Field snapshot, the trigger and first reactions

• Tell me about the recent production review that triggered interest in a pilot, including which wells or asset areas stood out
• Walk me through how your team currently detects wells underperforming versus expected reservoir decline
• Describe the last time you identified an operational cause for lost barrels, what the root cause was, and how long it took to resolve
• Share an example of a monitoring gap that routinely delays diagnosis or corrective action
• In a typical quarter, how many wells does your team flag for operational investigation Options: Fewer than 10, 10 to 19, 20 to 49, 50 or more
• Who on your team is notified first when a well drifts below its expected curve Options: Field operator/RTU alarm, Production engineer, Asset lead or supervisor, Data analyst/monitoring team, Other
• Can your team approve a 90 day pilot on a representative well set without creating an additional capital request Options: Yes, approval is available, No, capital approval is required, Maybe, depends on pilot scope, Unsure

Where operations actually breaks

• What single recurring operational failure causes the biggest daily production loss in your asset
• When was the last time that failure caused measurable lost barrels, and can you estimate the monthly volume impact Options: Less than 10 bbl/day, 10 to 50 bbl/day, 50 to 200 bbl/day, More than 200 bbl/day, Unknown
• How often does that issue go undetected for more than two weeks Options: Almost always, Often, Occasionally, Rarely, Never
• Which early indicators in your SCADA, well test, or daily reports point to that root cause first Options: Decline in pump efficiency, Rising casing pressure, Unstable flow rates, Frequent alarms, Manual notes or operator calls, Other
• If that failure persisted during a pilot, what would stop you from continuing the engagement

Assumptions about data and instrumentation

• Would you say sensor quality or integration complexity is more likely to make or break a pilot, and why
• List the specific data streams you require for diagnostic accuracy, for example stroke rate, pump position, tubing or casing pressure, gas injection rate, and daily allocation Options: Stroke rate/pump position, Casing/tubing pressure, Injection/gaslift rate, Fluid flow rates, Well test results, Production allocation/DAILY accounting
• Who holds credentials and access rights for your SCADA historian and production accounting system Options: Operations IT team, Field operations lead, Data engineering team, Third party integrator, Combination of teams
• Which SCADA protocols or historian endpoints in your field typically require custom drivers or on site gateways Options: OPC, MODBUS/TCP, DNP3, Proprietary vendor protocol, REST API / MQTT, Unsure
• Do you have a documented sensor health or data quality process that the pilot can use for daily validation Options: Yes, documented and owned, Yes, informal process, No, not currently, Unsure
• Confirm whether your historian stores raw timestamps and alarm logs for at least the past 90 days Options: Yes, No, Partial coverage, Unsure
• Would your data owner be authorized to grant the seller time limited access to the historian and sample raw data for model calibration Options: Yes, we can grant access, No, not authorized, Need legal sign off, Unsure

How recommendations turn into actions in the field

• If an automated recommendation conflicts with an experienced operator's judgment, how is that conflict resolved in practice
• Name the roles authorized to approve set point changes and the typical approval lag for a field adjustment
• Tell me about a previous instance where algorithmic guidance was overridden, and what that revealed about trust and process
• How comfortable are your operators with remote execution of tuning actions versus local manual changes Options: Very comfortable, Somewhat comfortable, Cautious, Not comfortable
• What internal decision or condition would lead you to cancel a pilot early Options: Safety incident, No measurable uplift after 90 days, Integration failure, Operator rejection, Budget reallocation

