Int J Syst Assur Eng Manag (December 2023) 14(6):2695–2719
https://doi.org/10.1007/s13198-023-02125-6
CASE STUDIES
Analysis of reliability based on preventive maintenance of failures
in the VSH‑2 mechanical pumping unit for oil extraction
C. A. Ropero‑Gaona1 · A. Lucas‑Marmol1
Received: 22 April 2023 / Revised: 29 July 2023 / Accepted: 24 August 2023 / Published online: 12 October 2023
© The Author(s) under exclusive licence to The Society for Reliability Engineering, Quality and Operations Management (SREQOM), India and
The Division of Operation and Maintenance, Lulea University of Technology, Sweden 2023
Abstract The safety and reliability of assets in the Oil and
Gas sector are considered essential to maximize availability
and minimize downtime in production and operations. Due
to the aging of assets (mechanical elements), the industry is
reviewing the maintenance planning of critical equipment
through Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCM). This
research project focuses on Tibú, which is the area of the
largest oil exploitation in northeastern Colombia, in produc-
tion to date from 113 active wells, with 41 variable speed
hydraulic unit 2 (VSH-2), and the rest corresponds to other
types of equipment. The extraction of crude oil using arti-
ficial equipment, such as the VSH-2, is a primary factor in
the oil sector. When the reservoirs lose pressure and do not
flow naturally is necessary to aid the reservoir to stimulate
the extraction of crude oil from the well. The main problem
under study is establishing the redesign of the VSH-2 units
mechanical element by identifying the frequency of failure
and the costs generated through corrective and preventive
maintenance. As part of the methodology, the Failure Mode,
and Effect Analysis (FMEA) method was used, and the data
collected in the maintenance histories were based on data
using the SAP software, considering, in turn, the experience
of the maintenance group of the Tibú field. The main results
showed that the redesign of the VSH-2 mechanical element
Supplementary Information The online version contains
supplementary material available at https://​doi.​org/​10.​1007/​
s13198-​023-​02125-6.
* C. A. Ropero‑Gaona
caropero21@gmail.com
A. Lucas‑Marmol
antonio.lucas@unini.edu.mx
1
Universidad Internacional Iberoamericana - unini,
24560 Campeche, México
significantly increased the reliability of the mechanical crude
extraction system by changing the hose system to 316 stain-
less steel pipes. Furthermore, based on reliability data, the
results showed that the redesign of the system was possibly
increased by 90% with 92,000 h of work in the frequency of
the failures presented by the system about the Manifold hose
to the nitrogen accumulator due to the auxiliary medium
external leak failure mode, which was 11,900 h. Finally, with
this redesign, maintenance standards and theories (plans and
routes) were considered, which allowed for increasing both
the reliability of the mechanical oil extraction system and
the financial resources of the oil extraction field related to
stops due to maintenance.
Keywords Maintenance · Reliability · Oil · Failure ·
Hydraulics · SAP
1 Introduction
In the hydrocarbon sector, different studies have focused his
research on improving the failures generated in crude oil
extraction and processing equipment and thus improving
the reliability of the mechanical component/element without
changing the technology used. For this process, design theo-
ries, laboratory tests, and standards that govern the behavior
of materials and systems according to their industrial appli-
cations must be considered. In the case of the hydrocarbon
sector, the specifications established by the API (American
Petroleum Institute) standard is widely used (API 2022).
Rubber hoses and metal tubes with pressed joints have
been widely used in the assembly of the steering system,
the transmission oil cooling system, brake system, among
others, to transport hydraulic fluids or lubricants from one
place to another. Due to the operating requirements of the
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hose and pipe, it is important to consider the conditions to
determine a correct design based on different parameters
that influence the durability of the hose and pipe assembly,
such as the dimensions of the flare at the end of the pipe,
the type of press, the type of reinforcement, its size, material
and pattern, properties of the rubber material, pressing force,
effective pressing diameter, among others. Furthermore, the
optimal set of hoses and pipes designed for the automatic
transmission cooling system should be properly considered
to optimize maintenance resources in oil extraction plants
(Tongaonkar et al. 2019).
Different cases and studies about improving mechanical
elements in the hydrocarbon sector are presented below.
Nithin et al. (2021) quantitatively determined the correc-
tive maintenance intervals through the historical analysis
of the failures generated in the systems, establishing the
mean time between failures (MTBF) and the mean time to
repair (MTTR). Likewise, the authors carried out the cost
and reliability analysis of the maintenance scenarios based
on good practices in the oil industry. Finally, the results
showed that the decision-making process helps improve
maintenance tasks based on downtime or unplanned main-
tenance, considering redesigning a mechanical element or
component. Pathak et al. (2021) developed design criteria
considering non-destructive testing methods and the API
standard, using finite element analysis and fracture mechan-
ics to evaluate the useful life of the element based on the
minimum detectable failure. The establishment of detailed
procedures allowed for extending the useful life of the ele-
ment subjected to fatigue considering the specifications
and standards of the oil and gas sector. Bahroinuddin and
Anwar (2021) redesigned a lightning protection system for
oil platforms based on the NFPA-780 standard. As part of
the methodology, they reviewed literature and concepts to
determine the most important properties of the variables that
influenced the element. The results showed that it is pos-
sible to redesign mechanical elements, thus increasing the
system’s operability and reducing failure events.
Baratta et al. (2020) redesigned the cooling system of
the gas turbine for oil extraction activities (TG20) in order
to increase the temperature at the turbine inlet and simul-
taneously reduce the total amount of coolant mass flow.
The authors used computational fluid dynamics (CFD) to
evaluate the slack generated by the coolant and the blade
and adequately redistribute the flows generated during the
cooling process, whose data were validated with those
obtained experimentally, finding good results based on the
redesign of the mechanical component. Tongaonkar et al.,
(2019) developed an economic and financial feasibility study
to produce hydraulic hoses, being of great interest to com-
panies in the hydrocarbon sector due to the great demand
due to the frequency of failures generated by high pressures.
This problem gives rise to generate an alternative aimed at
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continuous improvement in the management of the informa-
tion collected and thus focus it on the optimization of avail-
able resources in terms of person-hours (human resources)
and materials (spare parts), always referring to get the most
out of the information collected in the field and documented
in the maintenance system used, which in this case is the
SAP platform. Pérez Rondón (2021) mentions that all pre-
ventive maintenance work and programs will be essential
to conserve and operate a system therefore and adequately
respect the established levels of continuity. In this way, many
of the failures present in the extraction equipment are of
such diverse origin that they range from broken belts, bear-
ing failures, electrical, mechanical, and electronic failures,
wear on motor parts, and even equipment manipulation by
third parties.
In recent years there has been great interest in develop-
ing mechanical elements and high pressure/high tempera-
ture (HPHT) systems, which require designs and redesigns
of equipment and improved processes to operate in the oil
sector (Berckenhoff and Wendt 2005). In different investiga-
tions, there have been problems with low pressure caused by
the hydraulic cylinders that generate the necessary pressure
during drilling operations to extract the crude oil. Li et al.
(2019) proposed the redesign of the structure of a high-pres-
sure hydraulic valve taking into account the low efficiency
of the system and data obtained from maintenance opera-
tions, and the results were analyzed through statistics. The
results showed a significant increase in terms of efficiency
of up to 29%. Other authors have redesigned the piston rod
of the hydraulic cylinder to optimize the crude oil extraction
power process, obtaining very good results (Govindasamy
et al. 2010). Likewise, Ramesh et al. (2005) used CFD to
optimize and redesign processes and high flow rates through
the valve due to pressure drops. The results showed a 29%
decrease in the pressure drop in the valve, considering the
maintenance history and the redesign applied to the valve.
Finally, it is important to mention that there are few stud-
ies reported in the literature on the redesign of mechani-
cal elements in the oil sector based on reliability due to the
lack of information, investigative and financial resources
that allow establishing the appropriate components to avoid
failures considering the frequency of appearance, and plant
stoppages that in the end are reduced in economic losses
for the companies that are in this important sector for the
development of the countries. This research project is devel-
oped to generate the improvements required in the mainte-
nance management and redesigns for the VSH-2 units, which
allows anticipating any general or specific failure that could
be generated in the crude extraction process. Likewise, pre-
ventive maintenance improvements can be supported by
increasing the reliability of the VSH-2 units by specify-
ing preventive maintenance, optimizing it in the existing
plan, and thus reducing time and resources in improving
Int J Syst Assur Eng Manag (December 2023) 14(6):2695–2719
traceability in the maintenance path. The limitation will
be marked by the infrastructure resource (redesign) since
the study will be carried out in crude oil extraction equip-
ment because the modification in one of its elements can
generate dissociation in decision-making by the administra-
tion because Any change in the original design generates a
series of administrative processes such as change control,
which ultimately generates a series of technical, economic,
and legal consequences. It is important to consider that the
redesign is based on the data obtained and the classification
of the elements that are susceptible to failure, presenting an
improvement in one or more units.
2 Materials and methods
2.1 VSH‑2 units for mechanical oil extraction
The present investigation is focused on the mechanical oil
extraction elements/units widely used in the oil sector due
to their reliability during the process. Therefore, the sample
selected for the development of this research consists of the
41 variable speed hydraulic units 2 (VSH-2) installed and
operating in the Tibú field owned by the state oil company
Ecopetrol S.A. Considering specifically how the VSH-2 unit
shows due to the frequency of failures it has presented in
recent months, it is important to mention that for information
management, the VSH-2 unit will be identified as T-003.
Considering the above, monitoring the working condi-
tions of a specific team take on the relevance to deserve for
decision-making regarding control of changes that can be
made to achieve continuous improvement of processes and
equipment. Therefore, from the maintenance perspective
strategy, it can be achieved through the analysis of informa-
tion that is obtained from the daily operation, also with the
support that is obtained from the application of automated
systems or fed into databases (SAP software) and added to
the experience of the maintenance team, once this informa-
tion is collected, it can be correlated in an orderly and sys-
tematic way in the factors that influence the functionality of
a piece of equipment.
2.2 Data collection
The information was collected directly from the data loaded
in the SAP-ERP software generated and updated by the
maintenance personnel of the Tibú field plant and the ally
(contractor) in coordination with the condition-based main-
tenance work group (CBM) (SAP-ERP 2023). The CBM
analysis area, whose main objective is to collect the infor-
mation generated daily by the maintenance team made up
of the electrical, mechanical, instrumentation, and control
areas. Therefore, the data collection is carried out through
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documentary analysis using the following sources of infor-
mation: reports (logbooks, plans, electronic sources; docu-
ments on the Internet, and documents obtained through
email, which reference and support the processing informa-
tion to achieve the objective of this work.
It is important to mention that the collection of data and
the instruments involved will be carried out considering
maintenance management through SAP software, which is
developed through transactions, where users interact from
different areas such as production, maintenance, projects,
and materials warehouse, in order to manage the mainte-
nance of assets either through established strategies, prod-
ucts of RCM, PMO, manufacturer’s maintenance manu-
als, defect elimination process, asset condition analysis or
requests generated by the users to meet specific requirements
such as equipment failures, operational limitations, param-
eter deviations within the framework of operating windows,
non-maintenance requirements (improvements, thefts, envi-
ronmental events, among others), equipment diagnosis to
establish a condition by some failure mechanism that the
user has been observed in the equipment and the incorpora-
tion and disincorporation of assets (OMCS 2023).
2.3 Failure modes and their analysis
Failure mode measurements must be quantitative to know
the greatest impact on a team’s productivity, and failure
modes are an event that causes failure or damage to a team
(partially or totally). Considering the failure states and
events, a list of events must be made, and after the failure
modes, the day-to-day maintenance and the records are dis-
cussed and analyzed daily, hence the importance of con-
taining this information for decision-making decisions. It
is important to mention that if we intend to carry out main-
tenance adjusted to reality, it is necessary to identify the
failure modes that affect a piece of equipment or process.
Notice that after analyzing this failure, it’s possible to verify
or estimate when it occurs and in what way.
The level of detail can achieve that FMEA can be consid-
ered as a standardized analytical method to show and rule
out problems systematically and finally, whose main objec-
tives are: Recognize and evaluate potential failure modes
and causes associated with the design and manufacturing
of a product. Determine the effects of potential failures on
system performance. Identify actions that will eliminate
or reduce the opportunity for the potential failure to occur.
According to Stamatis, (1995), the priority of all the treat-
ment of failures must be carried out in the following way:
The priority of the effect causes, and controls are obtained
through the index known as Risk Priority Number (NPR);
this is the result of multiplying the score given to the sever-
ity of the failure effect, by the probabilities of occurrence,
for each cause of failure and by the possibilities that the
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control mechanisms detect each cause of failure. For each
effect, there are several causes, and for each cause, a group
of controls. The NPR falls in a range of 1 to 64; it provides a
relative indicator of all causes of failure. Higher NPR num-
bers should be given priority for corrective action, either to
prevent the cause or at least to employ better controls.
It is possible to establish their prioritization within a
group of problems obtained from the maintenance manage-
ment database (Cajas Ramos and Cifuentes Fiallos 2013).
Therefore, three relevant criteria can be considered that
allows defining the priority of failures, which are described
below: The first criterion is the occurrence or frequency
or occurrence of failures: Occurrence (O) estimates the fre-
quencies with which expect failure to occur due to each of
the potential causes listed above (how often does that failure
mechanism activate?). The chance of each potential cause
occurring (failure mechanism being activated) is estimated
on a scale of 1 to 10. If there are adequate statistical records,
these should be used to assign a number to the frequency of
failure occurrence. It is important to be aware of and use
the criteria to assign such a number (Martinez-Ruiz 2010).
2.4 Maintenance management indicators
The maintenance management indicators allow real-time
measurement of the management of the maintenance depart-
ment in any industry. The indicators make it possible to
measure and analyze any quantifiable activity. Maintenance
managers oversee defining which of these indicators are
