Home » Case Studies » Rig Owner Extends CAT Overhaul by 2000 Hours, Breakdowns Eliminated
Table of Contents
Case Study
Rig Owner Extends CAT Overhaul by 2000 Hours, Breakdowns Eliminated
Table of Contents
Background
Industry
Oil & Gas
Solution
Engine Condition
Monitoring System
(ECMS)
Make & Model
Caterpillar Diesel Engines (Series 35 & 34)
Asset
Land Rigs
Objective
To identify the root cause of repeated Caterpillar engine breakdowns, recommend optimized maintenance measures, and improve drilling performance while reducing life cycle costs.
Challenge / Problem Context
Frequent breakdowns were observed on 7 Caterpillar engines (Series 35 & 34) deployed across 11 rigs, leading to drilling performance losses.
The local service provider recommended top-end overhauls on 3 units of CAT 3512 and major repairs (injector, turbocharger, and cylinder head replacements) on the others, which would be costly and time-consuming.
What Did We Do?
Conducted advanced engine health diagnostics using torsional vibration analysis to assess the exact condition of the engines.
Deployed Neptunus experts on board who carried out inspections through remote engine monitoring systems instead of immediately proceeding with expensive overhauls.
Results That We Achieved
Extended MTBO by 2000 hours (20%), which reduced lifecycle cost by $10,000 per engine, saving $20,000 across two engines.
Eliminated breakdowns and reduced repair downtime by 10 days compared to a complete overhaul.
Improved drilling performance as rigs were able to complete wells on schedule.
Secured a 6-month charter extension, enabling additional revenue of $900,000.