Pilot design, scope, and success criteria

• Identify the one pilot metric, measured over 90 days, that would drive an immediate roll out decision Options: Net daily production uplift per well, Reduction in unplanned downtime, Improvement in pump efficiency, Lift cost per barrel reduction, Operator adoption rate
• In a pilot, how many wells do you consider representative for your asset: 10 to 19, 20 to 49, or 50 plus Options: 10 to 19, 20 to 49, 50+
• Describe the minimum instrumentation or telemetry upgrade per well you are willing to accept to join the pilot
• Provide the responsibilities you expect the seller, your field operations, and your data team to own during the pilot Options: Seller: models and monitoring, Seller: integration support, Buyer: field installs, Buyer: daily data validation, Shared responsibilities
• List the acceptance gates tied to measured uplift you would require to mark the pilot successful Options: X percent uplift over baseline, Statistical significance of results, Operator adoption above threshold, No net negative impact to equipment health, Full SCADA and accounting integration

Risks, guardrails, and operator safety

• Explain which equipment or mechanical constraint would make you refuse automated set point changes during a pilot
• Share how maintenance backlogs and spare parts lead times influence your appetite for recommendations that increase cycling or run hours
• Specify the operational guardrails you would require before any automated adjustments are enabled, for example max stroke rate, scheduled windows, or cycle limits Options: Max stroke rate cap, Restricted automation windows, Per well rollback rules, Operator confirmation required, Real time alerts and human override
• Indicate the decision trigger you would use to roll back automatic actions if a model recommendation increased wear without uplift Options: Immediate rollback on alarm, Rollback after X days of negative trend, Rollback if operator reports issue, Rollback if maintenance cost increase observed
• State the role that signs off on safety and operational runbooks for recommended changes Options: Operations manager, HSE lead, Field engineering supervisor, Asset manager, Combined sign off

Competitive landscape and alternatives you are weighing

• Explain what would have to be true about your current monitoring and optimization approach for you to keep it rather than change vendors
• Name other external providers or internal programs you are actively evaluating for production optimization Options: Incumbent monitoring vendor, Another optimization provider, Internal engineering build, Independent consultant, No other option under consideration
• Do any internal teams prefer building a solution on their own instead of contracting an external pilot, and who is advocating that path Options: Yes, engineering team, Yes, IT/data team, No internal build advocated, Unsure
• Outline the top reasons stakeholders might prefer staying with the incumbent or an internal build
• Identify the single resource or capability an internal team would need to match an external pilot's outcomes Options: Sustained data engineering headcount, Field instrumentation budget, Per well model calibration expertise, Access to production accounting, Cross functional coordination

Operational readiness and constraints we must surface now

• Point to the single technical dependency that would make us pause before committing to the pilot
• Provide the team or role that owns API and integration access for your SCADA historian and whether they can join an initial integration workshop
• Specify which sites will require physical field access or special permits to instrument wells during the pilot
• Confirm whether you have dedicated headcount for daily data validation during the pilot and the name of the data owner role Options: Yes, named data owner available, Yes, but not dedicated full time, No, no dedicated resource, Unsure
• Estimate the proportion of wells with continuous, high fidelity sensor records over the past 12 months Options: Greater than 80 percent, 50 to 80 percent, Less than 50 percent, Unknown
• Point out any compliance or regulatory approvals that could reasonably delay a pilot start beyond eight weeks

Decision milestones and next steps if the pilot validates value

• Indicate the internal approval or constraint that would still prevent immediate scaling if the pilot delivers the expected uplift
• Estimate how quickly procurement and legal can execute a commercial agreement once acceptance gates are met: within 2 weeks, 2 to 6 weeks, 6 to 12 weeks, or longer Options: Within 2 weeks, 2 to 6 weeks, 6 to 12 weeks, Longer than 12 weeks, Unsure
• State the stakeholders that must be present on a handover call to operations at the end of the pilot Options: Field operations lead, Production engineers, Data/integration lead, Asset manager, Seller technical lead
• Select your target window for starting a pilot from contract signature Options: Immediately or within 2 weeks, 2 to 4 weeks, 4 to 8 weeks, 8+ weeks
• Outline the person or role who can sign a field wide deployment decision and the typical timeframe for that signature if the pilot meets uplift and integration criteria

