oil&gasf r o m e x p l o r a t i o n t o e n d u s e r

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europeanoilandgas.co.uk

this issUE: Oil and gas industry experiences

going digitalengineering simulation in

developing digital oilfields

Clean livingThe challenges of offshore oil

waste products

Understanding the oil and gas recruitment market

mattersCareer

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By now you’ll have read enough articles about the

challenges of the oil and gas ‘skills shortage’ to have made your

own mind up about energy sector recruitment. However, the fact

of the matter is that while yes, there is a shortage of skilled workers

in the oil and gas business and considerable emphasis continues to

therefore be placed on recruitment, the employment landscape in oil

and gas isn’t as bad as you may think.

According to Daniel Younger of recruitment consultancy, CY

Partners, “The world’s demand for petroleum-based products has

increased, not decreased, and new ways of tapping into the planet’s

resources are being explored on a daily basis. The knock-on effect of

this increased level of exploration and industry stability means that

oil and gas jobs are now highly desirable and plentiful.”

In this issue’s lead feature Daniel goes on to explain that the advent

of new technology, innovative new methods of producing energy

such as unconventional gas developments, and the diversity of the

global industry are all creating new and exciting opportunities for

career progression.

Reinforcing this idea, our second lead article is an interesting

Q&A with Mike Hawkins of Jee Ltd. As Jee celebrates its 25th

anniversary this year Mike talks about his experiences of working

with a company from its grass roots, as well as highlighting the

rewarding opportunities that a lifetime in oil and gas can bring.

If you’re looking at oil and gas employment, then it’s time to start

thinking positive to ensure our sector continues to flourish in the

years ahead.

editors LiBBie Hammond & matt HigH

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this increased level of exploration and industry stability means that oil and gas jobs are now highly desirable and plentiful”

PLeAse noTe: The opinions expressed by contributors and advertisers within this publication do not necessarily coincide with those of the editor and publisher. every reasonable effort is made to ensure that the information published is accurate, but no legal responsibility for loss occasioned by the use of such information can be accepted by the publisher. All rights reserved. The contents of the magazine are strictly copyright, the property of schofield Publishing, and may not be copied, stored in a retrieval system, or reproduced without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Chairman andrew Schofield Group Managing director mike tulloch

Managing editor Libbie Hammondlibbie@schofieldpublishing.co.ukeditor matt Highmhigh@schofieldpublishing.co.uk staff Writers Kirsty Birkett-StubbsJo Cooper editorial Administrator emma Harris

Art editor gérard Roadley-BattinAdvertising design Jenni newmanProduction Manager Fleur ConwayProduction AdministratorVicky Howes

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office Manager tracy Chynoweth

© 2013 Schofield Publishing Limited all rights reserved

10 Cringleford Business Centreintwood Road Cringleford norwich nR4 6aU

T: +44 (0) 1603 274130F: +44 (0) 1603 274131schofield-media.com

Editors

Contents

Profiles

Regulars

3 Lead Feature Understanding the oil and gas recruitment market

7 IT Engineering simulation in developing digital oilfields

10 News A look at some of the recent developments in the oil and gas industry

12 Lead Feature Mike Hawkins on his experiences of the oil and gas industry

16 Technology The challenges created by offshore oil waste products

30 Ferguson Group

32 Megarme

34 Sinopacific Offshore & Engineering

37 Port of Fujairah Authority

41 Apply Leirvik

43 Michell Instruments

46 Jian Feng Sling

49 Sandvik Process Systems

52 PressureFab Group

54 Axel Christiernsson

57 Xcite Energy Resources

59 BassDrill

63 V Ships

67 Analytical Technology & Control (ATAC)

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20 Decommissioning focus - Decom North Sea

22 Heerema Marine Contractors

25 asCo

28 Enviroco

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Lead one

knock-on effect of this increased level of exploration and

industry stability means that oil and gas jobs are now highly

desirable and plentiful.

Oil and gas engineers are constantly inventing new

technologies to extract oil from increasingly deeper levels

beneath the Earth’s surface. Because of this exploration,

engineers are trained to be the best in their field, and there

are new and excellent opportunities for career progression.

This industry has evolved along with the rest of the world

and has realised the need to develop new ways of producing

clean energy for the global market. There are few industries

that can offer such long-term prospects and employment

opportunities, but these can be found in Unconventional Gas

(UCG); this is a relatively new field that is growing rapidly

and offers people the chance to develop skills that can be

utilised on projects worldwide.

Matthew Cawood, HR director at clean energy company,

Five-Quarter said recently: “UCG is a perfect example of

where new technologies and new employment opportunities

are developing both worldwide and across the UK. Five-

Quarter is a pioneering gas exploration business involved in

the discovery and extraction of gas from coal seams found

both in the UK and various other European countries.

he oil and gas industry is an exciting,

international, vibrant, skilled and varied

industry to work for. The scope of work

undertaken in the oil and gas industry

is vast. It often works with cutting edge

technology and has an excellent health and safety record;

but it also operates in remote, offshore locations, in difficult

climates and very high-risk environments.

Recruitment within the oil and gas sector is different from

any other industry out there. This is because the energy

industry is one that has not had to ‘downsize’ because of the

economic recession unlike many other industries, in fact the

oil and gas industry is on the rise.

Rather than adopting a ‘slash and burn’ policy of job cuts,

closing production and generally reacting in the same way to

the global recession as every other industry, the oil and gas

sector has managed to survive the most uncertain of economic

times by freezing wages and waiting for the storm to pass. That

storm has now abated and the industry has emerged stronger,

leaner and ready to do business on a grand scale.

The world’s demand for petroleum-based products has

increased, not decreased, and new ways of tapping into the

planet’s resources are being explored on a daily basis. The

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DaniEL YoungEr takes a closer

look at the current state of the oil and gas

recruitment market

matterscareer

Oil and gas companies are looking to hire experienced and highly-skilled engineering professionals from a wide range of disciplines but the fact is that demand for oil and gas professionals has outstripped supply

job opportunities, especially in the UK. The industry on

the whole employs a huge skills base and rewards those

who are prepared to work hard, use their initiative and are

ambitious, with this comes good pay and ample opportunity

for advancement.

The depletion of the UK skills base for jobs in a growing

sector has been a worrying statistic in many reports over the

last few years and one that needs to be tackled. Alongside

the industry boom, a great deal of publicity has been given

to the so-called ‘skills gap’ or ‘talent shortage’. This is

especially true for engineers, who are the lifeblood of the oil

and gas sector.

A maturing workforce, a lack of investment during the

1990s and early 2000s and an increase in science, technology,

engineering and maths graduates choosing a career in the

City as opposed to the oil and gas industry have all been

contributors to the situation we now face.

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“Large-scale coal mining ended some time ago but coal

did not ‘run out’ and thanks to new technologies and the

need to find alternative energy sources, the growth of the

Coalbed Methane (CBM) market looks set to continue for

decades to come.

“This is an exciting field of work both for existing oil

and gas specialists as well as those looking for re-training

opportunities, and for those who have faced redundancy

from areas of industry that have declined in recent years.”

Matthew continued: “In the North East of England, Five-

Quarter is developing a recruitment campaign that will focus

predominantly on North East-based personnel, providing

training and re-skilling where necessary and helping the

local economy prosper, rather than simply going to the wider

market to hire in skills from abroad.”

Companies like Five-Quarter are making the oil and gas

industry even more diverse, and in turn creating additional

Lead one

Oil and gas companies are looking to hire experienced and

highly-skilled engineering professionals from a wide range

of disciplines but the fact is that demand for oil and gas

professionals has outstripped supply.

Recruiting staff from other industries where engineers

can transfer their skills to oil and gas is very common. An

industry such as Defence is an area where companies are

targeting and having success in attracting engineers with

high-technology backgrounds. Although the opposite can be

said for the oil and gas industry, most engineers once in oil

and gas feel they do not want to transfer elsewhere.