applicable to their industry and which generate the greatest
amount of information that allows establishing maintenance
management. Some of the main maintenance indicators are
described below:
2.4.1 Availability and reliability
Reliability in maintenance equipment is based on a critical-
ity analysis. Then it is possible to define the main elements
of study, functional failure, failure modes, effects, and conse-
quences, analyze proactive maintenance and otherwise ana-
lyze a minor change in the Equipment design to increase and
improve equipment availability. Then, with the data from the
SAP maintenance software, the failure dispersion graph was
prepared, where was identified the chronic and acute failures
generating the equipment’s unavailability. In this way, was
applied the FMEA model to the identified failure modes,
obtaining the failure modes that generate unavailability due
to reliability and maintainability (Santillan Armas 2017).
On the other hand, these two indicators represent the final
phase of maintenance to increase the equipment’s availabil-
ity and improve the reliability achieved through the execution
of maintenance activities with suitability. It is important to
mention that availability is the ability of a team to execute
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the activity for which it was designed at a given moment or
during a pre-established period. While reliability is the prob-
ability that said equipment performs its activity according to
the operating conditions in a specific interval of time, which
can be calculated using Eq. 1. Notice, Mean Time Between
Failures (MBTF) and Mean Time Between Repair (MTTR)
can be calculated using the definition of the (ISO 14224, 2016)
standard procedure.
MBTF
Availability = × 100 (1)
MBTF + MTTR
Then, the reliability of the system can be calculated using
Eq. 2:
Reliability = R(t) = e−λ×t (2)
where: λ is the failure rate, λ equal to 1/MBTF, t it’s the
time, and e is the Euler number (2.1782).
Considering the reliability and availability aspects, it is
necessary to calculate the backlog, which is the sum of main-
tenance activities pending to be carried out. Therefore, the
backlog is the demand for activities that arise from mainte-
nance activities vs. the capacity of the maintenance team to
meet this demand, which can be calculated using Eq. 3:
ΣHHJob registration
Backlog = × 100 (3)
Σ Total HH × Productivity factor%
where: ∑HH is the job log, ∑HH OS planned + ∑HH OS
earring + ∑HH OS programmed + ∑HH OS executed.
2.4.2 Cost of maintenance over billing (CMF)
The CMF indicator allows for establishing maintenance’s
effect on the company’s performance; that is, it directly evalu-
ates maintenance management which allows determined where
the leak of resources occurs in maintenance management
systems. For example, human resources, materials, external
services, equipment depreciation, and loss of billing. This
indicator directly impacts the company’s operation because
if the company invests large amounts of money in mainte-
nance, this will impact the price of the final product, making
the company uncompetitive compared to others that carry out
the same industrial activities or commercial. The CMF can be
calculated using Eq. 4:
Maintenance total cost
CMF = × 100 (4)
Gross billing
Int J Syst Assur Eng Manag (December 2023) 14(6):2695–2719
2.4.3 Cost of maintenance over replacement value
(CPMV)
This is another financial indicator applied to a specific piece
of equipment, which is used to define the action to be taken
in a piece of equipment with high maintenance costs. For
example, with the CPMV, it can be established if it is more
profitable to continue with the maintainability of the equip-
ment or if, on the contrary, it is more beneficial to deregister
it and acquire a new one. This indicator is applied to criti-
cal or highly complex equipment, which can be calculated
using Eq. 5:
Total cost of maintenance
CPMV =
Purchase price of new equipment
× 100 (5)
2.4.4 Mean times between failures
By definition in the ISO 14224–2016 standard, it is estab-
lished that the mean between failures (MTBF) as the time
elapsed between failures (ISO 14224, 2016). In this way,
Eq. 6 was used to calculate the MTBF, where n is consid-
ered as the number of failure events; with this mathematical
equation, the calculation of the mean time between failures
(MTBF) was carried out for the 11 wells where manifested
the external leak failure mode auxiliary means with the
Manifold hose component to nitrogen accumulator (Suazo
2022).
∑n
TBF
MTBF = 0 (6)
n values and the expected values in the study model; Such
2.5 Statistical distributions
2.5.1 Exponential distribution
The exponential distribution is a simple distribution with
only one parameter commonly used to model reliability data.
The exponential distribution is a special case of the Weibull
distribution with ß = 1, as shown in Fig. 1. The exponential
distribution is considered a model that gives good statisti-
cal assumptions for a long period and "flat" (relatively con-
stant = constant failure rate (ℷ)) of low risk of failure that
characterizes the middle portion of the bathtub curve. This
phase corresponds to the product’s useful life and is known
as the "intrinsic failure" portion of the curve. The exponen-
tial distribution provides a suitable model for the phase of a
product’s or item’s useful life in which it is just as likely to
fail at any time, regardless of whether the item is brand new
or has different periods of use considering different con-
ditions. These variables can influence the operation of the
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Fig. 1  Exponential distribution. Source: Own elaboration
asset. That is the phase prior to the start of aging and wear
during its intended use. An important property of the expo-
nential distribution is that it is memoryless, indicating that
the remaining useful life of a component does not depend on
its current age (Minitab 2022; Pérez Rondón, 2021).
2.5.2 Weibull distributions
This statistical tool is used to model a hazard function that
is decreasing, increasing, or constant, which allows it to
describe any phase of the useful life of a mechanical ele-
ment or component. In order to identify and select the dis-
tributions that best fit the data, it is necessary to adjust the
data obtained in the failure history, considering the database
extracted from the SAP software. The correlation measures
in general, summarize the divergence between the observed
measures can be used in the contrast of hypotheses of expo-
nential distributions and Weibull comparisons (Díaz Con-
cepción et al. 2015). The adjustment correlation that was
used in this research work is the R­ 2 test with the aid of Excel
software, where the calculation for hypothesis distribution
and the respective graphs were carried out to evaluate the
effect of the variables on the reliability of the redesigned
VSH-2 unit.
The graphs of exponential and Weibull theoretical
hypothesis distribution curves are obtained using Excel
software, considering the linear regression adjusted to the
function of each distribution, as described below: R(t) = e−ℷt.
Applying natural logarithms, the linear regression of the
exponential distribution is obtained using Eq. 7:
(7)
( )
Ln R(t) = ℷ.t
where: ­R(t) = Reliability = 1-F(t) = Probability of no failure,
ℷ = failure rate = 1/MTBF (mean time between failures),
­F(t) = Failure Probability = (Accumulated Failure Event 1/
Total Failures). Notice that the Weibull distribution 2 param-
eters is based on Eq. 8. On the other hand, by making X = t
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comparing the two equations and applying natural loga-
rithms, the linear regression of the exponential distribution
is obtained, as shown in Eq. 9.
( )𝛽
t
DW = R(t) = e
− 𝜂 (8)
{ ( )}
1
Ln Ln = [𝛽 × Ln(t) − 𝛽 × Ln (𝜂)] (9)
R(t)
where: ­R(t) = Reliability = 1-F(t) = Probability of non-failure,
β = measure of the regularity of occurrence of failures or
form factor, Ƞ = Characteristic life factor or scale factor,
­F(t) = Failure Probability = (Accumulated Failure of Event
1/Total Failures).
As the variables X and Y are known (X = Ln(R(t)) and
Y = TBF), the MTBF adjusted to the distribution equa-
tion exponential indicates that every 1/ℷ = 1,855.86 h
(ℷ = 0.00053883 failures/h), there is a failure of the Mani-
fold hose component to the nitrogen accumulator due to the
external leakage failure mode auxiliary medium in the well
of the SLA-VSH 2 T-003. According to what was determined
with the calculations, the historical data using an exponen-
tial distribution; based on this function, the reliability of this
component can be modeled over time, using Eq. 10.
ℷ = −1 × m (10)
With the aid of the exponential distribution in the Excel
software (using the expression DISTR.EXP.N), it was pos-
sible to obtain the failure probability function ­(F(t)) hav-
ing the random variable X ­ (time) and the Lambda parameter
(ℷ = Failure rate) and through the equation of the exponential
function of Reliability R
­ (t), donde R(t) = e−ℷt and R
­ (t) = 1-F(t).
Was possible model the behavior of the reliability of the
component/mechanical element Manifold hose to nitrogen
accumulator by the external leak failure mode auxiliary
means before the redesign.
2.6 Redesign processes
In the mechanical design process shown in Fig. 2, a sequence
of stages should be considered. Stage 1: Need recognition;
it is the fundamental basis to start the design process since
the customer requirements that justify the solution genera-
tion are identified through mechanical engineering knowl-
edge. Stage 2: Problem definition, its purpose is to delimit
the need exposed in the previous stage in a detailed way
using engineering specifications. Stage 3: Synthesis; here,
diagrams are generated that connect different elements to
provide a solution to the customer requirements (conceptual
design or redesign models). Then, these conceptual models
are compared, discarded, or optimized to obtain an appropri-
ate conceptual design that aid as the basis for choosing or
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Need recognion
Problem definion
Synthesis
Analysis and Opmizaon
Evaluaon
Iteraon
Presentaon
Fig. 2  Mechanical design steps. Source: Take from Budynas & Nis-
bett, (2008)
calculating the elements that comprise it. Stage 4: Analysis
and optimization, thus obtaining a proper conceptual design,
is analyzed, and optimized. Stage 5: Evaluation; this stage
is the design process point where the obtained mechani-
cal design is verified to solve the need defined in previous
stages of the design process. Finally, Stage 6: Presentation,
is exposed to the mechanical design process of the tribologi-
cal machine (García-León et al. 2020).
On the other hand, redesigns look to generate an impres-
sive result within the functionality of the process or industry.
In this way, the redesign development of whatever mechani-
cal element requires re-examining each component, such as
its behavior, suitability, and cost, among other characteris-
tics possible, to examine, analyze, and evaluate its adequate
performance. From this point, it’s important to simplify the
problems in the teams or in the organization that causes
economic losses. However, equipment is designed under
specific design criteria or engineering specifications con-
sidering the client’s requirements or the industries (Ullman
2010). The redesigns allow for evaluating if the equipment
largely meets the industry’s requirements or if, on the con-
trary, a severe or subtle change is required to adapt it to this
need, improving the reliability and availability of the system.
The methodology for a redesign must establish the
requirements for maintenance and production process,
where it is determined if the equipment or component can
carry out the work adequately or satisfy the need for which
it was acquired. Once this is established, evaluating the siz-
ing, material types, drives, etc., is possible. Then, the new
calculations will come where the new characteristics of the
components are established, costs, and start the replacement
of parts. The main advantages of the redesign are increased
useful life, a solution to recurring problems, and productiv-
ity recomposition (Budynas and Nisbett 2008). For the case
of this work, it was identified from the SAP software the
Int J Syst Assur Eng Manag (December 2023) 14(6):2695–2719
more significant failure (recurrence) events and loss of bar-
rels of crude oil were from the well T-003 with the Manifold
hose component to the nitrogen accumulator. This problem
generates economic losses due to the repeatability of main-
tenance actions that properly reduce the well’s operability.
2.7 Description about the VSH‑2 units
2.7.1 Details about VSH‑2 units
The dynamism in the maintenance area is given by the com-
plexity of its processes and the sector where the activity that
involves any type of maintenance is carried out, presenting a
greater challenge in industrial sectors where the availability
of equipment is a priority. In the case of this research pro-
ject, the maintenance operation for the VSH-2 units in the
Tibú field will be considered, considering that each field is
individually responsible for maintenance activities.
The maintenance of the VSH-2 units in the Tibú field
has its characteristics; it is important to consider a refer-
ence of its behavior during the interventions. Below is a
general approach to the strategic structure to develop the
maintenance tasks of this team. As is observed in Fig. 3,
from the general area through the areas that intervene in its
maintainability (instrumentation, electrical and mechanical),
the parts to which the execution of activities of the essential
elements are carried out and those that can generate in the
transversal process for this equipment considered critical
(VSH-2) considering the procedures pre-established by the
maintenance group.
Therefore, for the maintainability of the equipment, it is
necessary that all activities are related to each other and is
transversal from the moment the need arises for the produc-
tion area, going through the stages of analysis of advantages
and disadvantages and the final purchase, later it is delivered
to the maintenance area. However, the activities must be
Maintenance (Corrective-
Preventive), Scheduled
Activities, Surface
Management.
Warehouse VSH-2 SAP
management Maintenance Activities/Users
Administrative
management
Fig. 3  Strategic Structure to Address Maintenance. Source: Own
elaboration
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interconnected from the maintenance strategy, users, admin-
istrative management, and warehouse. Reliability Centered
Maintenance (RCM) presents the maintenance policies car-
ried out through the failure mode analysis, considering the
relationship between performance, economics, and main-
tenance policy. RCM has become a prevalent maintenance
analysis method and perhaps one of the preferred ones for
complex systems (Campos-López et al. 2018).
2.7.2 Description of VSH‑2 units
Concerning the elements used to transport fluids, hydraulic
hoses are considered among the most versatile, from which
flexibility is obtained. Also, the hoses support high and low
pressures, resist vibrations, and easily adapt to any equip-
ment to transport fluids. Flexible hoses allow movement, but
tubing provides more rigid connections, compact routing,
and better heat dissipation. For the construction of hoses,
they are made of different spiral layers, where the inner
polymer tube transports the oil. A layer of reinforcing wire
or fiber wrap supports the inner tube. If there is more than
one reinforcing layer, it will be separated by a polymer fric-
tion layer. The outer cover protects the hose from wear. In
another way, the selection of hoses will depend on their use
(temperature, fluid to be transported, environment, among
others) and pressure levels to be supported. For connections
and couplings, flanges and connectors are used to connect
hoses and tubes to hydraulic components, as shown in Fig. 4.
As shown in Fig. 4a, VSH-2 units use different hose joints
due to the easy use. of connection. Note that the hose that
fails the most is 6,170,120 SAE-100R12TC Hose Kit, R2
hose, 3/4-inch diameter, 3.0 m length, graphed, as shown
in Fig. 4b.
The VSH-2 unit is used on a mechanical pumping surface
with conventional rod systems arranged on a mast anchored
with four steel rods. This type of unit uses a lifting sys-
tem activated by nitrogen over a hydraulic fluid; the VSH-2
unit was developed by Tiben in 1989 and purchased by the
Weatherford Company (WFT) in 1994 (Weatherford 2016).
The Weatherford company is the one who redesigns the sys-
tem, adds a hydraulic pump, and considers parameters such
as the variation of the pumping speed (SPM) and travel in
seconds. The motor can work with electric or gas operation
with variable application ranges selecting the unit type. Then
VSH-2 units have lower energy consumption than many con-
ventional pumping units. Nitrogen used as a displacement
fluid provides half the force required to raise the production
string. These units are more efficient than their mechanical
peers because they only have three moving parts, making
them more reliable and with reduced maintenance costs.
Being lightweight and skid-mounted makes transportation
and installation easier without spending large amounts of
money preparing the unit. Easy speed adjustment through a
13
2702 Int J Syst Assur Eng Manag (December 2023) 14(6):2695–2719

