GEOQUEST DONATES $12 MILLION
IN SOFTWARE TO MICHIGAN TECH
HOUGHTON--Michigan Technological University today announced a donation of computer software valued at more than $12 million from GeoQuest, a division of Schlumberger Corporation based in Houston.
The donation, according to John Dinning, GeoQuest's vice president for North American Sales, includes GeoQuest's complete range of geoscience product families: geophysical, geological and petrophysical interpretation; modeling and simulation of oil and gas reservoirs; well-log analysis and production engineering software. GeoQuest will also donate several "right-to-use" licenses from each product family to facilitate Michigan Tech's requirements for educational and non-commercial use. Annual software maintenance valued at more than $2 million a year is also being donated.
Dinning said the software and maintenance will be licensed over a period of three years, after which both will be extended for successive three-year periods upon requalification by the University.
"Through our GeoQuest University Program, we are able to forge a strong relationship with Michigan Tech through which we are able to advance our leading edge software technology into the University curriculum," Dinning said. "We have found the enthusiasm and cooperation expressed by the faculty and staff at the University to be outstanding."
Peter Radecki, executive director of corporate relations at Michigan Tech, said the GeoQuest donation will provide software for a 20-25 station training facility, plus additional workstations for research projects. It will be used by both undergraduate and graduate students and will also serve as a training facility for GeoQuest employees and clients during the summer.
"There are, at most, only a couple of universities with a facility comparable to this one, " said Radecki, "and we believe we're the only institution widely using this kind of software at the undergraduate level."
Radecki said the gift came about as a result of the vision of MTU alum Patricia Henderson, a geophysicist with Consultants of Tri-D, Inc. in Chicago. "Patricia was familiar with the software because she was using it to locate oil and gas for oil companies throughout the world," said Radecki. "She saw the potential for using this software in a university setting and it was she who brought together representatives from GeoQuest and Michigan Tech to make that vision become a reality."
Dr. Wayne Pennington of Michigan Tech's Department of Geological Engineering and Sciences, said the software will equip the Earth Systems 3D Visualization and Interpretation Laboratory in the University's new Dow Environmental Sciences and Engineering Building.
"This donation by GeoQuest will provide state-of-the-art computer software for a variety of purposes, but primarily for the visualization and interpretation of real 3D subjects of significance for earth resources, evolution, and hazards," said Pennington. He said the donation will enable students and researchers to perform fast, reliable, and highly dependable interpretations of three-dimensional data, particularly of the earth's interior, for exploration and development of oil and gas, of metallic-ore deposits, and of other subsurface resources.
"We hope it will also be useful for environmental monitoring and atmospheric modeling; and it will provide an avenue for interaction between our students, staff and the underground resource development and monitoring industry in the state and elsewhere," said Pennington.
Pennington said the new lab will place Michigan Tech in a highly competitive position for government and industry proposals and contracts, and will enable the University to deliver useful state-of-the-art improvements in theory and application of the interpretation of geophysical and geological data.
"This laboratory will contain the most complete and comprehensive set of interpretation tools in the state, and industry members are expected to find it useful, both through their own direct involvement and through their support of students' efforts," said Pennington.
GeoQuest, an operating unit of Schlumberger, is the industry leader in providing integrated software systems, data management solutions, and processing and interpretive services to assist petroleum companies in optimizing the value of their oil and gas reservoirs. GeoQuest operates more than 110 data services centers and software support offices in 58 countries.
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10/27/98-MTN151