Recruiters are busy finding a new generation of workers,

and training programmes have sprung up to prepare them.

Some young people are signing on for jobs that promise

good pay — but there are still a lot of positions to fill.

There is a range of career opportunities in the oil and

gas sector. Careers in the industry, generally speaking are

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long-term, well paid, can offer excellent progression and

development and there’s extensive travel opportunities with

jobs throughout the UK and worldwide.

Oil and gas is so diverse that if you don’t like the idea of

travelling or working offshore there are related opportunities

which are still in the industry, but don’t actually involve

working away from home. A lot of the oil and gas companies

that CY Partners recruits for have facilities or headquarters in

mainland UK and in Europe. These facilities have scientific

or engineering research and laboratory functions and it is

here where the instrumentation and technical equipment

that is used in the industry is designed and developed. So

scientists and engineers can be directly involved with the

oil and gas sector without having to work offshore at all.

Opportunities for physics, chemistry, software, electronics

and engineering disciplines are very much in demand within

these facilities.

CY PartnersDaniel Younger is founder and consultant at CY Partners, a specialist recruitment consultancy primarily operating within the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, chemical, FMCG, medical device, forensic, food and related scientific and engineering industries. The business is independently owned by Daniel and Probier Chatterjee, who together have over 25 years of recruitment experience.

For further information please visit:cypartners.co.uk

3. Good career prospects - you may start at the bottom of the

ladder as a roustabout but hard work and dedication will

soon see you move up the ladder.

4. Variation of roles and excellent training packages at

regular intervals.

5. Great opportunities for international travel.

Oil & gas jobs and rig jobs – disadvantages1. You can be away from family and friends a lot – some find

it difficult to cope with the ‘Fly In, Fly Out’ rosters.

2. Difficult working environment – sometimes having to

work in remote, hot, difficult environments.

3. Cramped living – the living quarters are not exactly

penthouse suites.

4. Lack of privacy – lack of privacy in oil and gas jobs and

rig jobs is one turn-off for many people. You seem to share

everything with your colleagues – right from your soap to

your towel.

5. Finally, as a general rule, the oil and gas projects require

highly skilled workers, with good levels of numeracy

and literacy. Maths and science certificates are required in

many of the jobs in oil and gas sector, and training for the

various categories of jobs/careers can often take at least

three years.

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Straight from school or college and progress through 6

operator and technician roles onwards up to craftsperson

status

Through apprenticeships such as the ‘Apprenticeship in 6

Process Technology’, oil and gas extraction industry or

chemicals manufacturing and petroleum industries

Vocational qualifications such as Process Engineering 6

Maintenance or Operations and Maintenance Engineering

Higher education courses that have been designed to 6

equip graduates with practical and hands on knowledge

In house training and development, of which there is a 6

strong tradition in the sector

The increase in talent demand resulting from so many

projects getting the go-ahead has widened the talent gap

even further than industry expectations. The future of the oil

and gas industry is solid, so long as there is the talent to keep

it running.

If you are still unsure if this industry is for you, below are

common advantages and disadvantages of working in the

industry.

Oil & gas jobs and rig jobs – advantages 1. Great pay – for engineers who choose to work in the

sector, the financial rewards can be attractive. When it

comes to the pay packet of oil and gas jobs and rig jobs,

they can compete with any industry in the world. For the

same job that you do on land, your pay is hiked by a good

percentage when you are offshore and working on the rig.

2. For engineers who choose to work in the sector, the

financial rewards can be attractive. According to the Oil

and Gas Global Salary Guide 2012, industry professionals

in the sector enjoy average salaries of £55,850 per annum

- more than twice the national salary average of £26,244.

The guide also suggests that contractors in the North Sea

are among the best paid anywhere in the world.

lead one

IT

today for control rooms to monitor and optimise the

operations of sites thousands of miles away. To put this into

perspective, digital oilfields have been estimated to tap an

additional 125 Bbbl of oil by 2015.

This creates opportunities to improve processes, have

advanced warning about product performance, and manage

assets with real-time field information. The hundreds of

terabytes of information collected and analysed in these

control rooms everyday provide operations with intelligent

data that ultimately will improve drilling, production, and

operation across the supply chain.

It should be no surprise, then, that other advanced

technology like electronic devices, sensors, controllers,

and wireless connections are taking root and changing the

industry's drilling practices. One example is the integration

s the oil and gas industry looks to increase

production from old fields and deepwater

reservoirs, the idea of the digital oilfield

is highlighted as a potential solution to

many of the challenges presented by higher

temperatures, higher pressures, longer tiebacks, and more

expensive operations.

A digital oilfield is “one where operators, partners, and

service companies seek to take advantage of improved data

and knowledge management, enhanced analytical tools, real-

time systems, and more efficient business processes” (CERA

Digital Oil Field of the Future). It involves a shift towards a

real-time, or near real-time, way of working and connecting

one or more remote sites together via technology, enabling

teams to work closely together. In fact, it’s commonplace

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EnginEEring simulation and advancEd sEnsor dEsign hElps to dEvElop

digital oilfiElds, says ahmad haIdarI

going

These sources include

electronics and sensors, which

help accurately direct and control drill bit position while

logging and measuring. This not only reduces nonproductive

time, but also leads to faster drilling rates and helps reduce

damage and drill wear. These electronic sensors need to

withstand thermal, vibration, and impact damage.

Today, advanced engineering simulation tools can evaluate

both single components as well as the interactions among

components and subsystems of the entire design using

single and multi-physics simulations. These science-based

engineering tools include electronics, electromagnetics, fluids,

and thermal and structural mechanics simulation technology.

With these tools, oil and gas companies can model well,

drilling, and sensor designs with a high degree of detail and

fidelity even with complex geometries and complex physics.

System designNew design practices must account for product performance

over the life of the equipment. For instance, the sensors

and drill tools need to be subjected to real-life conditions

of vibration, fatigue, high temperatures, and interferences

from other equipment and electronic signals before reaching

the field for commercial application. To do so, engineering

teams are shifting from a component, or subsystem view, to

a higher-level perspective that considers performance at the

complete systems-level – applying multiple physics, multiple

scales, and a collaborative, cross-functional engineering

approach early in the design stage. By modeling systems-

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of advanced

electronic sensor

technology into downhole and

drilling operations. Data generated by

sensors provides invaluable insight to engineers and

operators to determine how to best drill, as well as how best

to operate subsea facilities for maximum return.

Deploying sensors and developing products that respond

and operate with embedded sensors leads to products that

could have additional components, smaller sizes, and novel

materials. Therefore, many factors must be addressed to

ensure seamless, successful operation before the sensors can

be placed in the well and drilling can begin. Factors include

accurate sensor positioning, the signal and product integrity

of the sensors, and the response of the equipment to control

and operating conditions.

These are new challenges, so product development

practices in many engineering and R&D departments must

evolve to keep pace. Leading oil companies are extending

capabilities and refocusing product development processes to

take advantage of three enabling activities to meet these new

challenges within their engineering and R&D divisions:

Detailed integrated multi-physics engineering simulation 6

(early in the design process)

System design 6

Smart product developments that incorporate 6

electromagnetic analysis and embedded software

Engineering simulationThe growing development of drilling and evaluation and

completion technologies influences the way engineers drill

wells. They now have access to informative intelligence

and data that helps with more efficient and smarter drilling.

ANSYSDr. Ahmad H. Haidari has more than 20 years of experience in the application of engineering simulation and modeling technology to address industrial-process-equipment design, equipment troubleshooting, analysis, and scale-up. He obtained his Ph.D. from Lehigh University and has made numerous presentations and written publications on modeling chemical and hydrocarbon process equipment and oil and gas machinery. At ANSYS he is the global director of the energy and process industries, where he ensures the full portfolio of ANSYS’ engineering simulation software provides appropriate capabilities to meet the modeling requirements of energy and process industry companies.

