Starting a Design Run
Walk through the Automated Design New Run form: design mode, evaluation criteria, general constraints, well data, and equipment, then launch the run.
Open a well, go to the Auto Design tab, and click New Design Run. The form is one page of collapsible sections. Work down it in order: the sections above modify the relevant sections that follow.
The form autosaves as a draft. If you leave and come back, a banner offers to resume where you left off.
1. Design Mode
| Mode | What it searches |
|---|---|
| Full Design | Searches freely across your rod and pumping-unit options. Use this for a new well or a full replacement |
| Workover | Designs around the rods already in the well. Use this when you want to reuse as much of the existing string as possible |
In Workover mode a Rods in the well table appears. Click Load installed rods to fill it from the well's recorded equipment, then adjust quantities. Each row needs a quantity of at least one so the total footage can be calculated. Turn on Include installed unit to score the unit already on the well; it becomes the only pumping-unit candidate and is priced at $0, since you already own it.
Run template pre-fills the form from a saved policy. Click Save to store the current settings as a new template, or Manage to edit the library. See Equipment Configurations.
2. Evaluation Criteria
These are the maximums each design is graded against. Designs are graded on their output values relative to these maximums.
| Field | What it means |
|---|---|
| Speed criterion | How pumping speed is scored. % of Maximum SPM ranks each design against its own crank hole's maximum. Relative Polished Rod Velocity ranks by max SPM times Z against the fastest hole in the run |
| Max Gearbox Loading (%) | Highest allowed gearbox torque as a percent of rating |
| Max Structural Loading (%) | Highest allowed beam load as a percent of rating |
| Max Rod Load (%) | Highest allowed rod stress as a percent of allowable |
| Minimum Bottom Min Stress (psi) | Lowest acceptable minimum stress at the bottom of any taper, except at the very bottom of the string |
| Max Rod Side Load (lbs) | Highest allowed side load against the tubing wall |
| Target Production | Gross fluid the design must deliver, in bbl/day. This is total liquid, not oil alone |
Target Production is gross fluid, not oil. Entering an oil rate here produces designs that are far too small for the well.
3. General Constraints
These assumptions apply to every candidate equally. The defaults suit most conventional beam-pumped wells; change them when you have field-measured values.
| Field | What it means |
|---|---|
| Minimum Taper Length | Shortest allowed length for any taper section. Shorter tapers are rejected. In Workover mode, this rule is not applied when new and existing rods are combined |
| Max Allowable Bare Rod Side Load | Above this, a section needs guides or the design fails |
| Damping Factor Up / Down | A coefficient used to calculate the level of viscous friction on each half of the stroke. It does not include mechanical friction |
| Stuffing Box Friction | Surface friction at the stuffing box, in lbs |
| Pump Friction | Friction at the downhole pump, in lbs |
| Pump Vol Eff (%) | Pump volumetric efficiency used to convert stroke into production |
| Steel Rod Service Factor | Service factor applied to steel rod allowable stress |
| Bare / Guided Rod Friction Coef. | Rod-on-tubing friction coefficient for bare and guided rods |
| Vertical Friction Up / Down | Extra friction applied when the wellbore is treated as vertical |
| API Pump Type | Insert, Tubing, Oversize Tubing, Insert or Tubing, or Tubing or Oversize Tubing |
| Corrosivity | Mild or Moderate. Changes which rods are available to the design |
| Address Buckling with Guides | Keeps sinker-less designs that fall below the Min BMS limit, on the basis that rod guides handle the buckling instead of sinker weight |
4. Well Data
These come from the well record. Each field has an Auto button that pulls the stored value back in after you have edited it, so you can test a what-if without changing the well.
| Field | Notes |
|---|---|
| PSN Depth (ftKB) | Pump seating nipple depth. The rod string is sized to reach it |
| Tubing Size (in) | Tubing OD |
| Polished Rod Diameter (in) | Polished rod size |
| Water Cut (%) | Percent water in the produced fluid |
| Water Specific Gravity | Specific gravity of the produced water |
| Oil Density | Oil gravity in degrees API |
| Casing Pressure / Tubing Pressure | Surface pressures in psi |
| Tubing Anchored? and Tubing Anchor Depth (ftKB) | Whether the tubing is anchored, and where. Affects tubing stretch and effective pump stroke |
A run cannot start until PSN Depth is set. If the well record is incomplete, the action bar tells you which inputs need fixing and clicking the message jumps to the field.
5. Equipment Configuration
This is where the run picks from your catalog.
- Rod Group selects exactly one group. The table below shows the rod types, manufacturers, grades, diameters, stress method, and price range it offers.
- Pumping Units selects up to four units to search across in Full Design, or one in Workover. Use the search box to filter, then tick the units you want.
You do not pick pump sizes. The engine builds the pump diameter options from the well data.
Click New on either to add equipment without leaving the form, or Manage to open the full Configurations page.
Once units are selected, a crank hole list appears for each one. Every hole shows its stroke length and speed limits, and holes left unchecked are not evaluated. Include at least one hole per unit.
6. Launch
The action bar at the bottom of the form stays visible as you scroll. Before you launch it shows:
- Anything still blocking the run, with a link to the field
- Your remaining well and run allowance
Click Start Design Run and confirm. A preview lists what is about to run. The run then moves through Submitting into Running, and you can leave the page: progress keeps updating and the run appears in both the well's list and the cross-well list.
Every extra pumping unit, crank hole, and rod diameter multiplies the scenario count. To keep a run small, cut those rather than loosening the criteria.