Fig. 4  VSH-2 unit for mechani- b)

cal oil extraction, a Parts and b
a) Hydraulic cylinder

Current location. Source: Own

elaboration

Mast assembly

Accumulator

Electric motor
Nitrogen cylinder

Hydraulic control panel

Assembly unit of the

Electrical control panel power

variable speed controller provides greater flexibility in rig an instrument that would substantially improve the process;
operation and adjustment to good conditions (Weatherford that is, by carrying out the inspection objectively and thor-
2016). oughly and in parallel using the database extracted from the
On the other hand, the adjustment of the maintenance SAP software, with technical support, it will be possible to
strategy based on reliability modeling in Ecopetrol S.A. identify the failures that impact a defined process, below in
company is involved in continuous improvement processes Fig. 5, it is presented an improvement scheme for the VSH-2
to be applied in maintaining its locative infrastructure and unit in terms of maintenance. To ensure that an already
equipment of the different oil fields. In this way, it recog- defined process adjusts to significant improvement changes
nizes and optimizes strategic plans to improve its processes such as the one proposed, an interdisciplinary group or team
in a transversal way. Similarly, SAP software is an essential must be established to establish a mutual relationship with
tool to manage the amount of information that relates to
and constantly processes maintenance information, which
is oriented toward the systematization and ordering of the
Maintenance
elements that constitute the maintenance strategy. SAP soft- strategies
ware can use all the information collected in the technical,
administrative, and logistics areas. The application of this
information under the approach of the maintenance strategy SAP Users
is achieved efficiently by optimizing the resources that are
available to strengthen the maintenance process. Maintenance
In the same way, as mentioned in the reliability modeling order
comparison, if it is required to avoid taking the Tubing study
component to failure, it is recommended to schedule its Corrective Preventive
change when the risk of failure reaches 80% as a fair value maintenance Maintenance
in the maintenance department, that is, at 28,000 working
hours. As demonstrated in the analysis of the information Inspections
Maintenance Periodic
by condition maintenance
collected in the study period, it logically leads to the fact
that a change in the maintenance strategy for our case study
Equipment
is reliable and safe. It is important to mention that to achieve status
the reliability of the element, all levels of the organization
must be involved in such a way that they can adjust the
Maintenance
maintenance plans, from the change of frequency in main- order
tenance times to involving the process of projects, purchase,
and warehouse to mention a few areas, in order to have the Documentary
resources to make adjustments in the maintenance strategy. management
In the same way, the strategy can be improved by making
minor adjustments in the process, specifically in preventive Fig. 5  Scheme for Improvement of the Maintenance Process of the
maintenance inspections. Since it is well used, it would be VSH-2 unit. Source: Own elaboration