For further information please visit:ansys.com

level interactions and product responses to multiple forces,

engineering teams are able to rapidly and continually fine-

tune the entire product system and to predict systems-level

performance in a virtual environment well before physical

assembly and testing.

Extremely complex to design and build, next-generation

digital oil fields incorporate many complex parts and

components that all have to work together — putting

systems-level engineering front and center. Innovative leaders

in the oil and gas space are now assembling multidisciplinary,

cross-functional engineering teams to manage intricate

processes and predict systems-level performance at a very

early design stage.

By modeling systems-level interactions and product

responses to multiple forces, these leading-edge engineering

teams are able to rapidly and continually fine-tune

the entire oilfield in a virtual environment, well

before physical assembly and testing.

Because the idea of a digital oilfield is

relatively new, historical real-world testing

may not provide all the data needed to

eliminate risk — and to ensure project success.

Understanding unique component interactions

in the digital oilfield is extremely valuable in identifying

how to fix a design problem. Engineering simulation supplies

this data and enables engineers in this space to rapidly fine-

tune the entire product system in a virtual environment.

Electromagnetic analysisUnderstanding the formation properties and environment

of the oil wells is critical to successful drilling. An oil

company must factor in the depth of a well and design

appropriate downhole tools and sensors that can handle

the expected environment. One area where sensors play a

crucial role in drilling is logging while drilling (LWD). There

are three important LWD engineering tasks that require

electromagnetic simulation analysis:

LWD antenna design to maximise sensitivity for 6

complex three-dimensional drill bit trajectories into

complex formation layers, while accounting for realistic

environmental conditions such as antenna shape, mandrel

affect, borehole effect, mud invasion zones, anisotropic

formation properties, and mandrel eccentricity.

Parametric study of tool and environmental variables 6

to enable rapid interpretation of complex logs, allowing

operators to quickly interpret operating conditions and

adjust equipment as needed.

LWD antenna electromagnetic characterisation for 6

compatibility with receiver/transmitter electronics to

maximise signal integrity and to ensure the tool never

operates ‘blind’ in the field.

These engineering design issues require 3D

electromagnetic field solutions together with electronics

system simulation to provide design capability and system

validation. The 3D tool can be optimised electromagnetically

in a virtual environmental formation to look at the antenna

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design and expected effects on measured logs.

While new to the oil and gas industry, the underlying

computational technology used to perform these examples

shown is deployed widely in other industries. For example, the

electromagnetic field calculations for low-frequency are used in

the design of electric machines, alternators, transformers, and

other high-frequency electromagnetic applications may include

simulation of antennas, cell phones and tablets, biomedical

devices, radar systems, and many others.

Embedded softwareIt is clear that the oil and gas industry is using more

advanced electronics and is operating more equipment

and plants remotely. The underlying power controlling

the behavior of the electrical, mechanical, and fluidic

systems driving the digital oilfields is embedded software.

The embedded software manages the complex interaction

between software, hardware, and human/machine interfaces.

For a new design, a system-level simulation approach

combined with verifiable methods to help model the

behavior of the hardware and the software before it is

implemented enables engineers to gain insight into the

performance of the well, downhole tools and sensors, and

their controllers before they are implemented. For existing

systems, and with sensors already in place, the real-time

field data can be combined and even help drive detailed

3D simulation to perform root cause analysis, identify

improvement opportunities, and to enhance the controllers

and reliability of product and processes.

Technology is changing operations and processes in many

oil and gas fields. There are substantial investments in R&D

and engineering behind every safe, reliable, and cost-effective

innovation implemented in the field. Increased product

complexity and the remote operation and control of oil and

gas equipment and processes creates new drilling challenges.

Detailed engineering simulation, coupled with system-level

modeling, is empowering engineers to effectively design and

deploy next generation sensors and smart products to gain

additional efficiency and reliability in oil and gas drilling,

production, and processing.

iT

Apollo Offshore Engineering is on track for significant expansion - with a doubling of turnover and

a major increase in staff, and to facilitate a rapidly growing order book the company has moved into

new premises at Aberdeen's Waterloo Quay.

Apollo has developed apace since its creation - at the height of the global financial crisis in 2010 -

and its directors exercised endeavour and prudence from the outset, working as consultants by day

and creators of the business by night and at weekends.

Managing director Jonathan D'Arcy said: "The initial focus was on early revenue because we

understood that Apollo would have to support itself financially from the word go if it was to be the

sustainable business of our vision. Our strategy was to maximise cash flow and build capital until

accumulated reserves allowed business premises to be leased and staff employed."

From a standing start the company now employs 40 staff. In its last financial year, to September

2012, revenue increased by 400 per cent and is set to double to over £3 million this financial year,

which is in line with a domestic and international growth plan to employ 100 staff and generate

profitable revenue of £10 million by the end of 2015.

Thriving business

Significant expansion

EFC Group, a leading designer and manufacturer of instrumentation, monitoring, handling

and control systems for the global oil and gas industry, has announced the launch of a new

manufacturing plant in Moray.

The base in Enterprise Park, Forres, marks the Group’s second phase of expansion in the area and

a £100,000 investment. This follows the opening of a new satellite office in the same business park

in September 2012.

The new 4000ft2 plant has been opened six months ahead of schedule, demonstrating how EFC

Group is driving forward its aggressive growth strategy. The company achieved turnover of £14

million last year and projects it will exceed £30 million turnover by 2016.

EFC Group CEO Bob Will said: “I’m delighted that we have been able to open our second

Scottish manufacturing facility, which will support our existing, busy plant in Aberdeen and the

thriving order book we have achieved in last 12 months. This new base will support the increasing

level of work that EFC Group is experiencing, particularly in our subsea and well control divisions.

“We have enjoyed a successful year across each of our global bases and are well on track to

achieve our business objectives. We plan to use this rapid growth in the UK as a springboard for

achieving further international success in the long term.”

Above: First Minister Alex Salmond and Howard Woodcock, chief executive of Bibby Offshore, officially open Bibby Offshore’s brand new purpose-built headquarters, Atmosphere One in Westhill

Above: An EFC Group technician testing equipment in the workshop

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Key initiativesFirst Minister of Scotland, Alex

Salmond, officially opened subsea

installation contractor Bibby

Offshore’s brand new purpose-built

headquarters, Atmosphere One, on

Tuesday 28th May 2013.

The company recently relocated

from Aberdeen Harbour to the

new office facility at Prospect Park,

Westhill, to provide it with the

additional capacity necessary to

support its significant increase in staff

numbers and services.

Bibby Offshore is on track to

achieve a turnover of £220 million

by the end of 2013 and plans to

increase this to £650 million by

2017, creating more than 100

onshore jobs in the north east.

Bibby Offshore’s chief executive

Howard Woodcock said: “Continued

investment in the development of

the energy industry is exceptionally

important and we are delighted

to have had the opportunity to

welcome the First Minister to

officially open our new premises.

“The move was essential due

to the speed at which we are

expanding, the impressive demand

for the company’s expertise, and our

growth strategy to triple the size

of our business around the world

in the next four years. We have a

number of key initiatives in place to

ensure we recruit and train the most

talented people in order to ensure the

business can continue to grow.”

Expro has been recognised for the ninth consecutive

year by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents

(RoSPA) for its outstanding global safety record. Expro has

been awarded a RoSPA Commendation for excellence in

health and safety at work within the oil and gas sector in

the Society’s 2013 Awards.

The company has received awards from RoSPA for the

past nine years, achieving a gold award in 2005 and then

winning the Oil & Gas sector award in 2006 and retaining

it in 2007, 2008 and 2009.

