Software Upgrades Oil Patch - Examining the Benefits
(
Page 2 of 2 )
Morgan says the expected benefits of the system include real-time enterprisewide visibility of information that enables faster, more informed strategic and opportunistic business decisions; a tighter alignment of production goals with supporting financial, human and equipment resources to drive greater efficiencies and productivity gains; and reduced risk and associated costs of financial restatements and legal/regulatory noncompliance.
The expected operational benefits include the elimination of disparate, manual, spreadsheet-based financial reporting processes; consolidation all financial reporting onto a single system; improved accuracy, efficiency and speed of financial operations; a 25 percent reduction in financial close, reporting and auditing processes; a 20 percent time savings in monthly payment cycle processes; and real-time, accurate visibility into service date accruals.
ERP packages such as those offered by SAP, Oracle, JDE, Baan and other industry-specific providers, are integrated systems that link together information across business relationships, applications, infrastructures, and corporate cultures regardless of department, distance or function, says Jacoby Garcia, an independent consultant in Houston who has followed technology trends in the oil and gas industry for more than 25 years.
“The goal is for the company to use one software package with a number of integrated modules,” rather than multiple and conflicting systems, each with its own language, database standard, user interface and data format, Garcia says. “When this integrated model is applied to an oil and gas exploration and production [company], a user in materials management could see the same data on his or her screen as a colleague in accounting. An executive could then monitor inventory levels throughout the company and drill down online and view real time accurate data.”
Data is entered only once for the entire enterprise, instead of continuously being recaptured or re-entered, Garcia says. “As this flow goes through a logistical supply chain, the chain runs the risk of breaking down if data must be re-keyed at any step along the way,” he says. “ERP systems help companies react quicker to economic pressures [and] market opportunities, reduce inventory and develop new business opportunities.”
Enterprise Apps 