13
Int J Syst Assur Eng Manag (December 2023) 14(6):2695–2719
the processes of purchasing equipment, expensive materials
(budgets), people, among other; whose purpose is oriented
to the continuous improvement of the maintenance process.
Finally, the transversal integration of the processes involves
the development of common indicators to demonstrate the
different stages in achieving strategies proposed by the main-
tenance group.
2.7.3 Before and after redesign of the VSH‑2 unit
The redesign proposal was consulted with the Ecopetrol S.A
maintenance area of Catatumbo management to establish the
proposal to replace the section of the hose from the Manifold
to the nitrogen accumulator, which generated the auxiliary
medium external leak failure mode. It is important to men-
tion that this hose, as part of the redesign, was built in Wire
Braided and Synthetic rubber and replaced by a 316 stainless
steel tube (see Fig. 5), considering all the technical specifica-
tions required by technical standards for this type of applica-
tion of industry and with the experience of the maintenance
group (Rufini et al. 2018).
After the pertinent technical considerations and the
approval by the management of Ecopetrol S.A in Tibú field
of the proposed change of the hose for a 316 stainless steel
tube, the maintenance activity was carried out considering
all the appropriate procedures for the change of the element
on February 25, 2020 under maintenance order: 20,058,065
in the technical location of SLA TIB-PZFC-SEXT-HCAR-
TTIBZO0003 of the equipment tree of the SAP pro-
gram. Figure 6a shows the Manifold hose to the nitrogen
Fig. 6  Connection hose before
and after the redesign. Source:
Own elaboration
2703
accumulator where the auxiliary medium external leak
failure mode was generated (black in color and silver con-
nections); In turn, Fig. 6b shows the redesign of the system
in the VSH-2 unit, with a stainless-steel tube and directly
connected to the nitrogen accumulator through a valve that
allows the access of the refrigerant fluid to the system.
2.7.4 Failure history and inspection of the maintenance
system.
Effective maintenance management allows the improvement
of transversal processes in any industry. For the oil sector,
the appropriate strategies in maintenance plans in the short
and medium term, prolongs the useful life of components
and, therefore, that of increasing the reliability of a certain
piece of equipment, contributing significantly to the produc-
tion of crude oil and, in turn, to the optimization of industrial
processes.
On the other hand, since the oil sector is broad and the
variety of its processes allows analysis of the investment of
its resources, which ultimately contributes to the sector’s
development. For Ecopetrol, innovation and the generation
of projects that help promote and improve the production
of its oil fields are essential. This research project uses the
company’s database, through the SAP software, and the
knowledge acquired during the crude oil extraction process
in a mature field such as the Tibú field, presenting a redesign
in one of its SLA extraction equipment. as is the VSH-2
unit. Likewise, the use of the information collected during
a certain period of time for later analysis and refinement
13
2704 Int J Syst Assur Eng Manag (December 2023) 14(6):2695–2719

is a significant contribution to the development of mainte-
nance strategies in this industrial sector of great importance
worldwide.
In Table 1, the project results are presented, emphasizing
the study periods (April 16, 2016 to February 25, 2020) and
the tools used considering the failure mode. Likewise, the
failure events that occurred in the VSH-2 units are arranged
chronologically, where each event is registered with a work
order, under which the generated failure is described, the
asset in which the event occurred, the date of occurrence, as
well as the manifested failure modes and the maintainable
item where they occur.
The Tibu production field bases its production on extract-
ing crude oil and gas by installing artificial lift systems and
natural flow wells through monthly tests carried out on the
producing wells. The production potential is estimated daily
for oil, gas, and water that must be considered per well. For
this research project, the production of crude oil plus the
equivalent production of gas taken to crude oil was consid-
ered. The equivalence factor is 1,000 PCd (Gas) = 5.7 Bar-
rels of crude oil and 1,000 PCd.
The operator determines the equivalence factor; in this
case, Ecopetrol S.A. in the Tibú field has 113 wells with
an artificial lift system (SLA) and 11 with a natural flow;
among the SLA wells (artificial lift system), there are vari-
able speed pumping units (VSH-2), Mechanical Pumping
(BM), progressive cavity pumps (PCP), electric submersible
pumps (BES) and hydraulic injection pumps (BH). Table 2
shows the number of equipment per SLA, the daily aver-
age monthly net potential production of crude oil, and the

Table 1  Fraction of the information obtained from the ERP-SAP database

Order Detail UT Date Failure mode Maintainable Item

20022748 Balance VSH-2 Unit T-398 T-020 31/08/2016 Unbalance Nitrogen accumulator
20031091 Review Nodes Unit T-020 4/10/2016 Faulty Power/Voltage Battery
20144965 T398 Electrical System Review T-020 21/11/2017 Wear Socket
20265191 Add Oil and Nitrogen T-398 T-020 10/10/2018 Unbalance Nitrogen accumulator
20000941 Pao Hot Spot in Main Breaker T-042 15/04/2016 Overheating Breaker
20023566 Repair Accumulator T-042 13/09/2016 Internal Leakage Nitrogen accumulator
20203752 Adjust Sensors T406 T-042 12/05/2018 Handling Breaker
20208793 Check 406 control board failure T-042 27/05/2018 Overheating Breaker
20247210 Tension Guy VSH-2 T-406 T-042 25/09/2018 Looseness Winds
10002277 Nitrogen Hose Failure T-003 27/04/2016 External Leakage Auxiliary Manifold Hose to Nitrogen
Medium Accumulator
20008914 Machine Smooth Bar T-003 8/08/2016 Deformation Mast
20020067 Balance Unit/ Add Hydra Oil T-003 16/08/2016 Unbalance Oil accumulator
20021197 repair mast T-003 13/09/2016 External Leakage Auxiliary Mast
Medium
20024944 VSH-2 T-548 Maintenance T-003 29/09/2016 External Leakage Auxiliary Pump retainer
Medium
20026818 Leak Hose T-003 29/09/2016 External Leakage Auxiliary Manifold Hose to Nitrogen
Medium Accumulator
20,029,204 Well Startup Instrumentation Sup- T-003 29/09/2016 Faulty Power/Voltage Battery
port
20030178 Correct Leak X Hose VSH-2 T-548 T-003 30/09/2016 External Leakage Auxiliary Acc oil hose
Medium
20031639 Correct oil leak o-ring maxtin T-003 12/10/2016 External Leakage Auxiliary Mast
T-548 Medium
20032632 Correct Leak X Hose VSH-2 T-548 T-003 14/10/2016 External Leakage Auxiliary Acc oil hose
Medium
20032633 Correct Node Failure—F/S Unit T-003 16/10/2016 Wear Socket
20033911 Change of engine T548 VSH-2 T-003 21/10/2016 Ground/Isolation Fault Electric motor
20,034,042 Change of rollers carrier unit T548 T-003 23/10/2016 Wear Rollers
20037594 Leaking ACC and B hoses T-003 28/10/2016 External Leakage Auxiliary Hose B oil
Medium
20039604 Leak Hose T-003 15/11/2016 External Leakage Auxiliary Manifold Hose to Nitrogen
Medium Accumulator

Source: Own elaboration. UT is the technical unit

13
Int J Syst Assur Eng Manag (December 2023) 14(6):2695–2719
Table 2  Average daily oil production per month Tibú field
Pumping system Wells number Total produc-
tion (BLS)
VSH-2 41 1,279.83
BM 46 1,041.92
PCP 17 706.97
BES 8 366.75
PL 6 328.08
FN 5 75.20
BH 1 9.25
Total 124 3,808.00
Source: Own elaboration
percentage of contribution to field production per SLA. It
can be seen that the VSH-2 mechanical oil extraction sys-
tems present a net production of 1,279.83 barrels per month
in 41 of the 113 extraction wells, contributing 33.6% of the
total crude oil generated in the Tibú field. Through the SAP
software, all the maintenance activities that are carried out
at the production facility of the field are managed, from the
underground equipment of the well, passing through the sur-
face equipment to the dispatch of crude oil in the collection
centers called stations. and transported through the pipeline
or tanker trucks.
Maintenance management through CMMS is developed
through transactions, where the tool’s users interact from
different areas, such as production, maintenance, projects,
and materials warehouse, as specified in the previous sec-
tions. To manage the maintenance of assets either through
strategies established by RCM or PMO products, manufac-
turer’s maintenance manuals, defect elimination process,
asset condition analysis, or requests generated by users to
meet specific requirements such as failures in equipment,
operational limitations, parameter deviations within the
framework of operating windows, non-maintenance require-
ments (improvements, thefts, environmental events, among
others), equipment diagnosis to establish a condition due to
some failure mechanism that the user has been observing
in the team and the incorporation and disincorporation of
assets.
On the other hand, to extract the information from the
database and thus be analyzed, it was necessary to consider
step one (user requirement) in the work order flow and
through the transition in the SAP software, which is It is
parameterized and conditioned by the search for the main-
tenance histories for all the technical locations (assets-wells)
of the VSH-2 units, in a period of four years in the Tibu
field. Then, the database obtained is exported to a spread-
sheet in Excel software for analysis, complementing the
information with reliability data, as shown in Table 3. From
2705
the database summary, it is possible to observe information
Contri-
chronologically on the failure events that occurred in the
bution VSH-2 units in the study period, where each event is regis-
(%) tered with a work order, under which the generated failure is
described, the asset (well) in which the event occurred, the
33.6
date of occurrence, as well as the failure modes manifested
27.4
and the maintainable item where occur. Note that the highest
18.6
frequency of failures in these systems occurred in the hoses,
9.6
so timely action was required to avoid maintenance actions
8.6
in these systems.
2.0
On the other hand, from the same database, information
0.2
was considered on the activities of the maintenance history
100
of the VSH-2 units and the losses of barrels of crude oil
generated by corrective maintenance according to the analy-
sis period (April 16, 2016 to April 25, 2016). In February
2020, was presented a total of 8,199.51 barrels of crude oil
lost due to corrective maintenance, and for our well under
study T-003, 552.6 barrels of crude oil losses were gener-
ated, representing 6.74% of the available total. Table SM1
from supplementary material shows in detail the losses of
barrels of crude oil per well for the 41 VSH-2 unit installed
in the Tibú field.
2.8 Data analyses
For the development of this investigation, the compilation
and/or collection of data reported in the SAP-ERP mainte-
nance management platform owned by Ecopetrol S.A. and
corresponding to both preventive and corrective mainte-
nance reports of the VSH-2 units, was taken into account.
RCA reports made for failures of critical origin presented in
the 41 VSH-2 units operating in the Tibú field will be con-
sidered, considering the information from the CBM group in
charge of preventive field maintenance. On the other hand,
considering the information collected from the VSH-2 units,
a documentary analysis of the annual impact of the failures
will be carried out, finding the deficiencies of these. This
analysis will be carried out in four years, updated in the pro-
ject time. The study considers is descriptive of an explora-
tory cross-section on the preventive maintenance activities
of the VSH-2 unit, which reflects a defined period of time
and the current state of operation of the hydraulic systems
under study based on the information on failures and data
collection in the ERP-SAP system in the period 2016–2020
and the area of influence of Ecopetrol in the Tibú field.
The data processing will be carried out with the purifica-
tion of the information downloaded from the SAP-ERP data-
base with the help of dynamic tables in Excel, considering
the nature of the variables that were measured as described
below: continuous variables, coefficient of variation, stand-
ard deviation; relationships between attributes; and univari-
ate linear regression analysis (Martínez Bencardino 2012).
Once the information was discretized from the ERP-SAP
13
2706 Int J Syst Assur Eng Manag (December 2023) 14(6):2695–2719