In 2010, Expro received a coveted Gold Medal in

recognition of six years of industry-leading health and

safety performance and commitment. In 2011 and 2012, Expro was also commended in the oil and gas

industry sector highlighting its long-term commitment to safety.

David Ford, Expro’s group HSEQ manager, said: “Expro is very proud to have been recognised nine

years in a row by RoSPA, which rightly demonstrates the importance we place on safety in all of our

global operations. This award is testament to the hard work and commitment of our employees in

creating our positive safety environment.” David Ford was presented with Expro’s Commendation in a

special ceremony at Birmingham Hilton Metropole.

Above: David Ford, Expro’s group HSEQ manager

Leaders in supportFamily owned shipping firm, The Craig Group launched its latest platform supply vessel (PSV), the

Grampian Sceptre recently at the Balenciaga Shipyard in Northern Spain.

The vessel was officially christened by Mrs Frances Murray, wife of Alistair Murray, logistics team

lead at Talisman Sinopec Energy UK Limited

Craig Group committed £50 million to the construction of this vessel, and it’s sister vessel

the Grampian Sovereign. The vessels are the largest ever built by Craig Group and both have

secured long-term contracts with Talisman Sinopec Energy UK Limited. The Grampian Sovereign

commenced work recently in the North Sea while the Grampian Sceptre will start her contract in

September later this year.

Douglas Craig, chairman and managing director of Craig Group, said: “Our major investment

in state-of-the-art oilfield support vessels firmly underpins our position as market leaders in the

provision of offshore support, ROV survey, platform supply and emergency response and rescue

vessels. It also shows our commitment to the marine industry and that we continue to offer our

customers an unrivalled service.”

The vessels are 83 metres long with an 18-metre beam and have diesel electric propulsion systems

offering a greater fuel economy and efficiency. They have been specifically designed to meet the

requirements of operators in the North Sea.

Positive safety environment

Above: Jee managing director, Trevor Lee

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news

improving standardsMulti-discipline subsea engineering

and training firm Jee Ltd has

continued to focus on improving

standards across its business and has

been awarded re-certification for the

international standards ISO 14001

and OHSAS 18001 under the risk

management foundation DNV (Det

Norske Veritas).

The company has been re-certified

for ISO 14001 Environmental

management, and OHSAS 18001

Safety management, and has

transferred its ISO 9001 Quality

management certification, held since

1995, to DNV to bring the three

accreditations into one integrated

business management system. The

globally recognised accreditations

are especially relevant to Jee as the

company continues to expand its

offerings into developing markets.

Jee managing director, Trevor

Jee, said: “We are proud to hold

these accreditations, as they endorse

Jee’s dedication to maintaining the

highest standards. This outward

demonstration of our commitment to

the environment as well as health and

safety, represents our long-term focus

on excellence and offering the best

service possible to our customers.

“With a large talent pool of

experienced engineers and highly

qualified course tutors, we set a

high standard at Jee for the services

we offer. These accreditations are

synonymous with our standards,

ensuring all of our customers and

course delegates receive unparalleled

service and Jee continues to be

a company of choice for subsea

engineering and training.”

his year, Jee Ltd celebrates its 25th

anniversary. From its beginnings as a

one-person consultancy, the company has

grown to become a leading independent

multi-discipline subsea engineering and

training firm, with a team of 90 and three offices located

around the UK.

Jee was founded by Trevor Jee in 1988 and Mike Hawkins

joined as the first full-time staff member soon after. He has

been with Jee for more than 20 years and has witnessed the

company’s phenomenal growth first-hand. Now working as

Jee’s technical director, Mike shares his thoughts on his time

with the company and his experiences of working in the oil

and gas sector.

QWhat brought you into the oil and gas industry?

My involvement is due largely to my family – my

father was a mechanical engineer in the oil industry

and I wanted to follow a similar career path. The North

Sea was relatively young when I started out and it was

an exciting time to join the sector. I knew it would be a

stimulating career that could teach me a lot and provide

new experiences.

As I have progressed within the oil and gas industry, I have

seen many advancements and my position at Jee has allowed

me to be involved with large changes within the industry, as

well as the company.

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Valuable

MikE Hawkins of Jee Ltd discusses his experiences of working at a successfuL business in the oiL and gas industry

BelowMike hawkins,technical director of Jee Ltd

Lead two

how we can continue progressing to remain a company of

choice for the subsea industry.

QHow have you seen the oil and gas industry develop

during your 20 years in the workforce?

From legislation reform to technological innovation, I have seen

the industry transform tremendously in the past two decades.

Charting advancements in the sector, Jee has adapted with cost-

effective and integrated engineering solutions, and has grown its

offerings to stay in step with the ever-changing industry.

Within Jee, we have transformed from a small consultancy

to a full-service company fulfilling large contracts for

international clients. Not only has the company added a

QHow did you get started at Jee Ltd?

I had an existing relationship with Trevor from the

early days working together at BP. When Trevor founded

Jee, the staff comprised just himself and a secretary. On his

request, I began doing some freelance consulting for the

company and, as the workload continued to grow, Trevor

reached the point where he wanted to take on full-time staff.

At the time I was working for a large company and going

from that to a smaller business was a challenge, but it also

provided an exciting opportunity to help actively grow the

company through an organic growth strategy.

One of the most rewarding aspects of working at Jee

has been watching the company evolve. I have seen many

developments in my time here, and look forward to seeing

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to further expand our expertise in flow assurance capabilities,

increased materials capabilities and structural design. We

have recently completed a large renewables project and will

use the experience gained from this to continue expanding

our focus in the field.

Employing openness to change and modernisation is

what has helped Jee achieve its lasting longevity and will be

necessary for all companies working in the oil and gas industry.

QWhat developments do you expect to see within Jee in the

next five years?

Jee is currently focusing on an aggressive growth strategy,

aiming to increase our workforce from 90 to 150 in the

next four years. This year, we opened an office in central

London to attract new staff as well as give a more localised

service to our clients in the area. We have already seen

staff numbers there grow exponentially and we anticipate

seeing this continue. We are also moving our Aberdeen

office to a location double its size to accommodate growing

client requirements.

Though not currently under development, but certainly

within the longer term, it is inevitable that we will open an

office in the US. We still have plenty of scope for growth

within the UK sector at the moment but in the future

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range of additional services and capabilities during my

time here, but also I have seen our roster of clients grow

as Jee became recognised for its technical excellence and

commitment to service.

In the beginning, the company worked exclusively on

pipeline technology. We were able to specialise in a niche

market and could undertake highly technical studies or

pieces of work, but such specialisation inevitably limited

the size of the company. The decision to move from being

purely a pipeline company was one made quite deliberately,

as it enabled the business to continue to grow by fulfilling

the needs of our customers and provide whole life of field

engineering to their projects. By expanding our staff and

introducing new expertise in structures, controls, materials,

installation, decommissioning and renewables, we have

allowed Jee to not only grow, but also to thrive.

QWhat have been some milestones of your time within the

industry?

One of the biggest achievements during my time at Jee is also

a milestone of the oil and gas industry as a whole. In one

of my early pieces of work with the company, I assisted in

convening a joint industry project (JIP) on pipeline trenching

in connection with the British government.

In 1995, Jee managed the Trenching Guidelines Joint

Industry Project, which accomplished a change in design

philosophy for small diameter pipelines. For nearly two

years, we managed this project, which involved collaboration

from more than 20 companies within the industry, to

develop design methodologies and data to enable operators

to install pipelines without trenching.

The JIP provided influential change for the industry and

proved financially successful. The resulting government

guideline was especially significant in certain locations

around the North Sea and West of Shetland, saving

considerable installation costs for operators.

Internally, one of Jee’s major milestones was introducing a

management team and board of directors within the company.

Ten years ago, Jee’s workforce was primarily composed of

engineers. We realised that to take the company further, we

needed to have a team who could manage technical contracts,

as well as a board who could decide company strategy.

