GeoGathering Conference Encourages Oil & Gas Operators to Develop a Geospatial Data Strategy
This year’s GeoGathering Conference committee estimates that close to 150 GIS professionals and top-level management from leading oil and gas companies will attend the 2013 GeoGathering Conference. The conference takes place in Colorado Springs, Colo., at the Cheyenne Mountain Resort, Aug. 21-22. This year’s conference theme is “Developing a Data Strategy: Data Collection and Sharing.” This theme was chosen from the recurring attendee feedback at the last conference. Acquisitions and fast growth in the gathering industry are forcing operators to develop a geospatial data strategy and look deeper at all aspects of data — from how it is collected, to making it available to decision makers.
The goal of the GeoGathering conference is to provide valuable information to gathering system and upstream operators who want to learn how to create an efficient, accurate and collaborative data strategy that will work for their organizations. Presenters will demonstrate how GIS technology allows you to collect and share data between the field and the office in a way that enables your organization to make important decisions. The well-rounded agenda will focus on real-world experiences—everything from integrity management and data requirements, field data collection and GIS-based data analysis, to data security and making GIS technology more accessible to stakeholders.
In 2012, conference management announced a shift to a biennial schedule from the original annual occurrence to accommodate the increased attendance, allow for improved planning, and offer an exciting new format. This year attendees will experience the new, audience-focused format which offers two simultaneous tracks that give attendees the chance to tailor their own conference schedule. It also includes welcoming industry volunteers and new forms of sponsorships for vendors. One of the biggest additions by far is attendees can participate in a “structured networking” session.
The structured networking sessions allow attendees to meet people with common interests and share practical ideas. For some attendees, it can be difficult to network and meet new people when a conference has short breaks and back to back sessions. This interactive networking session encourages attendees to engage in lively debates and critical discussions that contribute quality information in a small group setting. For example, attendees can choose between ten different topics such as MAOP strategies, processing field data, data security, environmental permitting, GIS integration with other databases, web solutions, etc. The goal is that attendees will walk away with new industry contacts.
Because this conference is attendee-driven, the event organizers are seeking speakers and topics. The call for abstracts closes at the end of March, so if you are interested in sharing your story, please visit conference website for a list of suggested topics to contribute. So far, the committee has chosen topics that focus on pipeline safety and trends in web technology.
Early bird registration is open until the end April. The conference committee welcomes senior management, project managers, integrity management specialists, GIS professionals, field operations managers and engineers. Learn more about the conference at www.geogathering.com.