Table 3  Summary of SAP database of maintenance activities of the VSH-2 unit

Order Detail Technical Failure mode Maintainable Item
location

20022748 Balance unit VSH-2 T-020 Unbalance Nitrogen accumulator

20031091 Revision unit nodes T-020 Faulty Power/Voltage Battery
20144965 Electrical system review T-020 Wear Socket
20265191 Add Oil and Nitrogen T-020 Unbalance Nitrogen accumulator
20000941 Pao hot spot in main breaker T-042 Overheating Breaker
20023566 Repair accumulator T-042 Internal Leakage Nitrogen accumulator
20203752 Adjust sensors T-042 Handling Breaker
20208793 Check control board fault T-042 Overheating Breaker
20247210 Stress VSH-2 winds T-042 Looseness winds
10002277 Nitrogen hose failure T-003 External Leakage Auxiliary Medium Manifold Hose to Nitrogen Accumulator
20008914 Machine smooth bar T-003 Deformation Mast
20020067 Balance unit/add hydra oil T-003 Unbalance Oil Accumulator
20021197 Repair mast T-003 External Leakage Auxiliary Medium Mast
20024944 Manteinance VSH-2 T-003 External Leakage Auxiliary Medium Pump Retainer
20026818 Hose leak T-003 External Leakage Auxiliary Medium Manifold Hose to Nitrogen Accumulator
20029204 Well startup instrumentation support T-003 Faulty Power/Voltage Battery
20030178 Fix leak x VSH-2 hose T-003 External Leakage Auxiliary Medium ACC Oil Hose
20031639 Correct maxtin o-ring oil leak T-003 External Leakage Auxiliary Medium Mast
20032632 Fix leak x VSH-2 hose T-003 External Leakage Auxiliary Medium ACC Oil Hose
20032633 Fix fail nodes—unit f/s T-003 Wear Socket
20033911 VSH-2 engine change T-003 Ground/Isolation Fault Electric motor
20034042 Change of carrier rollers T-003 Wear rollers
20037594 Leaking ACC and B hoses T-003 External Leakage Auxiliary Medium Hose B Oil
20039604 Hose leak T-003 External Leakage Auxiliary Medium Manifold Hose to Nitrogen Accumulator

Source: Own elaboration

software, the information was processed for further analy-
sis. The results obtained from this analysis will allow us to
identify which of the elements of the pumping system under
study should be prioritized for redesign, in turn allowing us
to propose redesigning the preventive maintenance method-
ology and strategies in the petroleum mechanical pumping
units.
3 Results and discussions
3.1 Frequency of failures
Considering the previous information based on losses
and the frequency of occurrence of failures in the VSH-2
– T-003 unit. The redesign is carried out as an improve-
ment and optimization of the asset in search of reducing
losses of barrels of crude oil, reducing the failure rate,
increasing reliability, availability and reducing resources
due to repetitive failures in the maintainable item. The
ISO 14224:2016 standard for the collection and exchange
of reliability and maintenance data for equipment in the
oil, petrochemical, and natural gas industry, in chapter 9
of recommended data for equipment, failures, and main-
tenance, in numeral 5 of data of failure guides the forms
and combinations of cross-information necessary for the
classification and characterization of asset failure param-
eters such as failure date, failure mode, failure mechanism,
cause of failure, maintainable item, failure impact, among
others. With the analysis of the information, it was pos-
sible to identify the recurrence of failure and the asset’s
life cycle. In 4 years of the information analysis obtained
in the database, it was determined that the most recur-
rent failure modes in the 41 VSH-2 units located in the
41 T-003 wells are shown in Table 4. shows the appear-
ance of 28 failure modes that accumulated 605 failures,
which generated 8,199.5 losses in the production of bar-
rels of crude. Take into account that the recurring failure
modes are concentrated in the unbalance (141 trips), aux-
iliary medium external leakage (129 trips), faulty power/
voltage (71 trips), and overheating (63 trips) modes for a
total of 7,070 barrels of losses of barrels of crude oil, con-
sidering only this type of units for the mechanical extrac-
tion of crude oil in the Tibú field.

13
Int J Syst Assur Eng Manag (December 2023) 14(6):2695–2719 2707

Table 4  Cumulative failure Failure modes Trips Losses of barrels of Trips (%) Losses of bar-
modes in VSH-2 units crude oil (BOPD) rels of crude oil
(%)

Unbalance 141 1,008.8 23.31 12.30

Leak Ext Med. Aux 129 5,514.3 21.32 67.25
Default P/T 71 314.6 11.74 3.84
Overheating 63 232.0 10.41 2.83
Sulfation 40 213.1 6.61 2.60
Wear 40 283.0 6.61 3.45
Looseness 17 41.3 2.81 0.50
Abnormal Reading Ins 16 6.2 2.64 0.08
No signal 14 43.0 2.31 0.52
Rip 11 32.6 1.82 0.40
Saturation 9 35.0 1.49 0.43
Internal Leakage 8 266.4 1.32 3.25
Insulation Failure 7 49.5 1.16 0.60
Overcurrent 6 18.2 0.99 0.22
Fatigue 4 13.9 0.66 0.17
Fracture 4 8.2 0.66 0.10
Bad signal 4 14.2 0.66 0.17
Communications Failure 3 23.3 0.50 0.28
Crystallization 3 3.7 0.50 0.05
Pollution 3 4.7 0.50 0.06
Jamming 3 6.0 0.50 0.07
Short circuit 2 14.1 0.33 0.17
Out of Adjustment 2 0.8 0.33 0.01
Facility 1 1.6 0.17 0.02
Handling 1 1.5 0.17 0.02
Control Failure 1 12.2 0.17 0.15
Degradation 1 6.4 0.17 0.08
Deformation 1 30.8 0.17 0.38
Total 605 8,199.5 100% 100%

Source: Own elaboration

3.2 3.2. Pareto charts for the frequency of failures
in the VSH‑2 unit
In the Pareto failure modes of the VSH-2 unit shown in
Fig. 7, it is evident that in two failure modes, imbalance
and auxiliary medium external leakage represented 44.6%
of the failures presented in the VSH-2 units. The remaining
26 failure modes present 55.4% of the total failures for the
mechanical extraction of crude oil.
he Pareto analysis of oil barrel losses by failure modes
in the VSH-2 unit shown in Fig. 8 shows that two failure
modes (auxiliary medium external leakage and imbalance)
represent 79.5% of the oil barrel losses presented in the
mechanical oil extraction units, the remaining 26 failure
modes present 21.5% of the total losses of barrels of crude.
According to the Pareto figure for failure modes and
losses of barrels of crude oil, the auxiliary medium external
leakage failure mode is where the greatest production losses
are concentrated and one of the two modes with the highest
frequency of appearance around the events in the VSH-2
units for the mechanical extraction of oil. Subsequently, a
detailed approach was carried out on the historical informa-
tion obtained from the unit. In this way, two failure mode
matrices versus wells (equipment) were generated, with a
crude loss greater than one hundred (100) barrels and events
of failures greater than 15 trips, as shown in Table 5. Note
that these data are supported by Figs. 7 and 8.
In this way, in Fig. 9, it can be seen that 20 pieces of
equipment out of the 41 VSH-2 units installed presently 88%
of the total losses of crude barrels in these units, manifested
in seven (7) failure modes of the 28 observed.
In the same way, wells T-001, T-015, T-003, and T-012
generated 58% of the losses of crude barrels of the twenty
(20) wells registered in Table 6. Similarly, on these four (4)

13
2708
Fig. 7  Pareto VSH-2 failure
modes by trips. Source: Own
elaboration
Fig. 8  Pareto losses of barrels
of crude due to VSH-2 units
failure mode. Source: Own
elaboration
wells mentioned above, the auxiliary average external leak-
age and imbalance failure modes represent 96% of the loss
of barrels of crude oil. Likewise, it can be seen that (19)
equipment of the 41 installed VSH-2 units presents 56% of
the total failures in these units, manifested in eight (8) failure
modes of the 28 observed. Similarly, wells T-003, T-021,
T-035, and T-012 presented 32% of the failures. Similarly,
on these four (4) wells mentioned above, the auxiliary aver-
age external leakage and imbalance failure modes represent
70% of the failures.
On the other hand, in Table 6 it can be seen that T-003
well is the one that presented the most failure with the aux-
iliary external leak failure mode, and well T-001, is the
one that presented the highest losses of barrels of oil. Note
that crude oil concentrated in three (3) events due to imbal-
ance and five (5) due to auxiliary average external leakage.
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Int J Syst Assur Eng Manag (December 2023) 14(6):2695–2719
Consequently, from the matrices of Tables 3 and 5, in six
(6) wells (T-001, T-015, T-003, T-012 Matrix of failure
modes versus equipment, with losses of crude oil greater
than 100 barrels T-012, T-021 and T035), of the 41 VSH-2
units installed, the greatest losses of barrels of crude oil
were concentrated, generated by the auxiliary external leak
and imbalance failure modes, being the T-001 wells with the
highest deferred in 8 failure events and well T-003 with the
highest number of auxiliary external leakage mode failure
events.
Due to the above, the external leakage failure mode aux-
iliary medium and imbalance were taken as a case study as
bad sources in the process. In the analysis carried out on
the imbalance failure mode, it is observed that the losses
of barrels of crude are concentrated in three maintainable
items, with failures in the nitrogen accumulator and oil
Int J Syst Assur Eng Manag (December 2023) 14(6):2695–2719 2709

Table 5  Matrix of failure Equipment Auxiliary Unbalance Faulty Wear Internal Overheating Sulfation Total
modes in the equipment, with medium external Power/ Leakage
losses of crude oil greater than leakage Voltage
100 BLS
T-001 2,295 10 0 0 0 2 5 2,312
T-015 343 494 38 0 3 13 0 891
T-003 484 3 12 8 0 3 2 512
T-012 318 133 18 65 0 0 0 534
T-018 267 0 17 0 0 5 33 322
T-019 225 35 31 12 7 0 7 317
T-020 266 19 11 2 0 0 0 298
T-011 53 15 0 0 202 29 1 300
T-021 164 29 24 0 0 4 48 269
T-024 6 31 7 81 33 10 37 205
T-028 201 10 8 2 0 2 16 239
T-031 133 29 3 0 0 0 0 165
T-034 56 2 49 2 0 7 3 119
T-007 50 0 14 52 0 0 8 124
T-008 116 1 2 0 0 2 0 121
T-035 41 57 2 0 11 3 2 116
T-045 66 5 0 0 0 21 17 109
T-046 39 21 0 9 0 12 6 87
T-047 88 0 12 0 0 0 0 100
T-048 90 3 3 0 0 0 0 96
Total 5,301 897 251 233 256 113 185 7,236