By adding both of these, we moved from a small group of

consultants doing engineering studies to a fully-fledged

engineering company able to complete major projects.

QHow can oil and gas companies such as Jee ensure they

continue to grow and thrive in the industry?

I think innovation is the most important aspect of

this industry. Companies have to be able to adapt

and encourage their staff members to examine novel

approaches and devise new solutions, rather than remain

stagnant with existing policies.

At Jee, we are identifying new skills that we want to

develop within the company to broaden our range of

integrated engineering capabilities. We are currently looking

Jee LtdJee Ltd is a leading independent multi-discipline subsea engineering and training company, focussing on the oil, gas and renewables industries. The company employs a high ratio of chartered engineers to graduates and continues to grow as a centre of excellence. Its projects range from integrity management to decommissioning and analysis.

For further information please visit:jee.co.uk

Lead two

we will be looking to expand overseas and America is a

natural choice.

Our focus on expansion is also seen in our engineering

courses. Jee offers a wide variety of courses that are

continually adapted to the changing industry. Similar to our

engineering capabilities, we add new course subjects as the

industry demands. Currently, we are developing new courses

in the renewables area as we advance our skills in that field.

Our portfolio will continue to evolve as the company grows

and furthers its range of expertise.

QWhat developments do you expect to see in the coming

years for European oil and gas?

The European offshore oil and gas industry is now mature,

which brings very specific issues and drivers. Cost-effective

safe operation of aging assets, extension of the life of

assets beyond original design life, reduction of the cost

of new developments and efficient decommissioning of

infrastructure will be brought to the forefront. Operators will

have to put organised plans in place to effectively deal with

these initiatives.

Lifetime extension (LTE) will continue to become more

prevalent in the industry in the coming years to enable safe

operation of existing assets and infrastructure beyond its

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original design intent. At Jee, we are working consistently on

LTE projects and have contributed to the authorship of ISO

12747, an internationally recognised code addressing LTE for

rigid metallic pipelines.

The industry will also be driven towards low-cost options

for development of subsea tie-backs to maximise viable

production from depleting fields. Alternative novel techniques

for pipeline installation could become extremely valuable if

savings over conventional installation methods can be proven.

The engineers and staff at Jee will keep a close eye on this

and other industry advancements to remain at the forefront of

technology and practice, and to ensure we continually deliver

optimal service to our current and future clients.

One of the biggest achievements during my time at Jee is also a milestone of the oil and gas industry as a whole. In one of my early pieces of work with the company, I assisted in convening a joint industry project (JIP) on pipeline trenching in connection with the British government

few years ago I was lucky enough to

be invited to an internal event that was

organised by a major international oil

company to discuss health, safety &

environmental issues from the field in an

open and free forum. Today I still count this as one of the

most informative and encouraging experiences of my career

in the oil industry.

Attendees were there to discuss any HS&E issue face-to-

face with the highest senior management. It is this kind of

open forum and focus on safety culture that has made the oil

industry a very safe place to work. There is a pride in delivering

the often technically complex projects on a daily basis. It is,

however, still often the case that in finding and producing the

oil, waste management remains the ugly duckling.

It is hard to argue that waste treatment in the oil industry

has had a spotty past. There are many locations on the

planet where decades of oil waste has been left, dumped or

leaked - hazards to the health and safety of many and the

environment of us all. There are also many locations on this

planet where oil companies, service companies and waste

management companies are doing a fantastic job.

There is no doubt that the production of significant volumes

of hazardous oil waste streams (slops & sludge) by the oil

industry from offshore drilling, exploration and production

related activities has been one of the greatest challenges to be

overcome by the offshore industry over the last 25 years.

The daily volumes of hazardous liquid waste being

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Mark ZwindErMan dispels some of the popular myths about oil waste products and the associated offshore challenges they create

clean

Technology

tanks it comes into contact with, which results in further

cleaning being required at many points downstream, thus

generating additional volumes of slop waste.

The waste is notoriously difficult to treat, especially so at

the site of production. Given the large volumes containing

high proportions of emulsified fine solids, water and oil

present in the material it can be highly viscous, cause line

and pump blockages resulting in significant rig downtime,

plugs filter media, and minimises the amount of oil and clean

water that can be recovered. As a result the large majority

of this waste is simply contained for transport back to shore

for treatment and disposal as hazardous waste, resulting in a

significant onshore headache.

In remote and developing regions this aspect is even more

produced are continually on the increase, primarily due

to produced emulsions and increased flow back volumes

from poorer producing wells. Increasingly fracking, well

stimulation and water flooding is needed on a routine basis

to maintain production.

There are a range of activities surrounding the use and

removal of drilling mud within drilling and exploration

activities, and completion, production and work-over

operations. All of these generate significant volumes of oil

liquid waste, which comprises of heavily oil contaminated

liquid mixtures of fine solid particulates, water or brine,

cleaning chemistries, drilling mud and emulsified oils. This

particularly potent combination of ingredients results in a

veritable soup that contaminates all equipment and storage

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in huge mountains of waste being contained and transported

back to shore for treatment and disposal every year.

The liquid waste is typically contained and shipped to

shore for potential treatment using a variety of traditional

techniques, all of which struggle to rise to the challenge due

to the nature of the waste itself. Filtration media clog up

rapidly due to the high amount of fine solids present, and

energy intensive methods such as thermal treatment both

lack the high throughput capabilities required and tend to

lose economic efficiency as the proportions of oil and water

increase in the waste stream.

Furthermore, traditional chemical treatment by way of

pH adjustment with emulsion breaking chemistries used

in gravity separation techniques tends not to be robust

to significant variances in the waste stream, and is both

unpredictable and has limited effect as a result.

According to a recent World Bank Report there are

currently some nine billion tons of drilling and production

waste residing in various onshore storage facilities, pits and

lagoons awaiting treatment. This fact is testament to the

failure of the industry collectively to think ahead on the issue.

This monumental legacy reflects poorly on the sector,

which proclaims in the public domain to maintain high

standards of environmental awareness and the employment

of best practice and best available technology wherever

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problematic since the extensive infrastructure necessary to

cope with this waste may not actually be present (yet) or

available at onshore locations near to quayside facilities.

Ultimately this leads to a logistical challenge to continually

transport thousands of tons of hazardous waste over

large distances by road or rail, so that it can be treated at

appropriate fixed and installed waste transfer stations before

the solids fraction can be disposed of to landfill or used as

aggregate for construction for example.

Very often the infrastructure is not only lacking in

presence but is also less developed, which increases the

opportunities for accidents, environmental problems and

other HS&E issues.

During the transport process yet more waste is produced,

as these transport facilities and infrastructure also require

cleaning. The dirty slops produced add to the total volume of

the waste. This of course is in addition to the significant costs

being incurred by operators, service companies and waste

management companies to fund and sustain this operation.

Drilling mud (itself typically an emulsion) displaced and

removed from surfaces through the use of solvents and

emulsion forming cleaning products forms more emulsions

in place through daily operational procedures. The lack of

apparent effective and economic solutions to treat these

hazardous waste streams at the point of production results

In one production facility alone waste volumes in the last four years have been reduced by 86 per cent, saving the facility over $12 million in waste disposal costs. In addition, over 2000MT of high quality crude oil have been recovered and recycled from the waste stream in the process, boosting the profitability of the operation still further

Surface active SolutionSMark Zwinderman is commercial director and co-founder of Surface Active Solutions, a leading provider of highly effective chemistries that simplify cleaning, treating and disposal processes. Since 2000 the business has been offering unique chemistries to the oil and gas industry for the cleaning of oil contaminated waste, drill cuttings, drilling muds, heavy crude oil sludge, and refinery waste.

for further information please visit:surfaceactive.com

Technology

possible. Is it any wonder people are reluctant to allow

fracking near their homes, playgrounds and forests? We

simply have to work twice as hard to show society what we

can do, how we will do it and show people how we have

done it in other places.

