Key FOG Incident Level Variables: Activities
Key FOG Variable Descriptions
The FOG database collects several different types of information (i.e., variables) on each fatal incident and each worker who died in the incident. Variables about the incident are those that would be common to all fatalities associated with the incident, such as the date the event occurred and the location of the incident. Other variables are specific to each fatally injured worker, such as the worker’s age, years of experience, and cause of the fatality.
Below are the definitions for key FOG variables; these are the most commonly reported variables in FOG datasets, publications, and products.
Incident level variables: Activities
Activities are tasks or steps within operations and can be carried out many times and during several different operations. Each incident is assigned as many activities as appropriate to adequately characterize the event. In some cases, it may not be possible to identify the activities crews were engaged in due to the limitations of available data.
The definition of each FOG activity is below. Note: The definition does not include the explanation of technical terms (see Resources for this information).
Activities
Includes all tasks related to taking a break or rest from work activities. This includes small impromptu breaks and extended off-duty or on-call downtime or rest at wellsite accommodations.
Includes all tasks related to primary cementing of the casing and secondary cementing (e.g. zone isolations and squeezing). Cement mixing and pumping, and transportation, assembly, operation, testing, maintenance, and disassembly of cementing and pumping equipment are examples of tasks conducted during this activity.
Includes all tasks related to the use or transfer of chemicals (liquids, powders, etc.) used for upstream oil and gas processes.
Includes all tasks related to conducting coiled tubing activities (inserting a continuous string of flexible steel tubing into the wellbore for a variety of purposes).
Includes all tasks related to drilling where the operation is not Drilling Operations.
Includes tasks related to mixing, testing, and pumping of drilling fluid. This includes operation, maintenance, and repair of drilling equipment (mud tanks and agitator, shale shaker, pressure pumping equipment, desander, desilter, degasser, etc.).
Lay down or pick-up:
Includes all tasks related to moving tubulars (tubing, drill pipe, casing, collars, rods, etc.) from the horizontal position off the rig to the vertical position on the rig (pick up) or from vertical position on the rig to the horizontal position off the rig (lay down) using automated or manual equipment.
Make up or break-out:
Includes all tasks related to making up and breaking out tubulars (tubing, drill pipe, casing, collars, rods, etc.), using manual or power tongs on a rig (drilling, workover, well servicing, etc.). This includes setting or pulling the slips, latching or unlatching the elevators to tubular, making a connection, stabbing, screwing or unscrewing the tubular with the tongs, and moving the pipe between the mousehole and wellbore.
Racking back:
Includes all tasks related to standing up tubulars (tubing, drill pipe, rods, etc.) on the rig floor for storage.
Other:
Includes all miscellaneous tasks that occur during drilling, pulling or running pipe. This includes waiting, monitoring, etc.
Unspecified activity:
Includes activities that occur during drilling, pulling or running pipe where there is not enough information in the FOG data sources to determine the step in the process.
Includes all tasks related to installation, assembly, and dismantling equipment for any oil and gas extraction operations. Excluded are assembly and dismantling of rigs (see Rigging up or down) and assembly and dismantling during vehicle maintenance (see Repair or Maintenance: Vehicle).
Includes all tasks related to hot oiling activities (circulating heated fluid into tubulars or tanks to remove residues such as paraffin and tar-based oils).
Includes all tasks related to a fire or spark-producing activity, including welding, flame-cutting, brazing, grinding, burning, or using flame-producing or spark-producing tools.
Equipment:
Includes all tasks related to general onsite or offsite cleaning and washing of equipment.
Rig:
Includes all tasks related to general onsite or offsite cleaning and washing of rigs.
Tanks or other vessels:
Includes all tasks related to general onsite or offsite cleaning and/or decommissioning of wellsite fluid storage tanks (crude oil, produced fluids, flowback, etc.).
Other:
Includes all tasks related to general onsite or offsite cleaning of miscellaneous items used in the upstream oil and gas industry.
Unspecified:
Includes all tasks related to general onsite or offsite cleaning and washing of unspecified items.
Includes all tasks related to routine and daily operations of oil and gas well and lease equipment in order to monitor equipment performance and optimize oil and gas production.
Manual:
Includes all tasks where material (pipe, equipment, supplies, etc.) is moved on-site (wellsite, yards, or shops) manually without the help of powered equipment or vehicles.
Powered equipment:
Includes all tasks where a crane, forklift, winch truck, rig up truck, man lift, rig floor hoisting equipment, or other similar powered equipment is used to move material (pipe, equipment, supplies, etc.) or people on-site (wellsite, yards, shops, etc.). Excluded is long distance transportation of material (see Transport).
Includes all activities related to administrative work including computer work, paperwork, and mail sorting.
Includes tasks related to perforating (piercing the casing and cement by detonating explosives in the wellbore to allow formation fluids to flow into the casing or liner).
Includes all tasks related to drilling out plugs (object, device, or substance used to seal the wellbore).
Includes all activities related to pressure pumping (injection of fluids or substances into the wellbore), including transportation, rig up, testing, operation, monitoring, maintenance, and rig down of pressure pumping units.
Includes all tasks related to the pumping of high-pressure fluid into an open formation to determine the permeability of the rock formation, or to determine safe operating pressures of piping and pressure vessels. (Also called Pressure Integrity Test, Leakoff testing.)
Includes all wellsite and off-wellsite tasks related to repair or maintenance of oil and gas extraction equipment.
Flowlines:
Includes all activities related to repairing or maintaining flowlines such as removing paraffin or oil-based tars from the well bore and flowlines.
