Real Time Value
Live operational dashboard for monitoring all drilling values in one view.
~25,000
Weekly active uses
12
Visualization types shipped
10–30
Cards per user session
~2 months
MVP to production
~6 months
MVP to full feature set
Overview
Role
Sr. Product Designer - sole designer
Team
1 PM · 1 Developer · 1 Designer
Timeline
~2 months to MVP · ~6 months to full feature set
Status
Live · actively evolving
Real Time Value is Corva's live drilling data monitoring app - a control-room style dashboard that puts key operational metrics front and center during active drilling operations. Users select the parameters they need, configure alert thresholds, and see live values update in real time.
The app works both as a standalone monitoring tool and as a companion to Traces - the two are frequently placed side by side on the same dashboard, giving engineers both the detailed trace view and an at-a-glance numeric overview simultaneously.
Competitors already offered similar functionality, and Corva's clients - through the sales team - were asking for it directly. The mandate was clear: build it, and build it fast.
Why we needed a new product
Corva's platform had Traces for real-time chart monitoring, but there was no way to get a quick, glanceable view of critical drilling parameters - the kind of view you'd see in a physical control room. Engineers wanted to pin their most important values (standpipe pressure, rate of penetration, ECD, hookload) to the dashboard and see them update live, with clear visual alerts when something went out of range.
The request came through sales repeatedly: clients said they wanted what competitors already had. But we saw an opportunity to go beyond just copying - we could build a flexible system that would evolve based on real user feedback.
Core requirements
- Live updating values from multiple data sources (WITSML, Corva Trace, Dev Center, Custom)
- Configurable alert and warning zones with color-coded indicators (green / yellow / red) - an industry standard for any monitored parameter
- Flexible grid layout - users needed to arrange cards freely, from tiny companion widgets next to Traces to full-screen control room displays
- Works as a companion to Traces on shared dashboards and as a standalone app
From numeric cards to 12 visualization types
Product evolution - approximate, parallel with other projects
MVP
Months 1–2
V2
Months 3–4
V3
Months 4–5
V4
Months 5–6
Ongoing
Now
3.1
MVP: Value cards first
The first release focused on the core use case: numeric Value cards showing a single live metric with alert / warning zones. Users could add unlimited cards, configure thresholds per well section, and arrange them in a customizable grid.
The MVP shipped in approximately 2 months with a lean team of three. The core interaction loop was simple: add a metric → set your thresholds → monitor. Green means normal, yellow means approaching limits, red means out of range.
Even in this minimal form, adoption was strong. Engineers immediately started building personal dashboards with 10–30 cards, monitoring everything from standpipe pressure to rate of penetration.
3.2
Scaling through user feedback
After the successful MVP launch, something interesting happened: users didn't just want numbers - they wanted to see their data in different ways. The feedback loop was challenging because direct access to end users was limited. Most feedback came through stakeholders, but we had one Shell power user who consistently provided detailed feedback and relayed insights from other engineers.
Based on this feedback, we expanded from a single Value card to 12 distinct visualization types, each designed for specific monitoring scenarios:
Value
At-a-glance current reading
Line
Trend over last 3 hours
Horizontal Bar
Quick threshold comparison
Vertical Bar
Dashboard column layouts
Barrel
Volume / capacity metrics
Solid Gauge
Range-bound parameters
Speedometer
Real-time rates (ROP, RPM)
Block Position
Equipment position tracking
Thermometer
Temperature parameters
Table
Multiple related values
Stop Light
Simplified status overview
Bit PositionWIP
Intervention operations (WIP)
3.3
The adaptive card challenge
The hardest design problem was making every visualization type work at every possible size. Real Time Value cards live in two very different contexts - small companion widgets tucked next to Traces, or large control-room displays taking up most of the screen.