• Operational Validation Solution Experience

• Confirm current state and its cost to your team
• You confirm the concise current state statement matches your operational problem and its cost.
• Prepare a runbook mapping diagnostic flags to explicit operator actions and expected outcomes for the agreed pilot well set.
• You confirm the demonstrated workflow identifies root causes within days and results in specific, executable operator actions.
• Run a representative well scenario end-to-end
• Deliver a technical integration checklist listing required SCADA/historian endpoints, telemetry fields, and sample formats before pilot start.
• Provide historical SCADA/historian extracts and 90-day baseline production data for the proposed pilot well list.
• You agree on measurable acceptance criteria for the 90-day pilot, including uplift metrics, operator adoption thresholds, and integration checks.
• Map diagnostics to operator actions and constraints
• Confirm the representative pilot well list, instrumentation gaps, and the single point of contact for operator coordination.
• You agree what remaining evidence is needed to move from pilot to scale.
• Demonstrate expected production and risk outcomes
• Validate this matches what you described
• Schedule a 60-minute follow-up to finalize acceptance criteria and confirm any remaining data gaps after live validation.
• Agree measurable acceptance criteria for the 90-day pilot

• Operational Validation Solution Experience
• Solution Experience Deck
• Operational Validation Brief

• meeting
• slides
• document

• Install Wellhead and Downhole Sensors
• Integrate with SCADA and Historian
• Configure Per-Well Artificial Lift Models
• Run Automated Well Test Validation
• Deploy Real-Time Surveillance Dashboards
• Activate Artificial Lift Optimization Engine
• Enable Automated Set-Point Adjustment Controls
• Configure Production Allocation Reconciliation
• Implement Equipment-Wear and Constraint Modeling
• Set Alarm and Exception Notification Rules
• Train Field Operators on Recommendation Execution
• Provide Data Export API and Reporting Package

Install Wellhead and Downhole Sensors

• List the pilot well API numbers and note which wells already have downhole pressure gauges, surface flowmeters, or ESP current sensors
• Which sensor types do you require on each pilot well? Select all that apply Options: Surface tubing pressure (PT), Casing pressure (PC), Downhole pressure gauge (Pdown), Temperature (T), ESP current/voltage, Rod pump stroke position / stroke rate, Surface flowmeter, Vibration / gearbox torque sensor
• Provide the expected installation ownership model for hardware and field labor Options: We provide hardware and handle installation, You provide hardware and field labor, We supply hardware; you supply installation crew and LOTO, Request a quote for hardware + installation
• Indicate the maximum acceptable lead time per well for sensor delivery and crew mobilization Options: < 1 week, 1-2 weeks, 2-4 weeks, > 4 weeks
• Identify any site-level safety, intrinsic safety (IS) classification, or hazardous area ratings that constrain sensor selection
• Specify the acceptance evidence for sensor installation (for example: commissioning report, proof-of-life time-series for each SCADA tag, and physical sensor tag list)

Integrate with SCADA and Historian

• Which SCADA / RTU protocols are used at your sites for the pilot wells Options: OPC UA, OPC DA, Modbus TCP/RTU, DNP3, Proprietary vendor protocol, Not sure / need discovery
• Provide the name and version of the historian or data aggregator you use for pilot wells (or indicate if data is only on the SCADA RTU)
• Indicate the target telemetry sample rate required for modeling and alarms (per tag) Options: Real time (<1 min), 5 minutes, 15 minutes, Hourly, Other / hybrid
• Confirm the number of SCADA tags per pilot well that must be mapped to the platform (e.g., PT, PC, choke position, pump current) Options: < 20 tags/well, 20-50 tags/well, 50-100 tags/well, > 100 tags/well
• Specify required historian data retention and backfill window for model calibration (for example: 12 months of 15-minute data, or 3 years of daily averages)
• Who will provide integration endpoint credentials and a test account for the historian/SCADA during the pilot
• Indicate acceptable data latency and allowable missing-data rate during the pilot for a valid calibration (e.g., latency < 30 minutes, missing-data < 5% per tag per week) Options: Latency < 30 minutes, missing < 5%, Latency < 1 hour, missing < 10%, Latency tolerable up to 4 hours, missing < 20%, Custom threshold (describe)