Source: Own elaboration

600 120% the useful life of soft elements such as floating piston seals
(ring) that separate nitrogen and oil, and the oil accumulator
500 100%
maintainable item due to leaks, in connections of accesso-
400 Diferida 80% ries, instrumentation, and measurement equipment, generat-
Failure %

Pareto ing losses of 62.9% in barrels of crude concerning the mast

Item

300
200
100
0 0%
Acumulador
Nitrogeno
Acumulador Aceite Cilindro Acumulador
Failure mode
Fig. 9  Pareto Analysis Failure Mode Imbalance by Maintainable
Item. Source: Own elaboration
accumulator being the most significant, with 99% of the
losses, as shown in Fig. 10. Table 7 shows that 68% of the
losses of barrels of Crude oil is concentrated in wells T015,
T012, T035, and T072, with wells T015 and T012 being the
ones with the highest crude oil losses due to failure in the
nitrogen accumulator and oil accumulator.
The unbalance failures related to the nitrogen accumu-
lator maintainable item are generated by compliance with
60%
mainly, as observed in Table 8.
40% In the analysis carried out on the auxiliary medium exter-
nal leak failure mode (external lubricant, hydraulic and
20%
nitrogen leaks), it is identified that the mast and hose com-
ponents from Manifold to nitrogen accumulator, according
to Pareto, represent 51.2% of failures and 80.8% of the losses
of barrels of production crude being critical components
due to the high incidence of losses due to the maintenance
to be carried out and therefore the affectation of the system
in terms of maintainability, as shown in Fig. 10.
From the well’s vs maintainable items due to crude
oil losses and failure events, it is identified that the well
with the highest barrel losses is T-001, with 2,285 bar-
rels of crude for a single failure event presented in the
unit’s mast component (See Table SM2 and Table SM3).
Likewise, the maintainable items mast and hose Manifold
nitrogen accumulator is where the greatest losses of bar-
rels of crude oil are concentrated at 80% and the greatest
failure events with 51% of the auxiliary medium external
leakage mode. Finally, well T-003 is the second well with

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2710 Int J Syst Assur Eng Manag (December 2023) 14(6):2695–2719

Table 6  Failure modes versus equipment, with trip failure events greater than 15 events
Equipment Unbalance Auxiliary medium Defective Overheating Sulfation Wear Looseness Lecture error Total
external leakage Power/Voltage

T-003 4 24 4 2 2 4 1 0 41
T-024 7 1 2 2 3 2 1 1 19
T-021 8 6 4 1 3 0 0 1 23
T-012 10 7 2 0 0 4 0 2 25
T-035 15 4 1 1 1 0 0 0 22
T-019 8 2 5 0 1 3 0 0 19
T-015 3 3 4 5 0 0 3 1 19
T-020 4 12 1 1 0 1 1 0 20
T-045 3 5 0 6 3 0 0 0 17
T-018 0 4 3 3 3 0 0 0 13
T-034 1 3 3 2 1 1 1 0 12
T-105 5 1 3 0 1 0 1 1 12
T-072 2 4 4 6 0 0 0 0 16
T-001 3 5 1 2 3 0 2 0 16
T-046 3 3 0 2 2 3 0 0 13
T-007 0 5 2 0 1 4 0 1 13
T-075 7 0 0 2 2 1 1 0 13
T-0112 9 1 0 2 0 2 0 1 15
T-0113 4 0 3 1 2 2 0 0 12
Total 96 90 42 38 28 27 11 8 340

Source: Own elaboration

Fig. 10  Pareto by compo-

nents in the VSH-2 unit of the
external leakage failure mode
auxiliary means. Source: Own
elaboration

the highest losses (442 BLS), concentrated in the mast
and nitrogen accumulator manifold hose for a total of 15
failures, where the maintainable item nitrogen accumula-
tor manifold hose presented the highest number of failure
events (8 failures) (S. Li et al. 2021).
3.3 Higher crude oil losses due to fault events.
Considering the information extracted in the previous
Tables, the following list of bad sources are derived, where

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Int J Syst Assur Eng Manag (December 2023) 14(6):2695–2719 2711

Table 7  Well vs maintainable item of imbalance failure mode or ring or floating piston that makes the separation
Maintainable item Nitrogen Oil Accu- Accumula- Total
between nitrogen and oil and of the maintainable
accumulator mulator tor Cylinder item oil accumulator due to leaks. In accessory con-
nections, instrumentation, and measurement equip-
T-015 249.7 244 0 493.7
ment.
T-012 107.6 26 0 133.6
Auxiliary medium external leak failure mode.
T-035 16.0 41 0 57
The events are concentrated in the mast and hose
T-072 1.45 0 2.9 4.35
Manifold nitrogen accumulator. The failures of the
Total 374.75 311 2.9 688.65
mast maintainable item and the inadequate sources
Source: Own elaboration in point one is concentrated in hydraulic oil leaks
in graphed connections (fatigue and exposure to the
environment) and in soft elements for quick coupling
the most significant crude oil losses and the greatest num- of hoses that reach the mast.
ber of failure events were concentrated:
Well T-001 with higher losses of barrels of crude oil.
3.4 T‑003 well oil with major failure events and loss
98.8% of the total losses of barrels of crude occurred
of barrels of crude oil.
due to a failure event in the mast, which presented a
leak of hydraulic oil through retainers that make a seal
For the frequency of failure events that generated the
with the piston, but because there were no spare parts
most significant loss of barrels of crude, it was possible to
in the area of warehouse or storage delayed the start-
establish that the Manifold hose component to the nitrogen
up of the equipment, this event was solved with the
accumulator presented 33 failure events (Trips) for a total
change or replacement of the retainers and establish-
of 983.1 of barrel losses of crude oil in 11 wells where the
ment of minimums and maximums.
failure occurred, as shown in Table 9. In this way, it was
Imbalance failure mode where the events were
possible to observe that the T-003 well was the one that
concentrated in the oil accumulator and the nitro‑
presented the most failure events and the greatest losses of
gen accumulator. Unbalance failures related to the
barrels of crude oil, for a total of 8 trips and 286.21 barrels
nitrogen accumulator are generated by compliance
of crude oil barrel losses.
with the useful life of soft elements such as seals

Table 8  Loss of crude oil and Component Trips Losses of barrels of Trips (%) Losses of bar-
failures Trip by components of crude oil (BOPD) rels of crude oil
the VSH-2 unit of the auxiliary (%)
medium external leakage mode
Mast 33 3,470.9 25.6 62.9
Manifold Hose to Nitrogen Accumulator 33 983.1 25.6 17.8
Pump Retainer 20 309.1 15.5 5.6
ACC Oil Hose 9 29.9 7.0 0.5
Pipette Hose to Nitrogen Manifold 7 245.0 5.4 4.4
Hose B Oil 5 42.1 3.9 0.8
AB Oil Hose 4 5.2 3.1 0.1
Oring 4 10.7 3.1 0.2
3/8 Hose to Pump-Oil 3 8.9 2.3 0.2
Hose to Mast Oil 2 29.1 1.6 0.5
Pressure indicator 2 13.4 1.6 0.2
Mast Cylinder 2 328.4 1.6 6.0
Nitrogen accumulator 2 13.9 1.6 0.3
Hose B to Mast Oil 1 15.0 0.8 0.3
Tubing Manifold to Nitrogen Accumulator 1 4.3 0.8 0.1
Hose Accumulator P/N Oil 1 5.4 0.8 0.1
Total 129 5,514.3 100 100%

Source: Own elaboration

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2712 Int J Syst Assur Eng Manag (December 2023) 14(6):2695–2719

Table 9  Failure events in VSH-2 units Table 11  Failure modes of T-003 well
Producer Well Losses of barrels of crude oil Trips Component Trips %
(BLS)
Manifold Hose to Nitrogen Accumu- 8 33.3
T-003 286.21 8 lator
T-004 74.03 4 Mast 7 29.2
T-001 31.80 3 Pump Retainer 3 12.5
T-015 57.00 3 ACC Oil Hose 3 12.5
T-016 139.00 3 Hose B Oil 2 8.3
T-032 51.00 2 Nitrogen accumulator 1 4.2
T-017 31.00 2
Source: Own elaboration
T-020 39.03 2
T-047 116.00 2
T-051 68.00 2
T-056 90.00 2 Table 12  Mean time between failures of the VSH-2 unit

Source: Own elaboration Well oil Trips MTBF (Hours)

T-003 8 2,628
T-004 4 8,460
Table 10  Well oil failure modes T-003
T-001 3 11,280
Failure Mode Trips % T-015 3 11,280
T-016 3 11,280
External Leakage Auxiliary Medium 24 51.1
T-032 2 16,920
Wear 4 8.5
T-017 2 16,920
Unbalance 4 8.5
T-020 2 16,920
Faulty Power/Voltage 4 8.5
T-047 2 16,920
Ground/Isolation Fault 2 4.3
T-051 2 16,920
Sulfation 2 4.3
T-056 2 16,920
Overheating 2 4.3
Saturation 1 2.1 Source: Own elaboration
Looseness 1 2.1
Deformation 1 2.1
Overcurrent 1 2.1 frequency of trips occurred, considering a mean time
Rip 1 2.1 between failures of 2,628 h. It is highly frequent compared
Source: Own elaboration to the other oil-producing wells considering the VSH-2
unit for the good oil with failure mode external leak aux-
iliary means related to the component hose Manifold to the
3.5 Punctual analysis of T‑003 well. nitrogen accumulator. Commonly, 70% of the mean time
between failures is taken to program the pertinent meas-
In the failure modes observed in well T-003, the auxiliary urements that allow knowing the state of the equipment
medium external leakage mode represents 51.1% of 47 total and, in this way, having the necessary time to plan and
failures presented in the asset, as observed in Table 10. schedule the activities that correct the potential failure. On
From the auxiliary medium external leak failure mode in the other hand, MTBF is applicable to individual teams.
Table 10, where 24 failure events occurred, the component Notice that a frequent mistake is applying this indicator to
that presented the most trips was the Manifold hose to the a group of teams and calculating a global average (Holtz
nitrogen accumulator, representing 1/3 of the failures, as can & Werner 1990).
be seen in Table 11. Considering the history of failures, the times between
failures (TBF) were established by failure, which can be
3.6 Results of mean times between failures. seen in Table 13. In this way, it was determined that well
oil T-003 presented an MTBF of 2,628 h during the study
In Table 12, the MTBF obtained by calculation can be period. Therefore, this oil has the shortest time between
observed for the period of analysis of the information con- failures, adding that the times between failures were con-
sidered from the SAP software (April 16, 2016 to Febru- cise compared to the other faults generated in the same
ary 25, 2020). For the case of Well T-003, the highest well.

