How Qube’s Automated Alarms Caught a Cow at the Wellsite
Introduction
Methane alarms usually point to equipment issues or other maintenance-related issues. But in this case, the story took an unexpected turn. A Colorado operator had installed Qube’s continuous monitoring system across its well sites to track emissions in real time. One alert in particular stood out. The system flagged a sudden increase in methane that didn’t match any known activity on site.
Challenge
On May 12, the operator received an automatic notification. Emissions at a single wellhead had jumped past the baseline. There were no active workovers or planned maintenance. With no obvious source, the team needed to act quickly and rule out a possible leak.
Solution
Using Qube’s dashboard, the field team zeroed in on the affected location. When they arrived, the cause was plain to see. A cow had rubbed up against the valve assembly and knocked open a manual ball valve. It wasn’t a mechanical failure. It was contact—unexpected, but just enough to trigger a release.
Figure 1. Qube’s dashboard detected elevated emissions and localized to the wellhead area. On site, field operators found a cow had rubbed up against the ball valve and opened it.
Results
The crew shut the valve and watched the readings return to normal. Emissions dropped by over 99% back below baseline. To prevent it from happening again, the operators are adding fencing around the equipment. The site never went offline, and the fix took less than an hour.
Takeaway for Operators
You can’t plan for every incident. But with Qube’s continuous monitoring and automated alerts, you don’t need to. When something goes wrong—even for reasons no one expects—you’ll know where to go, and what to check. Let Qube be your eyes in the field, 24/7.
Reach out today to learn more about Qube Technologies’ continuous monitoring solution and talk to one of our specialists today.
Interested in more operational examples how Qube Technologies is driving emissions reduction and sustainability in the oil and gas sector? Explore our other resources and case studies or reach out directly.