Configure Per-Well Artificial Lift Models

• Identify the artificial lift type for each pilot well (select all that apply) Options: Beam (rod) pump, Electric submersible pump (ESP), Gas lift, Plunger lift, Other
• Describe the historical operating envelope and known mechanical constraints for each well (for example: max rod stroke rate, maximum allowable pump current, known tubing leaks)
• Indicate the data window to use for per-well calibration (for example: last 6 months of 15-minute SCADA + daily well test logs) Options: 3 months, 6 months, 12 months, Other (describe)
• Specify which field documents are available for model tuning: downhole gauge calibration certificates, pump card / dynamometer (for rod pumps), well test reports, and recent maintenance logs Options: All documents available, Some documents available (list), No historical documents available
• Detail the owner for per-well parameter updates after calibration (who approves parameter changes: operator, production engineer, or joint committee) Options: Production engineer approval, Field operator sign-off, Automated update after QA pass, Other (specify)
• Define the calibration acceptance criterion for per-well models (for example: model mean absolute percentage error on flow rate <= 10% across validation window)

Run Automated Well Test Validation

• List the types of well tests you run routinely that the platform must parse and validate (for example: daily production test (DPT), multi-rate well test, allocation tests)
• Indicate how well test results are captured today (paper logs, Excel spreadsheets, historian snapshots, or automated test hooks) Options: Paper logs / PDF, Spreadsheets (Excel/CSV), Historian snapshot / SCADA tags, Dedicated test software
• Specify the minimum matching tolerance between automated test validation and manual test results to accept a validated test (for example: per-phase flow within ±X% or allocation flow within ±X bbl/d)
• Who performs manual reconciliation of automated well test results today and who will own exception triage during the pilot
• Provide the frequency of well tests during the pilot that the validation engine must ingest (for example: weekly DPTs, monthly multi-rate tests) Options: Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Ad hoc / as-run
• Specify the acceptance evidence for automated well test validation (for example: automated test report matching manual test within stated tolerance for N consecutive tests)

Deploy Real-Time Surveillance Dashboards

• Indicate the primary KPIs you require on the surveillance dashboard for pilot wells Options: Instantaneous production rate, Normalized performance vs baseline, Lift efficiency (e.g., bbls/kWh), Pump health metrics (torque, current), Allocation variance
• Identify the user roles that need dashboard access and any role-based views (for example: field tech, production engineer, operations manager)
• Specify desired dashboard refresh cadence and acceptable lag for operator decision-making Options: Real time (<1 min), 5 minutes, 15 minutes, Hourly
• Detail any existing dashboards or visualizations you want copied into the pilot (attach or name the report, e.g., daily choke sweep dashboard)
• Confirm whether dashboards must be embedded into an existing plant ops portal or accessible via a separate web app Options: Embed in existing portal, Separate web app, Both / Single Sign-On required
• Specify acceptance criteria for dashboard deployment (for example: all pilot wells visible, key KPIs rendering, time-series aligned with historian within selected tolerance)

Activate Artificial Lift Optimization Engine

• Select the primary objective for optimization on the pilot well set Options: Maximize daily oil production, Minimize lifting cost per barrel, Maintain uptime and reduce trips, Balanced objective (configurable)
• Describe the allowed operational constraints the optimizer must respect (for example: max pump current, min casing pressure, scheduled rod-pump stroke limits)
• Indicate the optimization cadence desired during the pilot (for example: hourly recommendations, daily batch optimizer, or weekly strategy updates) Options: Hourly, Daily, Weekly, On-demand
• Who will review and approve optimization recommendations during the pilot before any automated actions are taken Options: Production engineer, Field supervisor, Designated operator, Automated approval after QA check
• Specify rollback and safety thresholds the engine must enforce before recommending set-point changes (for example: do not change if predicted torque increases > X%)
• Indicate whether you require an A/B test split or holdback group to measure uplift during the pilot Options: Yes - holdback group, No - apply to all pilot wells, Need recommendation on design