These volumes of hazardous waste serve to provide

a significant ongoing risk and a serious liability issue to

the producers of such waste. Many governments are now

exerting increasing pressure on oil operators to tackle this

issue due to the risks associated with producing, transporting

and storing hazardous wastes of this type for long distances

and over extended periods of time – not to mention the

dumping of this waste without employing any attempts

whatsoever to treat it. This position is surely unacceptable in

the industry in which we operate?

Surface Active Solutions (SAS) has developed

Microemulsion Injection and Separation Technology (MIST)

to aid in the prevention and management of these liquid

waste streams. Our partnerships with many global, regional

and local services companies and waste management

businesses have produced a process of chemically enhanced

centrifugation that has been successfully developed to treat

both drilling waste and emulsified crude oil waste streams.

It uses proven engineering that provides a high throughput

waste treatment and oil recovery process for the treatment

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of oily slops using conventional solids control equipment to

recover high value oil, water or brine, and virtually clean solids

without the need for using energy intensive methodologies.

This process has been adapted for the offshore drilling

market to tackle the problem ‘at source’ and has been used

and demonstrated thus far at onshore fixed installations to

treat over 50,000MT of drilling, exploration and production

waste transported from the field. In one production facility

alone waste volumes in the last four years have been reduced

by 86 per cent, saving the facility over $12 million in waste

disposal costs. In addition, over 2000MT of high quality

crude oil have been recovered and recycled from the waste

stream in the process, boosting the profitability of the

operation still further.

In many cases more traditional chemistries are still used in

these key application areas and the creation of large volumes

of liquid slop waste unfortunately still remains common. In

such situations microemulsion technology can be applied to

the slop waste on the rig site. The treatment approach can be

designed to fit within a standard size container and typically

consists of a chemical injection system in combination with

static inline mixing and centrifugation methods.

The microemulsion product breaks the slop waste

generated through the use of standard cleaning products and

is passed through a decanter centrifuge for recovery of the

solids phase. The liquids can then be separated under gravity

or by conventional hydrocyclones to recover the oil phase for

recycling. The water fraction can once again be filtered and

may be discharged on site.

It is important to point out that we at SAS merely provide

the tools to the industry. Not even the industry, but rather, the

people in the industry. Having worked in this exciting, often

chaotic, amazing oil industry, I have met many great people

at all levels. All of who are looking for the right tools, and to

show the world what they can do if provided with the right

tools and the opportunity to use them.

Fracking is bringing the oil industry increasingly close

to all our homes. We either show the world how it is done

or we will not be given the opportunity to even try. At SAS

we have an environmental background. I graduated an

Environmental Engineer at the Van Hall Institute in Holland.

I believe technology and attitude can make these things

happen in an economic and profitable manner and we will

continue to work and do our bit.

Decom Offshore was designed to provide a collaborative industry perspective on the key challenges facing the decommissioning sector over the coming years

The decommissioning industry

in the North Sea is continuing to grow at a

considerable rate, with analysts predicting

activity levels of £4.5 billion between now

and 2017. This increase means that Decom

North Sea (DNS), the organisation that was

established to represent the North Sea’s oil and

gas decommissioning industry, is set to play an

increasingly important role.

Accordingly, over the last year the forum has

been at the forefront of the industry, spearheading

a number of initiatives and programmes designed

to support long-term growth. These include

a standard template for decommissioning

programmes that will be used by operators to

obtain approval for decommissioning operations

in the North Sea, a joint industry project

aimed at promoting the reuse of key items

of equipment, remuneration models and the

encouragement of greater knowledge transfer and

market information between organisations and

companies in the industry.

The latter point remains a key objective

for DNS as it strives to promote greater

understanding and communication between

entities to encourage the sharing of best practice,

technological innovations and methods of

overcoming challenges. While the organisation

has a number of methods of achieving this, a

major role is played by the various events that

are planned and hosted by DNS each year.

For example, its annual decommissioning

conference, which in 2012 was jointly hosted by

DNS and Oil & Gas UK was a great success and

attracted leading industry figures from around

the world with the sole purpose of sharing

decommissioning knowledge and participating

in interactive discussions on topical issues.

In fact, the success of the conference has led

DNS to create a new event – Decom Offshore

2013 – held in March this year. “Decom Offshore

was designed to provide a collaborative industry

perspective on the key challenges facing the

decommissioning sector over the coming years.

Groups of our operators and main contractors,

working together, outlined the main issues

relating to the sub-surface, subsea, infrastructure

removal and onshore disposal phases of a typical

decommissioning programme,” explains DNS’

CEO Brian Nixon.

“The event was designed to be highly interactive

and each session included open discussion

and debate. Importantly, it allowed individual

supply chain companies to validate and clarify

points of importance as they arose, meaning that

they will have much greater confidence in their

respective business opportunities. Furthermore,

Decom Offshore 2013 served to highlight

emerging technologies and techniques from

decommissioning specialists, helping to introduce

operators and major contractors to sources of

talent and expertise.”

The nature of the event was such that

encouragement and collaboration was centre

stage. As Brian comments: “Whilst it may be

possible to anticipate some of the challenges

likely to be highlighted, we purposefully

organised the event in such a way that

experienced representatives from our industry

identified and articulated the outcomes.”

Decom Offshore 2013 is just one example

of the hard work that DNS engages in when

supporting the growth and development of the

North Sea decommissioning industry. “It’s just

one of the initiatives that we deliver throughout

the year,” says Brian. “For example, we have

also established a special interest group with

companies in the Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft

DECOMMISSIONING FOCUS

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perspectiveIndustry

For further information please visitdecomnorthsea.com

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DECoMMissioning FOCUS

use in other European countries (albeit with

some minor alterations perhaps being needed),

helping operators and contractors alike to

standardise their efforts across the North Sea.”

All of these projects are progressing well,

underpinned by the aims of DNS and its desire

to improve and support the industry. One of

those aims, and a spirit that Brian is always

keen to pursue is that of collaboration. “There

is encouraging evidence of collaboration in

many areas,” he says. “With work underway

to map out the full supply chain, share

experience through case studies, consider

technology improvement, and establish joint

venture arrangements to reduce the number of

contracting interfaces. Cost remains a challenge

for operators and taxpayers alike, with some

parties looking for game-changing approaches to

these complex projects.”

If this spirit of collaboration continues, there

is little doubt that the decommissioning sector

in the North Sea will grow in a positive fashion

despite any possible challenges. One that Brian

highlights is the potential pinch points and

restraints in terms of capacity. “Over the next

five to ten years we believe that there will be

some acute capacity restraints and pinch points

that may have a bearing on the industry due to

increased activity in all of the operating sectors.

We will shortly conclude two consultancy

projects; one is intended to provide an

assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of

the supply chain, while the second will hopefully

provide an assessment of possible future capacity

constraints. We hope these analyses will be

complete by April.” With DNS maintaining its

role at the forefront of the decommissioning

industry, there is little doubt that 2013 looks to

be a busy, and exciting year.

area to address the particular challenges and

opportunities relating to the lighter weight

assets in the Southern North Sea. We also lead

regular learning journeys to Norway, Denmark,

the Netherlands and key regions of the UK,

and have recently completed our first visit to

Louisiana to research synergies and approaches

used in the active Gulf of Mexico market.”

Alongside these developments, DNS continues

to work towards the initiatives mentioned earlier

in this article. One of the initiatives to come

out over the last year was the development

and introduction of a standard template for

decommissioning programmes that will now

be used by operators to obtain approval for

all decommissioning projects in the North

Sea sector. The standard template was the

result of six months of collaborative work and

was facilitated by DNS and supported by the

Department of Energy and Climate Change

(DECC) and a working group of DNS member

companies (BP, CNR International, Talisman,

Marathon Oil, GP Decom and Optimus Decom),

with additional input from Perenco and Wood

Group PSN.

