The technology involved in conventional piled offshore windfarms is now well established and understood within the renewable energy sector. The next big step-change for that industry will be the development of wind farms in deeper water and more hostile environments necessitating the use of floating structures.

The presenters will discuss whether the evolution of floating windfarms presents new and unique engineering challenges or whether they draw parallels from the evolution of offshore deep water oil and gas platforms.

Presenters

Mike McMahon CEng joined Charles Taylor Adjusting in 2011. He graduated with a degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1998. Mike started his career as an Engineer Surveyor for a major Classification Society. After working in Classification for six years, Mike joined a large engineering consultancy working as a Project Manager delivering complex construction projects. He now employs his technical and commercial skills adjusting Energy losses with a particular interest in construction projects. Mike is Deputy Managing Director of Charles Taylor Adjusting, UK Energy.

James Buckwell CEng joined Charles Taylor Adjusting in 2015. He graduated with a degree in Mechanical Engineering in 2005. Prior to joining Charles Taylor Adjusting, James spent 10 years working on the design and construction of both onshore and offshore oil and gas facilities.  He has worked around the globe in various design offices and constructions sites, with extensive experience in the North Sea and Gulf of Mexico. James has been involved in numerous offshore claims in the North Sea and West Africa, as well as on major construction projects.

Special thanks to Charles Taylor, 7th Floor – 88 Leadenhall Street, EC3A 3BA  for hosting the event.

Registration 12.00pm – Presentations 12.30pm – Lunch 1.30pm

Please click here for the flyer.

This Five-day Course has been designed to be suitable for engineers new to the offshore industry, those transferring from other disciplines within the industry and engineers who have worked in subsea previously but would benefit from a refresher course and exposure to the latest technology.

Go to register or learn more; http://gcesubsea.no/event/1295/Subsea_Awareness_Course_2017

www.oceanbusiness.com

Presented by : Paris Mangriotis, Engineering Director London Offshore Consultants Limited

Technical challenges encountered during the Costa Concordia wreck removal

The Costa Concordia wreck removal operation has been unique in terms of scale, technical complexity, number of stakeholders and cost.

The presentation mirrors LOC’s extensive involvement with the project over the past five years.   It follows each phase from initial response immediately after the sinking through to selection of the removal method and contractor, parbuckling, refloating, recycling and eventually restoration of the environmentally sensitive wreck site.

The focus will be on the technical challenges of refloating the damaged 45,000 tonne wreck and transporting it safely for recycling.  The reasons for the choice of method and subsequent impact on all aspects of the project will be summarised.

Paris Mangriotis is a Naval Architect and Engineering Director at the London office of London Offshore Consultants where he works with a team involved in marine claims, casualties, engineering analysis and surveys.

During his eleven years with LOC Paris has experience of representing Owners’ Interests in a technical advisory and project management role on a number of wreck removals.  He has been involved in invitations to tender, bid assessment and contractor recommendations for significant wreck removals in recent years.  Between 2012 and 2014 Paris was the project manager for LOC who represented Owners and Insurers in the Costa Concordia wreck removal.

Paris has carried out assessments of salvage risks and dangers as part of salvage arbitration process and provides salvors with on-site and office based emergency response advice.  He has appeared before arbitration tribunals in London to give expert evidence in naval architecture matters.

Prior to his career with LOC Paris worked for Lloyd’s Register of Shipping as a classification and technical investigations surveyor.  He is a Chartered Naval Architect and Member of Royal Institution of Naval Architects.

 

Special thanks to Charles Taylor & Co. Limited.  Standard House, 12 – 13 Essex Street, London, WC2R 3AA for hosting the event.

The evening will consist of an in depth view of the subsea arena using a 3D simulator that allows the user to fly around the underwater environment. In the offshore world today as operators move into deeper waters with more complex completions and the thought of integrating technology solutions like subsea processing and SURF, they want to better understand what an integrated SPS equipment and SURF supplier such as TechnipFMC can offer in a sustained low cost environment. The 3D simulator allows the viewer an immersive seafloor experience to witness how the architecture is arranged and how subsea fields can be optimized taking account of total installed cost as well as full life of field considerations. From looking at the difference between horizontal and vertical trees, to watching the make-up of different types of connector, to seeing the internal parts of subsea separators and booster pumps, all of this is possible with the interactive software.

