Likelihood to Recommend The Paradigm geologic and petrophysical interpretation software suite offers a complete package for integrated projects where a team starts from offset well data and leads all the way to mapping of horizons, properties and reservoir models. Geolog, the petrophysical module, is very powerful and versatile. Although they offer separate add-ons, for smaller projects where the petrophysical interpretation is done by a third-party, even the minimum package might be overkill.
Read full review Surfer has been excellent for us, a small company, to process the electrical resistivity, refraction microtremor, and MASW data collected in the field. There are an increasing number of programs capable of assisting in this geophysical analysis but Surfer is the most advanced. The ability to create both 2D and 3D figures in the program while managing data is a huge help. It also greatly improved report quality and helped clients better understand what the results were for a study.
Read full review Pros Geolog is extremely robust and powerful in handling large volumes of logs per well and a large number of wells, which is an asset for basin-scale projects. Geolog is very flexible in terms of customizing log layout presentations and calculating anything via mathematical or logical expressions. Epos display of fluid production data is very useful in cross-analyzing maturity and organic content versus hydrocarbons produced. Read full review The interface is simple and easy/quick to learn, so that not much experience is needed to start generating maps. The map layouts are easy to manipulate, change colors, scale, labels, contour interval, etc... Simple but functional mathematical and logical functions allow for the calculation and manipulation of grids. Read full review Cons Geolog could use a LAS batch loading graphical interface that doesn't require the use of prompt commands. Geolog's geologic intervals display has improved in the last versions, but it's still cumbersome to set up and maintain (i.e. adding new intervals, changing stratigraphy). SKUA-Paradigm should support geographic coordinates in order to avoid the workaround of creating pseudo-coordinates across UTM zone boundaries. Read full review The user interface can be tricky at first. It's a little rough around the edges and takes a little time to get the hang of. Not an ideal application for older employees. There are too many things with the interface that make it not worthwhile to train employees with less computer experience. Manipulating data within Surfer is difficult because you have to do things in a certain order. Not terrible if you get the hang of it but certainly frustrating at first. Read full review Alternatives Considered Regarding the petrophysical modules, I have used other petrophysical software packages, and Paradigm is superior in data handling, visualization, flexibility, and batch calculations. Regarding the mapping and modeling, Paradigm is on par with other software I used on the same scale. SKUA-Gocad has some advantages over its main competitor, in terms of data manipulation, but the inability to handle geographic coordinates has a negative impact on my work efficiency.
Read full review Surfer is very unique with respect to its capabilities. I am not aware of any other mapping software that is at the same time flexible, has a friendly interface, and creates such nice-looking maps.
Read full review Return on Investment Paradigm Geolog has allowed us to handle the vast quantities of well log data in order to achieve our research goals and deliver the results to the sponsoring companies. Paradigm Epos and SKUA-GOCAD have made possible to map the results of our petrophysical analysis on a basin-wide scale encompassing two provinces, without which our research deliverables would not have been possible. Read full review The worst thing about Surfer is the cost. My company can only afford one license at the moment which means only one employee gets to use it regularly. Not so great when someone is sick or you have a huge wave of projects. The user interface is a little rough but younger employees have been great at catching on quickly and producing great images. There's nothing else quite like Surfer. It's versatile and not to difficult to use so, though the licenses are expensive, it is an excellent program that has done wonders for our company! Read full review ScreenShots