulates fluid flow measurement and received its latest update in 2016, result in flow measurement equipment needing to be regularly updated. The American Petroleum Institute (API) also updates and adds to their standards of practice in the oil and gas industry every year. As this is such a highly regulated industry, adhering to these standards is essential.
Customer Innovations (and Ours)
Some of the most interesting developments and improvements made to the SFC3000 over the years have come from clever innovations either created by our own team or by our customers. As our customers have access to the internal scripting language of the computer, we are often amazed at their ingenuity in adapting it to their specific needs.
One update we are particularly proud of is the introduction of a feature which allows the flow measuring computer to be accessed online through any device with access to the internet. This feature allows users to access and view all the flow computer functions as they would on the actual unit, including line condition streams, heat valve streams and composition data, from anywhere. We added this capability in response to the growing work-from-anywhere culture adopted by our customers.
We anticipate the evolution of the SFC3000 flow measurement computer to continue over the coming years and look forward to seeing how our team and customers continue to make the most of its adaptability.
To speak to us about what it and Ex~i Flow Measurement can do for you, call +44 (0)1243 554920 or contact us here.