FMC Technologies started developing the software over 10 years ago and have used it in panoramic theatres at each of the major global trade shows, including OTC, ONS, OE, and AOG. Michael will take some time to fly through an example field that you might have seen at one of the shows to illustrate the life cycle of an offshore field, present an integrated SPS and SURF approach to developing subsea fields and show a number of projects which used enabling technologies, without which the fields would not be producing today. With an overall appreciation of how TechnipFMC are reshaping how subsea fields are designed, delivered and operated, for life. He might even let audience members take control so they can experience the interactive feel!

Michael Green, Senior Field Development Engineer

Michael is based in London for the newly formed company TechnipFMC. Michael joined FMC Technologies in 2014 and brought with him a wealth of experience from positions in engineering, business development,  and commercial strategy for number of other subsea consultants, SURF contractors and equipment manufacturers.

Michael holds a BEng in Mechanical Engineering from Portsmouth University and a PGDip from RGU, Aberdeen.

 

Please click here for flyer

Come along to The Truth Behind Gravity at Robert Gordon’s College, to hear from NASA Astronaut, Rick Hieb, and NASA Scientist, Dr. Sue Lederer, who will give their experience and knowledge of zero gravity and how it affects us.
Dissecting the movies effects, Rick and Dr. Lederer will explore the sensationalized segments which bend the laws of physics, and show videos taken in the actual International Space Station and in space with play-by-play explanations of what it’s really like to ‘float in space’.
Places are first come, first served and must be booked in advance. Those who attend on the day without a booking cannot be guaranteed entry to the lecture. The event takes place at MacRobert Hall, Robert Gordon’s College, Schoolhill, Aberdeen AB10 1FE. Only blue badge holder parking is available on site. Parking is available nearby at Harriet Street and Denburn public car parks. Please car share or use public transport where possible. For more information on this event, or the NASA in Aberdeen project, contact Stuart Farmer, Head of Physics, Robert Gordon’s College on [email protected].

Venue: MacRobert Hall, Robert Gordon’s College, Schoolhill, Aberdeen AB10 1FE
Date: Friday 3 March 2017
Time: 7.00 – 8.30pm
Price: £3
Buy your tickets by phone through Aberdeen Box
Office on 01224 641122 (Mon – Sat, 9.30am – 6pm),
online at aberdeenperformingarts.com or in person at Aberdeen Box Office.

 

For more information please see the flyer.

This five-day course has been designed to provide delegates with exposure to the latest subsea technology. Modules are presented by key companies within the sector and learning is enhanced by site visits.

 

Who should attend?
– New entrants to the industry
– Technology conversions within the offshore industry
– Refresher candidates.

Topics included
– Introduction to the Subsea Sector
– Field Developments
– Production Assurance
– Subsea Wellheads & Trees
– Subsea Control Systems
– Pipeline Design & Installation
– Intervention
– Subsea Operations
– The Future

Whilst most of the course will be presented in a ‘classroom’ environment, the sessions will be interactive, with the opportunity to ask questions and discuss what has been learnt. In particular, hands-on and visual components have been included wherever possible to enable delegates to view software models and products destined for subsea service.

SUT Members £1750 (+VAT)  Non-members £2000 (+VAT)

To register, please contact [email protected]  t +44 (0)1224 823637

BP – Redevelopment of the Schiehallion and Loyal fields West of Shetland, Quad 204

Tony Boyle (Q204 Project Manager), Richard Wylie (Technip)

The Quad 204 project aims to redevelop the Schiehallion and Loyal fields west of Shetland to extend future production to 2035 and possibly beyond.  This presentation looks at the challenges of the multi-year offshore programme, and the collaborative approach taken to measuring and improving offshore construction efficiency.

Apache  – Beryl Far North Terrace Project.

Crawford Brown, Apache Project Manager

FNT is a single well subsea tie-back four km southwest of the Beryl Bravo platform with production and gas-lift flowlines, control umbilical, new standalone subsea control system and topside modifications on the host platform.  Under an accelerated timeframe and tight budget, first oil was ahead of schedule and under-budget in April 2016, just 12 months after drilling the well with an exemplary safety record.

Subsea 7 – Catcher Project Update

David Mitchell, Subsea 7 Project Director on Catcher  

Subsea 7 are in the process of delivering the Catcher Subsea Facilities, a three field development tied back to a central FPSO via pipeline bundles and riser system.  Subsea 7 were responsible for the design, fabrication and installation of all subsea infrastructure and currently the subsea infrastructure is now installed, with preparations underway for the arrival, hook-up and commissioning of the FPSO.