Rig:
Includes all wellsite and off-wellsite tasks related to repair or maintenance of oil and gas extraction rigs.
Separation equipment:
Includes all tasks related to the operation, repair, and maintenance of equipment used for separating production fluids (separators, heater treaters, sand separators, etc.).
Tanks:
Includes all wellsite and off-wellsite tasks related to repair and maintenance of fluid storage tanks (crude oil, produced fluids, flowback, etc.).
Tubulars:
Includes all wellsite and off-wellsite tasks related to repairing or maintaining tubing, casing, collars, drill pipe, and rods (including polishing rod), and production tubing after installation.
Includes tasks related to the impromptu or planned repair or maintenance of vehicles used primarily for oil and gas extraction operations. This includes maintenance or repair that is carried out in a facility dedicated to vehicle repair or maintenance or by a worker whose primary job is vehicle repair or maintenance (i.e. a mechanic). This also includes unplanned repair or maintenance of vehicles (e.g. changing a tire) at wellsites or during transport activities.
Includes all tasks related to preparing an oil and gas rig (drilling, workover, etc.) and related equipment for operations on the wellsite (rigging up). It also includes all tasks related to dismantling an oil and gas rig and related equipment once operations using the equipment have been completed (rigging down).
Includes all tasks related to the process of placing a stopper or plug in the well for the purpose of isolating a section of the wellbore or stopping well flow. This process may be for the setting of temporary or permanent plugs within the wellbore. Plugs may be composed of cement, composites, or other materials.
Includes tasks related to snubbing, including transportation, rig up, testing, operation, monitoring, maintenance, and rig down of snubbing units.
Includes all tasks related to spotting or directing traffic at oil and gas workplaces (wellsite, yards, shops, etc.).
Includes all tasks related to swabbing, including transportation, rig up, testing, operation, monitoring, maintenance, and rig down of swabbing units.
Includes all activities related to opening tank hatches, measuring fluids, or collecting samples from wellsite storage tanks (crude oil, produced fluids, flowback, etc.).
Includes all activities related to the storage tank (crude oil, water, flowback, produced water, etc.) refurbishment and custom fabrication. This operation is distinguished from other storage tank activities in that the worksite is dedicated to, and the workers’ primary occupation is tank refurbishment and custom fabrications.
Includes all activities related to training, including pre-work meetings (toolbox talks, tailgate meetings, etc.), classroom training, simulations, on-the-job training, and drills.
Includes all tasks related to the transport and transfer of fluids by motor vehicles including, vehicle travel, impromptu maintenance, and wellsite tasks. Excluded are gauging, thieving, and sampling.
Equipment, proppant, or supplies hauling:
Includes all tasks related to the transport of proppant, supplies, and stand-alone equipment. This includes securing and unsecuring cargo, vehicle travel, and impromptu vehicle maintenance or repair. Examples of cargo for this activity include drilling rigs, sand, tubulars, and well-site equipment. Excluded is the transport of equipment that is integral to the vehicle (e.g., hot oiling truck, vacuum truck, truck-mounted service rig).
Other types of cargo:
Includes all tasks related to the transport of cargo by vehicles that is not defined by any other FOG activity.
Unspecified cargo:
Includes all vehicle transport where the cargo cannot be determined by any FOG data sources.
Aircraft:
Includes all operator and passenger tasks related to travel that is done in an aircraft. Travel by helicopter is an example of this type of travel.
Light duty vehicle (commuting, non-traditional):
Includes all tasks of the driver and passengers during non-traditional commutes. FOG defines a non-traditional commute as meeting one of the following criteria:
- worker travel in excess of 90 minutes or 50 miles one-way,
- workers transported by an employer-paid transportation service, and
- workers traveling as a crew.
Light duty vehicle (on-duty):
Includes all on-duty driver and passenger tasks related to over the road travel in a motor vehicle. Excludes the transportation, loading, and unloading of fluids, equipment, supplies, proppant, etc. (See Transport.)
Light duty vehicle (unknown):
Includes all driver and passenger tasks related to over the road travel in a motor vehicle where the type of travel is unknown.
Other (rail, bike, animal, etc.):
Includes all operator and passenger tasks related to travel that is done in a vehicle other than a motor vehicle, aircraft, or water vehicle.
Water vehicle:
Includes all operator and passenger tasks related to travel that is done in a water vehicle. Travel by barge or boat are examples of this type of travel.
Includes all tasks related to removing materials from the wellbore (paraffin, sand, scale, organic materials, etc.). Excluded is fishing (see Fishing).
Includes all tasks related to the installation, testing, operation, monitoring, maintenance, and dismantling of well control equipment (blowout preventer, frac stack, accumulator, choke manifold, etc.).
Includes all tasks related to the installation, operation, testing, maintenance, and dismantling of the wellhead, christmas tree, pumping unit, and related equipment.
Includes all tasks related to intentionally killing a well (preventing the flow of reservoir fluids) during planned or contingent operations.
Includes all tasks related to maintaining the physical wellsite (e.g. vegetation or snow removal) and any construction on the wellsite. Excluded is the maintenance or assembly of wellsite equipment (see Repair or maintenance: equipment, or Equipment assembly or dismantle).
Includes all tasks related to the systematic recording of data to discern downhole characteristics.
Includes all tasks related to electrical and slickline wireline activities (lowering of mechanical tools into the wellbore), including the transportation, operation, monitoring, and maintenance, of wireline equipment.