Users can freely resize any card by unlocking the grid and dragging. This meant designing every visualization type across all possible dimensions - from a tiny 1×1 card to a large expanded view. Content had to gracefully adapt: labels might hide at small sizes, numbers needed to remain readable, gauges had to stay useful even when compressed.
Mode 1 - Companion (with Traces)
·4–8 small cards in a row
·Sits alongside Traces on same dashboard
·Information density priority
·Typical card width: 150–200 px
Mode 2 - Control room (standalone)
·2–4 large cards per screen
·Full-screen or near-full-screen
·Readability at distance priority
·Typical card width: 400–800 px
Shared requirement: Every visualization type must work in both modes. The user controls card size freely via drag-resize - which meant designing every viz type across all possible dimensions.
3.4
Templates: reusing what worked in Traces
As users built increasingly complex dashboards with 10–30 cards, a familiar problem surfaced: configuration time. Setting up 20+ cards with the right metrics, thresholds, and visualization types took significant effort - especially when switching between wells or onboarding new team members.
We solved this by bringing the same template system we had built for Traces into Real Time Value. We designed templates for each user type - drilling engineers, monitoring centers, field operators - so they could start with a pre-configured dashboard and customize from there.
The result: significantly reduced configuration time, especially for teams running multiple wells.
Design decisions that shaped the product
Alert / Warning zones as a first-class feature
Color-coded alert zones (green / yellow / red) are an industry standard for any monitored drilling parameter. Rather than treating them as an afterthought, we made them the core interaction model. Every card, regardless of visualization type, shows its current state through color.
Users set a minimum and maximum (Alert Zone - red), then use slider bars to define the Warning Zone (yellow) and Normal Zone (green) within that range. Thresholds can be configured per well section, because safe operating ranges change as you drill deeper.
Alert / Warning zone model
below
Min
Min →
Lower
Lower slider → Upper slider
Upper →
Max
above
Max
Alert Zone (Red)
Value below Minimum or above Maximum - out of safe operating range
Warning Zone (Yellow)
Value approaching limits - between Min/Lower slider or Upper slider/Max
Normal Zone (Green)
Value within safe range - between Lower and Upper sliders
Thresholds are configurable per well section - safe operating ranges change as drilling goes deeper.
Grid lock / unlock pattern
The dashboard needed to feel stable during monitoring (no accidental moves) but flexible during setup. We implemented a lock / unlock pattern: by default the grid is locked. Users click the lock icon to enter edit mode, where they can drag to resize and reposition cards. Locking again freezes the layout.
This kept the control-room feel without sacrificing customization - and prevented the frustration of accidentally moving cards during active monitoring.
Trace view rotation
Each card can be “rotated” from its value view to a mini trace view showing the last 3 hours of data. The trace color follows the same alert / warning color scheme. This bridges the gap between Real Time Value and Traces - users can peek at the trend without switching apps.
What we shipped - and what it means
Real Time Value launched as a lean MVP and grew into one of Corva's most-used drilling apps, with ~25,000 weekly uses. The app is now an essential part of drilling dashboards across Corva's client base, typically running side by side with Traces.
Key outcomes
12 visualization types - shipped, evolved from user feedback over ~6 months
10–30 cards per user - engineers build dense, customized dashboards
Template system - reduced configuration time significantly, especially for multi-well operations
Active development - Bit Position for Intervention segment currently in progress
Client impact (integrated drilling intelligence stack)
3 days saved
30% reduction in connection times - offshore Mexico
Zero downtime
Rapid recovery from WITSML outages without retraining crews
Risk mitigated
Integrated Corva apps boosted completions production efficiency
Continuous evolution
Real Time Value is a product that evolves directly from user feedback. The current focus is Bit Position - a new visualization type designed specifically for the Intervention segment, expanding the app beyond traditional drilling monitoring.
The feedback loop continues through stakeholders and our Shell power user, who remains an active voice for the engineering community. Every new visualization type starts the same way: a real user describing a real monitoring need that the current set doesn't cover.
Additional Screenshots