Please note – Ample parking is available at the Robert Gordon University and is free after 4pm, the closest car park is directly opposite the entrance to the Sir Ian Wood building. Registration open from 5:30pm. Presentations will run from 18:00 until 19:30 and will be followed by a networking buffet.

Please click here for the flyer.

Please click here for the Evening Meeting Report by Martin Harley

SUT+ and the University of Aberdeen, would like to extend an invite to an Evening on Decommissioning, to be held Monday 23rd January at  1800 in the Fraser Noble Building at the University of Aberdeen.  Offering a series of presentations designed to give an awareness of all the stages of the decommissioning process from the perspective of industry experts.

Confirmed speakers bring experience from an operator’s point of view (Nexen), the largest construction vessel ever built (Pioneering Spirit), an installation contractor (Subsea 7) and representatives from industry groups (Oil and Gas Authority and Pipelines Users Group) along with a presentation from our main sponsors the University of Aberdeen showcasing current decommissioning research.

• Jim Christie (Head of Decommissioning – Oil and Gas Authority)


• John Lawson (Senior Technology Advisor at Chevron and Pipeline Users Group)


• Scott Cameron (Business Unit Director – Subsea 7)


• Jessica Vleugel ( R&D engineer Allseas – Pioneering Spirit)


• Innes Jordan (Subsea Engineer Decommissioning – Nexen)


• Richard Neilson (Director of Research and Commercialisation – Aberdeen University)

This event will be free of charge with the University of Aberdeen kindly providing a light networking buffet and refreshments, giving opportunity to chat to the speakers or talk to University representatives about their Decommissioning Masters programme.

To ensure attendance and to allow for catering orders please register with the following Eventbrite link and we look forward to seeing you on the night.

 

Please click here for the report of this meeting.

The Design & Analysis Challenges for Advanced Service Valves

Newcastle University (Armstrong Building, Room ARMB1.49, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU)

Registration 18:00, Talks 18:30, Refreshments 20:00

Advanced Engineering Analysis as a Valve Design Verification Tool

Lee Brimer, Senior Engineer, PDL Solutions (Europe) Ltd

Finite element analysis (FEA) can be an invaluable tool in modelling the behaviour of complex designs early in the design process, in order to provide confidence on design performance and to highlight areas where improvements can be made. This presentation will focus on an order BEL Valves secured to supply a 12” split gate valve for the Sakhalin Island development. As part of the verification requirements for this valve, particular focus had been applied to the functionality of the valve design under large external loads, this was due to previous issues observed by the operator. The valve design was assessed using FEA in order to highlight any potential issues and ensure the critical sealing functionality under the worst case external loading. This presentation will give an overview of using FEA to validate valve design and how PDL used a complex assembly model with non-linear contact to assess the functionality of the 12” split gate valve for the Sakhalin Island development.

Design Challenges and Verification of Valves to Keep Pace with Oil Field Development Rate

Malcolm Hay, Project Engineer, BEL Valves Ltd

As oil fields develop, operating conditions can change unexpectedly. Certain forces may act in an unexpected way and have a detrimental effect on the product. In the event a failure occurs, actions have to be taken to ensure supply meets demand and safety procedures are followed. Customers may need to replace equipment with a more robust solution. Malcolm’s presentation will discuss how this inevitably leads to design challenges for valve manufacturers’, including more stringent testing and initial design verification in the form of FEA (finite element analysis).

Expected Challenges and Design Verification of HP/HT Valves Developed for Subsea Service

James Brierley, Graduate Project Engineer, BEL Valves Ltd

Global depletion of oil resources has led to oil field discoveries that require engineering for more onerous conditions. One of these conditions presented is HP/HT (High Pressure / High Temperature). BEL Valves have been at the forefront of HP/HT valve development for some of the biggest projects in the subsea engineering sector. This presentation will cover how the planning for these conditions requires extensive design verification; utilising FEA (finite element analysis), CFD (computational fluid dynamics) and applying the latest and most rigorous testing regime to mitigate risk of failure as far as is reasonably practicable.

Sponsored by PDL Solutions (Europe) Ltd and BEL Valves Ltd