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Int J Syst Assur Eng Manag (December 2023) 14(6):2695–2719 2713

Table 13  History of failures for well oil T-003 On the other hand, for the calculation of the first
Failure description Failure number TBF failure event, the following value was obtained
­R(t) = 1-F(t) = 1-(1/8) = 0.875. This value indicates that the
Nitrogen Hoses Failure 1 3 probability of non-failure ­R(t) or Reliability is 87.5% for the
Nitrogen Leak in Hoses 2 3,720 first failure event, and the probability of failure ­F(t) is 12.5%
Leak Hose 3 1,128 for the first failure event of the VSH-2 unit. This way, the
Leak Hose 4 1,608 calculation is made for the remaining events considering
Leak Hose 5 360 Table 14. On the other hand, the value of R ­ (t) was determined
Nitrogen Hose Failure 6 528 using Eq. 9 of the linear regression of the exponential distri-
Leak Hose 7 1,824 bution, summarizing the results in Table 15.
Nitrogen Hose Failure 8 11,856 With the Ln(R(t)) value, was possible to obtain the plot
Source: Own elaboration of the data summarized in Table 15 considering each value
of Ln(R(t)), as is shown in Fig. 11. Note that, for purposes of
information analysis, a trend line governed by the expression
Table 14  Calculation of R
­ (t) from the failure history (Y = -0.3052X + 0.3593) was drawn with a value of correla-
Detail Failure Accumu- F(t) R(t)
tion coefficient of the data (­ R2) of 0.9269, interpreting that
lated Failure 92.69% of the data fit the exponential distribution model,
taking into account that the closer the R ­ 2 is to 100%, the
Nitrogen hoses 1 1 0.125 0.875
model explains all the variability of the response data around
Nitrogen leak in Hose 1 2 0.25 0.75
its mean.
Leak Hose 1 3 0.375 0.625
In Table 16, the calculation of ­R(t) of the calculated
Leak Hose 1 4 0.5 0.5
failure history can be observed considering that Reliabil-
Leak Hose 1 5 0.625 0.375
ity = 1-F(t) = Probability of non-Failure. As evidenced, a total
Nitrogen Hose Failure 1 6 0.75 0.25
of 8 failures were presented for elements related to the hose;
Leak Hose 1 7 0.875 0.125
this result indicates that the probability of non-failure ­R(t) or
Nitrogen Hoses Failure 1 8 1 0
Reliability is 87.5% for the first failure event and the prob-
Total failures 8 – – –
ability of failure ­F(t) is 12.5% for the first failure event.
Source: Own elaboration Considering the above, the calculation is made for the
remaining failure events, determining the value of R ­ (t),
through Eq. 10 of the linear regression of the Weibull distri-
3.7 Results of statistical distributions bution of 2 parameters, summarizing the results in Table 17.
For the development of the pertinent calculations, the natu-
Table 14 shows the calculation of R ­ (t) of the failure his- ral logarithm of the natural logarithm of (1/R(t)) was deter-
tory. As observed, the element that presented the highest mined for each one of the failure events. Note that the natural
failure frequency was the manifold hose to the nitrogen logarithm was applied to each event’s time between failures
accumulator, which presented a failure frequency in well Ln(TBF).
oil T-003 of 2,628 h during the study period. Once determined the Ln{Ln(1/(R(t))} and Ln(TBF) val-
ues, the data obtained in Table 17 were plotted as shown

Table 15  Calculation of Ln R
­ (t) Detail Failure TBF Accumulated F(t) R(t) Ln(R(t))
of a failure event Failure

Nitrogen Hoses Failure 1 3 1 0.125 0.875 -0.13353139

Nitrogen leak in Hose 1 360 2 0.25 0.75 -0.28768207
Leak Hose 1 528 3 0.375 0.625 -0.47000363
Leak Hose 1 1,128 4 0.5 0.5 -0.69314718
Leak Hose 1 1,608 5 0.625 0.375 -0.98082925
Nitrogen Hose Failure 1 1,824 6 0.75 0.25 -1.38629436
Leak Hose 1 3,720 7 0.875 0.125 -2.07944154
Nitrogen Hoses Failure 1 11,856 8 1 0 0
Total failures 8 – – – – –

Source: Own elaboration

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2714 Int J Syst Assur Eng Manag (December 2023) 14(6):2695–2719

Fig. 11  Fit Distribution Expo- 0.5

nential Hypothesis. Source:
y = -0,3052x + 0,3593
Own elaboration 0 R² = 0,9269

-0.5

Ln(Ln(1/R(t) )
-1

-1.5

-2

-2.5
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Ln(TBF)

Table 16  Calculation of R
­ (t) from the failure history
Failure type
Nitrogen Hoses Failure
Nitrogen Leak in Hoses
Leak Hose
Leak Hose
Leak Hose
Nitrogen Hose Failure
Leak Hose
Nitrogen Hoses Failure
Total Failures
Source: Own elaboration
Failure F(t) (%)
amount
1 0.125
1 0.25
1 0.375
1 0.50
1 0.625
1 0.75
1 0.875
1 1
8 –
mean. When comparing the correlation coefficient values
R(t) (%)
between the analyzed data ­(R2) of each distribution, it was
observed that the exponential hypothesis distribution is
higher (92.69%) and closer to 100% than the value of R ­ 2 for
0.875 the 2-parameter Weibull distribution of (81.52%).
0.75
In the previous results, the model that best fits the data is
0.625
the exponential Weibull distribution (­ R2 = 92.69%); there-
0.50
fore, this was used to analyze and interpret the data. In this
0.375
way, from the data obtained from TBF and the Ln(R(t)) of
0.25
the exponential distribution, it was possible to calculate the
0.125
failure rate (ℷ) and recalculate the mean time between fail-
0
ures (MTBF) using the same Excel software, for the deter-
–
mination of the slope of the available data of TBF and of
the Ln(R(t)) according to the data obtained in Table 3. The
failure rate (ℷ) was calculated using Eq. 10.

in Fig. 12. Note that, for information analysis purposes, a
trend line governed by the expression (Y = 0.3584X-2.699)
was plotted with a value of correlation coefficient of the
data ­(R2) of 0.8152, interpreting that 81.52% of the data
fit the Weibull distribution model of 2 parameters, taking
into account that the closer the ­R2 is to 100%, the model
explains all the variability of the response data around its
3.8 Hose reliability analysis before and after redesign
For the modeling of the reliability of the system, the
aspects described below were considered.: F ­ (t) = DISTR.
EXP.N (X, ℷ, true), X = time in hours, ℷ = 0.00053883
failure/h and ­R(t) = 1-F(t). Since the redesign of the VSH-2
unit was carried out, with the change from the hose to

Table 17  Calculation of Failure type Failure TBF Accu- F(t) R(t) Ln(TBF) Ln{Ln(1/R(t)}
Ln{Ln(1/(R(t))} from the time amount mulated
between failures Failure

Nitrogen Hoses Failure 1 3 1 0.125 0.875 1.098 −2.0134

Nitrogen Leak in Hoses 1 360 2 0.25 0.75 5.886 −1.2458
Leak Hose 1 528 3 0.375 0.625 6.2690 −0.7550
Leak Hose 1 1,128 4 0.50 0.50 7.0282 −0.3665
Leak Hose 1 1,608 5 0.625 0.375 7.3827 −0.0193
Nitrogen Hoses Failure 1 1,824 6 0.75 0.25 7.5087 0.3266
Leak Hose 1 3,720 7 0.875 0.125 8.2214 0.7320
Nitrogen Hoses Failure 1 11,856 8 1 0 9.3805 0

Source: Own elaboration

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Int J Syst Assur Eng Manag (December 2023) 14(6):2695–2719 2715

Fig. 12  Two-Parameter 1.0

Weibull Hypothesis Distribution
Fit. Source: Own elaboration 0.5

0.0

Ln(Ln(1/R(t))
-0.5

-1.0 y = 0,3584x - 2,699

R² = 0,8152
-1.5

-2.0

-2.5
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Ln(TBF)

Tubing until today, there has not been any event of fail- Table 18  Fraction of R(t) calculation for X(time) before and after
ure in the Tubing component for the connection of the redesign
Manifold to the nitrogen accumulator due to the auxiliary Time(h) Failure probability ­F(t)—(%) Reliability ­R(t)—with
means external leak failure. Considering the above and redesign—(%)
for the purposes of the statistical analysis on the system’s Before After Before After
reliability using the exponential distribution after applying
the redesign, the MTBF is 17,352 h which goes from Feb- 0 0.0 0 100.0 100
ruary 25, 2020 to February 17, 2022. Therefore, once the 100 5.2 1 94.8 99
formula for calculating the parameter ℷ is applied, the fol- 200 10.2 1 89.8 99
lowing is obtained: ℷ = 1/MTBF = 1/17,352 h = 0.0000576 300 14.9 2 85.1 98
failures/h. It is also, using F ­ (t): DISTR.EXP.N (X, ℷ, 400 19.4 2 80.6 98
true) considering that X = time in an hour and that 500 23.6 3 76.4 97
ℷ = 0.0000576 failure/hour and ­R(t): 1-F(t), finding that the 600 27.6 3 72.4 97
reliability of the redesign is greater than 90% compared 700 31.4 4 68.6 96
when the Manifold hose was used. In this way, Table 18 800 35.0 5 65.0 95
summarizes a fraction of the calculation of ­R(t) before and 900 38.4 5 61.6 95
after redesign. It’s important to mention that in Fig. 7 a 1,000 41.7 6 58.3 94
representation of before and after redesign its presented 1,100 44.7 6 55.3 94
to evidence the changes made on the oil extraction unit 1,200 47.6 7 52.4 93
VHS-2. 1,300 50.4 7 49.6 93
Plotting the data in the ­R(t) column against time, the 1,400 53.0 8 47.0 92
reliability behavior of the component is obtained to before 1,500 55.4 8 44.6 92
and after redesign, as is shown in Fig. 13. Note that the 1,600 57.8 9 42.2 91
reliability of the system before the redesign is 30%, given 1,700 60.0 9 40.0 91
the frequency of failures presented by the system about 1,800 62.1 10 37.9 90
the Manifold hose to the nitrogen accumulator due to the 1,900 64.1 10 35.9 90
external leak failure mode auxiliary medium, establishing 2,000 66.0 11 34.0 89
the following: Source: Own elaboration

• For the time equal to 0 h, the reliability is 100%, and the

probability of failure is 0%.
• At 1,300 working hours, reliability is reduced by 50%.
• When the MTBF time of 1,855 h is reached, the reli-
ability has been reduced to 38%, and the probability of
failure is 62%.
• Reliability is reduced to 0% when 9,900 working hours
are reached.
Considering the above aspects, if a reliability-based
maintenance strategy had been considered during the
maintenance plan and considering the maintenance poli-
cies when the MTBF is reached (1,855 h =  ~ 77 days of
operation), the change the component before this period
of time to reduce the risk of failure for an MTBF of 62%.