Speaking to European Oil and Gas earlier

this year, Brian highlighted this initiative as an

excellent example of the collaborative spirit

across the industry and was highly positive

about the benefits it would bring to the industry.

Updating us on the progress, he explains: “The

Standard Decommissioning Programme has now

been formally endorsed by the UK regulators

and has been used by two operators for different

types of asset. The Template is now live on both

DNS and DECC websites with operators being

encouraged to adopt it during 2013 before it is

expected to become mandatory. It is hoped that

in time this Template could also be adopted for

Over the next five to ten years we believe that there will be some acute capacity restraints and pinch points that may have a bearing on the industry due to increased activity in all of the operating sectors

perspective

Cape IndustrIal servICesAndy Dawson, operations director at Cape Industrial Services, said the provision of safe systems for access had been a key consideration for Heerema during the Ekofisk project."Cape supplied scaffolding hardware and systems which facilitated safe access to elements of the assets at Ekofisk, deploying trained staff certified to SG4:10, TG:20 and Construction Industry Safety Scaffolders Record Scheme (CITB) standards."With scaffolding systems in place, this allowed Heerema and its contractors to proceed with works on Ekofisk with minimal risk, which is a vital consideration in any decommissioning project."

Marine Contractors formerly commenced

operations as an individual business division,

using three fully owned and operated SSCVs

that had become in high demand in the North

Sea in previous years. Always mindful of staying

ahead of the industry, the business converted

one of these vessels, the SCCV Balder, into an

advanced deepwater construction vessel (DCV)

in order to cope with increased market demand.

Subsequently, over the last decade HMC has

become a recognised expert in the deepwater

field, executing many unique projects, setting

a number of industry records and establishing

itself as a leader in deepwater full field

developments (including subsea infrastructure).

Today, HMC’s services can loosely be divided

into four categories – decommissioning and

removal, heavy-lift, float-over and the previously

mentioned deepwater work. For the latter

the company has the capacity to provide a

complete solution to clients, encompassing

design, procurement, and installation and

testing of infrastructure used in deepwater

field developments. Through more than five

decades the business has developed tried and

tested methods of operating, using installation

procedures that enable operators to install

deepwater infrastructure while maintaining

excellent safety standards.

The company offers a number of key products

in the deepwater field: mooring systems,

export pipelines, flowlines and risers, in-line

structures and subsea tie-backs and installation

of floaters, and currently operates two deepwater

construction vessels. At present a third vessel,

the DCV Aegir, is under construction and is due

to become operational in the Gulf of Mexico

towards the end of 2013.

More recently, the decommissioning sector

has been a fast growing industry through the

global oil and gas sector, and it is one that HMC

has been able to turn its experience and skill

to easily. In this field the company performs

turnkey platform decommissioning and removal

services such as topsides removal and offloading,

jacket preparatory work, pile cutting/soil plug

removal/conductor removal, and jacket removal

and offloading. All of these services are carried

out using reverse installation methods.

HMC is currently working on the removal

of platforms in the Ekofisk development in the

North Sea, which is the largest contract ever

awarded in HMC’s history. ConocoPhillips

Skandinavia contracted HMC to decommission,

remove and dispose of/recycle nine platforms

Heerema Marine Contractors

(HMC) is a world leading marine contractor

operating in the international offshore oil

and gas industry. The business, which is

headquartered in Leiden in the Netherlands,

excels at transporting, installing and removing

offshore facilities such as fixed and floating

structures, subsea pipelines and other

infrastructure in shallow, deep and ultra-deep

waters. The company has expertise across

the complete supply chain and prides itself

on its excellence in project management and

engineering delivered by a passionate and

experienced workforce.

HMC belongs to the Heerema Group, and

can trace its history back to the late 1940s/

early 1950s when the company was originally

carrying out construction and installation work

in South America. From this initial work the

business has built continued experience in

working with drilling and construction platforms

and installations, registering many important

developments in the industry. For example, in the

1960s the company was a pioneer in the use of

crane vessels in the fledgling North Sea oil and gas

industry, it also commissioned and successfully

operated the world’s first semi-submersible crane

vessels (SSCVs) to increase heavy-lift capacity and

operability in the North Sea.

While these developments occurred largely

under the Heerema umbrella, in 1997 Heerema

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Completeexpertise

Heerema Marine Contractorsheerema.com

ServicesMarine contractor

HMC’s projects, safety is paramount throughout

the operation and all work is being carried out

to the highest Norwegian standards. Alongside

the Ekofisk project HMC has also carried out

decommissioning work at NW Hutton, Mars,

Froy and Brent Spar in the North Sea.

Whichever area of the industry HMC works

in, its dedication to quality, safety and the highest

skills and techniques available place it among the

leaders in its field. Looking ahead, the business

retains this position by staying aware of market

developments or growing market sectors –

decommissioning being a good example of this.

Alongside decommissioning, deepwater and

ultra-deepwater operations are also planned

to grow in line with the industry and at the

end of 2012 HMC signed a worldwide alliance

agreement with Technip in order to combine

capabilities and develop in this market. Being

recognised as a skilled and experienced partner

in each of the markets it operates in stands

HMC in good stead to continue developing as a

successful business in the future.

located in the Greater Ekofisk area between

2008 and 2014, with all work scheduled to

be carried out by the SSCV Hermod, SSCV

Thialf and DCV Balder vessels. Representing a

challenging undertaking, the project is divided

into four phases:

Phase one 6 – platform surveys by helicopter

6 Phase two – platform made safe (and hook

down preparations)

Phase three 6 – topsides removal and disposal

Phase four 6 – jacket removal and disposal

Being in the North Sea means that the

project is being carried out in particularly harsh

conditions. The water depth on location varies

between 70 and 90 metres, and the jacket

weights vary between 3000 and 9000 metric

tonnes and have been removed according to the

Single Piece Jacket removal methodology. Each

of the nine platforms to be decommissioned has

numerous topsides, varying between six and

16 per platform, with the topsides weighing

between 100 and 200 metric tonnes. As with all

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More recently, the decommissioning sector has been a fast growing industry through the global oil and gas sector, and it is one that HMC has been able to turn its experience and skill to easily

PROFILE HEErEma marinE ContraCtors

http://www.arr-carib.co.uk

ASCO is the leading provider of integrated

offshore support and logistics services to the

oil and gas industry. The company, which has

operations in the UK, Norway, Holland, the US,

Canada, Australia, India, the Caspian, Oman,

Singapore and Trinidad, prides itself on tirelessly

working to provide the best possible customer

service levels. This aim, combined with the

highest standards of quality, safety and efficiency,

underpins all of ASCO’s extensive services.

“As a sales and services company, customer

service has to be at the forefront of everything

we do,” confirms Andrew MacDonald, CEO

of ASCO Europe. “Not only do we constantly

examine the way in which we can improve our

services but we continuously look to ways in

which we can make it safer, more reliable, more

efficient and effective in order to reduce the risk

that customers import into their operations by

doing business with us.

“We play a role that is often ‘mission critical’,

serviceit may be low profile, but we provide services

that are essential to our clients, so from the start

this approach has been key to our success and

the way that we have evolved as a business. So,

we’ve built upon a reasonably simple business

model of adding value to our customer services

by providing clients with the benefits of our

fully integrated offering. We can leverage those

services by focusing on extremely high levels of

client service and the management of safety in

the workplace.”

This attitude has been crucial to ASCO’s

success and instrumental in building the

company’s excellent reputation in the industry,

which is respected by clients worldwide. “We

have worked hard to build lasting relationships,”

Andrew says. “In fact, in some respects it is

easier to name who we don’t work with than

who we do, but our customer base covers all

of the key operators in the market, as well as

a large majority of the tier one contractors. As

a service company, however, we feel that it is

important to always look to ways of improving

our services, and this is something that we have

really worked on recently.

