Well log naming standards

Practical Well-log Standards (PWLS)

The well logging companies produce a huge number of measurements (logging curves) with company-specific names and mnemonics. What was required was a way to prioritise and standardise these curves by classifying the physical properties they were measuring. This was the PWLS concept of ‘standard curve types’.

Flare’s Approach

Working with POSC (now Energistics) and a number of interested stakeholders from oil and service companies, Flare provided the lead for this project. A number of workshops were held in Houston, London and Stavanger to gather input from knowledgeable stakeholders. This was integrated by Flare into a sets of Tools/Curves by Company linked to standard Well-log Property Names/Mnemonics (e.g. ‘Slowness Time Coherence’ and ‘STC.’) and standard Curve Type Names/Mnemonics (e.g. ‘Acoustic Slowness Time Coherence’ and ‘AC.STC.’). This work required a considerable working knowledge of well-log measurements as well as managing a diverse set of people to attain a consensus view.

Benefits/Outcomes

The main outcome was a set of standard well-log curve types for logging tools for the main logging companies (Baker Atlas, Halliburton and Schlumberger). This information is available on the Energistics website (http://w3.energistics.org/PWLS/pwls_20.htm).

Benefits of the project are a focus on the main measurements made by logging tools (only around 2% of the well log curves deliver the majority of the value) and to aid both Petrophysicists and other technical workers in searching for and finding the right well-log data.