13
2716
Fig. 13  Reliability comparison 100%
before vs after the redesign. 90% 90%
Source: Own elaboration
80%
Reliability (%)
70%
60%
50%
40%
MTBF: 17,352 h
30%
30%
20%
10%
0%
However, note that the reliability of the system after the
redesign is 90%, given the significant reduction in the fre-
quency of failures presented by the system related to the
Manifold hose to the nitrogen accumulator due to the exter-
nal leak failure mode auxiliary medium, establishing the
following relevant aspects regarding the reliability analysis:
• For the time equal to 0 h, the reliability is 100%, and the
probability of failure is 0%.
• At 11,900 h, reliability has been reduced by 50%.
• By the time the MTBF time of 17,352 h is reached, the
reliability has been reduced to 38%, and the probability
of failure is 62%.
• Reliability is reduced to 0% when 92,000 working hours
are reached.
On the other hand, the reliabilities of the hose compo-
nents before and after the system redesign were compared
to the Manifold hose to the nitrogen accumulator. From this
reliability modeling comparison, it can be stated that:
• When the MTBF of 1,855 h has been reached for the hose
component, where the reliability is 38%, for the Tubing,
it is around 90%. Likewise, the reliability increased with
the change of this component for the time of 1,855 h of
use by 52%, giving the confidence that it can continue
operating without indication of alerts for the achievement
of spare parts and resources because the risk of probabil-
ity of failure low with only 10%.
• For the time equal to 9,900 h, where the reliability for
the hose component is 0%, for the Tubing it is 57% with
a risk of failure of 43%.
• A failure event is expected for the Tubing component in
the 92,000 h of operation.
• It is required to avoid taking the Tubing component to
failure, is recommended to schedule its change when the
risk of failure reaches 80% as a fair value in the mainte-
nance department, that is, after 28,000 working hours.
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Int J Syst Assur Eng Manag (December 2023) 14(6):2695–2719
After redesign
R(t) Aplicado el rediseño
Before
R(t) Antes delredesign
rediseño
Hours
• With the redesign applied, it can be determined under the
Tubing reliability model that, for the lifetime of 92,000 h,
the materialization of 22 hose failures was avoided if the
redesign had not been applied; since, for the study period
the time in hours of 33,840 h there were eight events of
failures in the hoses.
Considering failure characteristics, such as the hidden or
evident nature of the failure modes, together with the occur-
rence of the failure within the bathtub curve, considering
detailed analysis of the information, correct maintenance
strategies could be established, such as condition-based,
fixed-time, run-to-failure or redesign fault detection intervals
as carried out in this research paper. Then maintenance tasks
are developed as a mitigation against each failure mode.
3.9 Economic evaluation of the redesign
implementation
Table 19 shows the costs generated by the eight failures of
the Manifold hose to the nitrogen accumulator during the
study period, compared to the cost of implementing the
redesign. Also contrasting with the reliability Figures pre-
viously obtained, it is established that on average one (1)
hose failure costs $8,650,937 COP (Colombian Pesos), with
the implementation of the redesign expenses of more than
$190,320,619 million of Colombian Pesos are avoided. For
the 22 estimated failures that were reduced for the Tubing
lifetime of 92,000 h, as observed in Fig. 13. Before apply-
ing the redesign, whose implementation cost $2,011,950
COP, expenses of up to $69,207,498 had been generated.
COP for the eight failures of the Manifold hose component.
It is important to consider that with the application of the
redesign, there have not yet been any failures of the Tubing
component; therefore, it can be indicated that the total ben-
efit until the Tubing component fails (estimated at 92,000
h), the benefit would be $257,517,167 COP.
Int J Syst Assur Eng Manag (December 2023) 14(6):2695–2719
Table 19  Economic benefit on the redesign implementation
Item Before Redesign After Redesign
Losses of barrels of crude $60.103.750,00 $-
due to non-production
Labor $3.423.748,00 $ 300.000,00
Materials $ 880.000,00 $ 1.111.950,00
Nitrogen $ 4.800.000,00 $ 600.000,00
Total $ 69.207.498,00 $ 2.011.950,00
Profit = (losses-redesign) $ 67.195.548,00
Source: Own elaboration
On the other hand, Surjaatmadja et al., (2019) men-
tion that equipment performance is one of the main factors
responsible for the economical delivery of effective stimu-
lation treatments according to design. Therefore, efficiency
in delivery is the top priority for well oil service equip-
ment designers and maintainers. For this reason, equipment
redesign is occurring across the industry, and new system
offerings promise greater operating efficiencies; some have
already proven successful, and others are still being devel-
oped to identify or provide efficiency-enhancing solutions
(Pilar Lambán et al. 2022). It is important to mention that
the potential costs of the redesign, the possible losses, and
the downtime in the operation of the platform are increased
but for a unique and reduced cost compared to the frequency
of failure of the VSH-2 unit by hose without the redesign
(Conceição et al. 2012). According to the data and informa-
tion analyzed, the methodology for analyzing information is
documentary-experimental applied. It is important to men-
tion that the study is reliable. The data analysis showed how
real it was to carry out said research project based on design
reliability and the effectiveness of the redesign application
after parameterizing the information.
3.10 Implications on industry/practitioners/
researchers/society
A redesign of a mechanical extraction oil machine can have
significant implications for various stakeholders, including
industry practitioners, researchers, and society at large. Here
are some potential implications:
From the industry perspective the redesigned oil extrac-
tion machine can be increased efficiency. A could lead to
higher extraction rates, reducing wastage and maximizing oil
yield. This would benefit the oil industry by optimizing pro-
duction processes and improving profitability. In the same
way, greater efficiency may lead to lower production costs,
making oil extraction more cost-effective for companies and
potentially reducing oil prices for consumers, obtaining a
cost reduction. However, companies that adopt the rede-
signed machine early on may gain a competitive edge in the
2717
market by producing higher-quality oil more efficiently than
their competitors.
On the other hand, a more efficient and automated extrac-
tion machine could reduce the physical workload and expo-
sure to harmful substances for workers, enhancing safety
and overall work conditions. Operators of the redesigned
machine may require additional training to handle the new
technology, providing an opportunity for skill development
and specialization.
The redesign process can drive research and innovation
in mechanical engineering and related fields, leading to new
discoveries and advancements in oil extraction technology.
Also, researchers can gain insights into the intricacies of
oil extraction processes, leading to a deeper understanding
of the underlying principles and potential improvements in
other related industries.
For the society the redesigned machine is more energy-
efficient and environmentally friendly, it can lead to a
reduced carbon footprint and less environmental degradation
associated with oil extraction. However, higher oil extrac-
tion efficiency means less waste and resource consumption,
which can contribute to sustainable resource management.
Also, an improved oil extraction process could boost the
economy through increased oil production, reduced import
reliance, and job creation in the manufacturing and related
sectors.
Overall, the redesign of a mechanical oil extraction
machine has the potential to drive positive changes across
various sectors, benefiting industries, practitioners, research-
ers, and society by improving efficiency, safety, and envi-
ronmental sustainability. However, it’s crucial to ensure that
any new technology is thoroughly tested, meets industry
standards, and is implemented responsibly to maximize its
positive impact.
4 Conclusions
Efficient and effective asset management strategies are
achieved by allocating resources such as labor, tools, and
materials necessary to execute the maintenance task. Main-
tenance tasks are grouped based on maintenance time inter-
vals, and the resulting maintenance plans are entered into the
computerized maintenance management system (CMMS),
using SAP software, to manage the maintenance process and
perform a follow-up of the implementation of maintenance
tasks in the field. Maintenance time intervals are assigned
primarily based on current industry practices and may be
qualitative nature.
After observing the study period and the components
analyzed for their recurring failures, they are led to a
corrective maintenance strategy, without forgetting that
the company Ecopetrol in its maintainability policies, it
13
2718
carries out and bases its strategies and maintenance plans
on the information provided by the supplier of equipment
to be used in their projects, additionally the experience
in the daily activities of the field. From all of the above,
it can be deduced that in two failure modes, unbalance
and auxiliary medium external leakage, 44.6% of the fail-
ures presented in the artificial lift systems under study are
represented, and the remaining 26 failure modes present
55.4% of the total number of failures generated in the Tibú
field.
As a consequence of the frequency of failures generated
in the VSH-2 units, the hose from the Manifold to the nitro-
gen accumulator is the component with the most failures,
and due to its ease of replacement and the low resources to
be used, it is feasible to apply the redesign for all the Tibú
field units, taking into account that for the purpose of this
research work, well T-003 was taken as a sample.
In this way, it is evident that by reducing the failure rate
of this component, it is possible to significantly increase
the equipment reliability in the 11 wells where these 33
failure events occurred or occurred, in well T-003 MTBF
of 2,628 h during the study period; that is, every 2,628 h
there was a failure in the Manifold hose component to
the nitrogen accumulator. The well with the highest loss
of barrels is T-001, with 2,285 barrels of crude for a sin-
gle failure event presented in the mast component of the
unit. Likewise, the well with the highest number of failure
events (41 Trips) is T-003, and it is the fourth well with
the largest number of deferred wells.
From the data analysis, it was determined for a period
of 1,410 days that the most recurrent failure modes in the
41 VSH-2 study units with the highest incidence of crude
production losses (PBC) present 28 failure modes that
accumulated 605 failures that generated 8,199.5 barrels.
In addition, it was evidenced that the auxiliary medium
external leakage and imbalance failure modes represent
79.5% of the losses of barrels of crude oil, equivalent to
21.5% of the remaining losses of barrels of crude oil.
Acknowledgements The authors thanks to Ecopetrol S.A. in Campo
Tibú, Norte de Santander in Colombia for his support on the data
obtained to develop this research work.
Author contributions CAR-G: Investigation, Collected Data, For-
mal Analysis, Analysis Tools, Funding adquisition, Sources, Original
Draft, Writing—Review & Editing. AL-M. Analysis Tools, Methodol-
ogy, Supervision, Other Contribution.
Funding No funding sources support this research.
Availability of data and materials Not applicable.
Declarations
13
Int J Syst Assur Eng Manag (December 2023) 14(6):2695–2719
Conflict of interest The authors declare that they have no known
competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have
appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
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