Enable Automated Set-Point Adjustment Controls

• Specify the PLC/RTU vendors and models that will receive set-point adjustments (for example: Schneider Modicon, ABB RTU, Emerson DeltaV)
• Indicate the control authority model you prefer for automated set-point changes Options: Operator must approve each change, Supervisor approval required, Automated with monitoring and automatic rollback, Hybrid - auto for low-risk parameters
• Identify required safety interlocks and lockout/tagout (LOTO) steps that prevent remote set-point writes
• Confirm whether the PLC/RTU will accept writes over the chosen protocol and whether a test namespace is available for pilot writes Options: Writes allowed to live namespace, Writes allowed to test namespace only, Writes not permitted - recommend operator-assisted execution
• Detail the rollback conditions and automated alarms that must trigger if a set-point change degrades equipment health (for example: pump current > threshold for X minutes)
• Provide the list of specific control points per well that may be adjusted during the pilot (for example: pump speed, gas-lift injection depth, choke set-point)

Configure Production Allocation Reconciliation

• Which production accounting system will the pilot need to reconcile with (for example: daily allocation spreadsheet, corporate APM, or third-party allocation engine)
• Indicate the required allocation accuracy threshold during the pilot (for example: allocation variance < 2% vs. reported meter totals)
• Specify how custody-transfer meters, well test allocations, and facility split rules are currently documented (for example: allocation spreadsheets, meter mapping table, or standard operating procedure)
• Identify the owner of allocation exceptions and the SLA for resolving allocation mismatches during the pilot
• Provide sample mapping between meter IDs and well IDs for at least three pilot wells to validate mapping logic
• Describe required reports or exports for production reconciliation (for example: daily allocation report CSV, exception list, or GL-ready file)

Implement Equipment-Wear and Constraint Modeling

• List historical maintenance and failure records available for pilot wells and equipment (for example: pump run hours, rod-string trips, gearbox repairs)
• Specify the equipment wear thresholds that must be encoded in models (for example: maximum allowable pump current, maximum gearbox torque, allowable sucker-rod stretch)
• Indicate whether time-series vibration or torque sensors are available for wear modeling on rod-pump wells Options: Yes - sensors installed, No - sensors not installed, Planned during pilot
• Describe how you want the model to surface risk trade-offs between incremental production and accelerated wear (for example: show projected wear impact per incremental bbl/d)
• Identify any regulatory or warranty constraints that limit allowable operating envelopes for equipment
• Specify who will own ongoing updates to wear-model thresholds after the pilot completes Options: Production engineering team, Operations maintenance team, Shared responsibility, Vendor managed

Set Alarm and Exception Notification Rules

• Indicate the prioritized alarm types to configure for the pilot (for example: high tubing pressure, low flow, pump off, excessive pump current)
• Provide the notification channels to use for alarm delivery during the pilot Options: Email, SMS, Push notification (mobile app), SCADA alarm list / HMI, Integration to ticketing system
• Identify the on-call roster or escalation path for alarm response during pilot hours
• Specify per-alarm severity levels and the expected response SLA (for example: critical alarm response within 1 hour)
• Confirm whether alarm suppression rules should be applied for scheduled maintenance and how those windows are communicated Options: Yes - suppression windows used, No - no suppression, Use maintenance calendar integration

• success_criteria
• current_state
• decision_readiness
• stakeholders
• gaps
• desired_state
• gaps
• success_criteria
• stakeholders
• desired_state
• current_state
• decision_readiness
• stakeholders
• decision_readiness
• current_state
• desired_state
• success_criteria
• gaps
• success_criteria
• current_state
• decision_readiness
• gaps
• desired_state
• decision_readiness
• decision_readiness
• decision_readiness

• Master Services Agreement (MSA)
• Statement of Work (SOW)
• Acceptance Test Protocol (Pilot Acceptance Criteria)
• Order Form / Subscription Agreement
• Data Processing Agreement (DPA)
• Data Access Authorization
• Service Level Agreement (SLA)
• Commercial Terms & Payment Schedule
• Change Order Agreement

• Go-live Health Check (weeks 1-4)
• First Measurement Review (weeks 4-10)
• Acceptance Gate Review, Day 90
• Runbooks and Operations Handoff (post-acceptance)
• Quarterly Outcomes Review (ongoing)

• Create the recurring model calibration calendar with required inputs and acceptance checks.
• Produce a documented acceptance decision for the pilot tied to the targets recorded in the 90-Day Pilot Evaluation.
• If conditional, list all remediation items with completion deadlines and required evidence to achieve full acceptance.
• Confirm legacy system decommissioning status and an archive plan to prevent parallel usage.
• Publish the formal acceptance record and archive it in the project workspace along with supporting data extracts.
• Create remediation tickets for any failed criteria with required evidence and completion targets.
• Execute the agreed legacy system wind-down steps and produce a status update within 10 business days.
• Handoff of runbooks and playbooks
• Operational teams accept runbooks and agree a 30-day competency improvement plan if required.
• Establish a recurring model calibration schedule and a documented handover of who owns each runbook item.
• Confirm the shared backlog process and the SLA for critical production-impact tickets.
• Publish final runbooks and an operations checklist to the shared workspace.
• Re-confirm success criteria and owners
• Populate the shared backlog with outstanding operational items and assign resolution target dates.
• Quarterly production and cost outcomes
• Confirm quarter-to-date production uplift relative to baseline and whether targets remain achievable.
• Reduce open backlog item count and average resolution time quarter over quarter.
• Agree any required runbook or calibration adjustments and record them in the shared backlog.
• Publish the quarterly outcomes pack with production deltas, operator metrics, and backlog summary.
• Close or re-prioritize backlog items older than the agreed SLA and document the rationale.
• Schedule targeted refresher training if operator execution rate declines below the agreed threshold.
• Confirm SCADA/historian ingestion is live for at least 90% of the pilot well set.
• Document and prioritize all integration and instrumentation blockers with target resolution dates.
• Establish a short-term monitoring cadence to verify remediation effectiveness within two weeks.
• Publish the integration health summary showing wells streaming, ingestion error counts, and missing sensors.
• Open technical tickets for each outstanding integration or instrumentation fault with a target resolution date.
• Schedule a 10-day follow-up async checkpoint to confirm remediation progress.
• Present first measurement data vs targets
• Determine whether aggregate production uplift and operator execution are on track to meet the 90-Day Pilot Evaluation targets.
• Produce a prioritized remediation list for wells not meeting targets with target resolution dates.
• Agree the evidence package required at the acceptance gate for each acceptance criterion.
• Deliver an evidence package template listing the metrics, data extracts, and time windows required for acceptance review.
• Create remediation work items for each outlier well specifying root cause, action steps, and due dates.
• Publish an operator coaching checklist to improve recommendation execution within the pilot window.
• Restate acceptance criteria and pass/fail thresholds
• Training and competency review
• Present outcome data against each acceptance criterion
• Operator adoption and execution trends
• Drill into wells missing targets
• Deployment and integration validation
• Operational support and SLAs
• Early adoption and usage signals
• Document pass/fail per criterion and acceptance decision
• Agree corrective technical actions
• Shared backlog and enhancement status
• Model maintenance and calibration schedule
• Operational follow-through
• Blockers and open issues triage
• Legacy system wind-down review
• Persistent issues and risk watch
• Agree remediation plan for any failed criteria
• Agree immediate remediation actions
• Confirm timeline to acceptance gate
• Shared backlog and enhancements process
• Next quarter operational adjustments