“Over the last 12 months for example, we

have really ramped up our whole attitude

to customer service even further. For a long

time we have built our business on the solid

principle of delivery of value for our customers

- if it doesn’t deliver value to our clients then

we don’t want to think about it. So, this year

we have enhanced our customer service

First class

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PROFILE ASCO

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ARR CRAib TRAnspoRT LTdARR Craib was established in 1983. Today it has a turnover of £45 million+, 370 employees and operates the largest general transport fleet in Scotland. It has bases in Aberdeen, Cumbernauld and NE England. ARR Craib enjoys an exemplary record on safety and legal compliance.The company understands the unique demands placed on the transport provider by oil and gas, and believes that with its experience it is uniquely placed to meet those while ensuring its clients’ objectives are met.ARR Craib is proud to have provided ASCO with transport services for over ten years.

ASCOascoworld.com

ServicesIntegrated logistics solutions

the risk for all involved. We really took a step

back to look how we could make this safer and

after significant investment the system has been

introduced to the market with much success.

The key aim was finding the balance in reducing

the risk to the personnel involved, while at the

same time improving the standards of service

that the customer gets in order to maximise their

asset utilisation.”

Related to waste management and recycling

is the growing North Sea decommissioning

market, an area that ASCO has been closely

involved with. Not only is the business well

placed to grow with the sector it is also a

member of industry body Decom North Sea.

“Decommissioning is an interesting market,”

says Andrew. “It is certainly going to grow and

when it does, as a service company it is our job

to ensure that the infrastructure is available on a

commercially sensitive basis by making certain

that we have the people, the technology and

the preparedness to assist and support in a cost-

effective, efficient and sound and safe fashion.”

Decommissioning is set to be just one area

of growth for ASCO moving forward, as the

business continues to flourish in each of its

four regional sectors; Europe, the Americas,

Australasia and the Middle East/North Africa.

“In Europe, in terms of the future we will

continue to focus on service development and

new ways of improving our customer service

as well as our internal processes and employee

communications and development. We are the

market leader and we have to continue to work

very hard to maintain that position for the long-

term. The bottom line is that we are a service

company, and so we must always be improving

that service to remain competitive. We have

a fantastic pool of knowledge and experience

in the business and so if we can continue to

understand what our customers want, and how

we can deliver that, then I have no doubt that

we will grow as a business,” Andrew concludes.

team quite considerably by investing in and

recruiting managers that have specific skills in

certain areas of customer service development.

We’ve implemented ‘client advisory boards’

where we listen to our customers in terms of

gathering feedback, and we have also launched

our Knowledge Zone, which establishes

and identifies best practices, processes and

procedures all built into a commercially

attractive model. All of this enables our clients

to get the advantages of ASCO’s experience and

shared learning over the years.”

ASCO’s experience, skill and knowledge

extends across its service portfolio, enabling the

business to provide a fully integrated range of

logistics services both on-and offshore. “In terms

of our European capabilities we have a fairly

comprehensive network of bases that we provide

our services from,” Andrew comments. “We

operate from a number of locations stretching

from the Shetlands, down past Peterhead and

Aberdeen in Scotland and Great Yarmouth, and

these are our key onshore supply bases. In the

UK we also have a presence in Edinburgh where

we are developing our capabilities in the onshore

drilling services and support market, as well as

an advanced waste treatment transfer station

that supports our environmental management

business in Shetland.

“On the continent, we have a base in Ijmuiden

in the Netherlands, from which we principally

support drill units with their waste activities

in the Dutch sector, and we also have a strong

presence in the Norwegian market supporting

oil and gas operations on the Norwegian

Continental Shelf (NCS). This stretches from

the South right up to the North of the country,

where we are well positioned to capitalise on the

future developments in the Arctic regions. Our

services really cover the full chain, so offshore

logistics services, onshore quayside support

- supported by extensive warehousing and

management systems, personnel management

and placement services, ships agency solutions,

training and support operations, and then

ancillary services such as cranage, road transport,

software services and inventory management.”

The business is also involved in waste

management, which it provides through

Enviroco, its specialist environmental services

business. “Most recently Enviroco has brought

an award winning tank cleaning system to the

market,” highlights Andrew. “Tank cleaning

is an extremely hazardous operation onboard

vessels and this new system is all about reducing

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ASCO’s experience, skill and knowledge extends across its service portfolio, enabling the business to provide a fully integrated range of logistics services both on-and offshore

PROFILE asCo

Simon StorageSimon’s UK Terminals have the capacity to manage wastes from all kinds of industrial processes including the storage, receipt and dispatch of wastes arising from North Sea offshore oil and gas production. Enviroco, in partnership with Simon Storage, has developed a comprehensive solution for the management of large volumes of produced water resulting from oil and gas exploration, production and decommissioning operations in the North Sea, ensuring the safe onshore transfer and temporary storage of produced water.

located, but also comprehensively equipped.

As part of its oil and gas provision, Enviroco

is very active in the decommissioning of oil and

gas facilities. This process is necessary when

the structures or fields have reached the end of

their useful life. Various options are assessed

before a decommissioning plan is created,

which then must be approved by government

before implementation. When undertaking

decommissioning projects for the removal

and disposal of installations, careful planning,

organisation and communication is critical to

ensure successful and incident-free completion

of the works.

The business has developed a comprehensive

offering to support the decommissioning of

redundant offshore oil and gas structures at

the end of their life span. Its specialised waste

management package for decommissioning can

be delivered through its quayside facilities located

in Aberdeen, Peterhead and Great Yarmouth.

This can also be organised through Enviroco’s

wider partner network at any port reception

facility, including locations such as the Shetland

Isles, or the North East of England. Finally it is

also able to work closely with its parent company,

ASCO Group, to provide a total supply chain

solution to decommissioning projects.

With increasing experience in this developing

field, Enviroco is able to offer a safe and

environmentally-focused solution that will provide

clients with technical support and guidance in this

challenging and complex process.

Enviroco is also keen to share its experience

and highlight its expertise in decommissioning

in waste management, and at an event in May

2013 the company’s bid and marketing manager,

Graham Heaton, spoke about the topic at the

East of England Energy Group’s (EEEGR)

Special Interest Group (SIG).

The event took place at the Orbis Energy

Centre in Lowestoft, and also featured talks

with representatives from AKD Engineering

and Claxton. This was the third meeting of the

SIG, which was formed to raise awareness of the

business opportunities of Southern North Sea

(SNS) decommissioning for organisations within

the East of England.

Graham Heaton talked about Enviroco’s

experience of managing waste from

decommissioning projects, and the company’s

redevelopment of its Great Yarmouth waste site.

Established in 2001, this waste transfer and

treatment centre services the needs of the oil

and gas sector, as well as other markets such as

Providing innovative waste

management solutions, Enviroco is one of the

leading waste management companies in the

UK, with increasing worldwide capabilities. Its

main aim is to deliver value, with unrivalled

focus on safety and environmental performance.

The services available from Enviroco fall into

three areas - waste and resource management,

industrial services and oil and gas. In the latter

sector, the company is the leading provider

of waste management and industrial cleaning

services to the oil and gas industry in the UK.

Indeed, since its formation in 1998, it has

continually developed the business in response to

the dynamic and challenging needs of the oil and

gas industry – and as a result, it has become the

recognised expert within this specialised field. Its

operations, facilities, processes and systems have

all been specifically designed and constructed

to meet the rigorous standards within the oil

and gas sector, and the ‘Enviroco package’

encompasses all of the waste management,

industrial cleaning and specialised services and

support that the oil and gas industry demands.

The company has extensive oil and gas sector

support assets, including its purpose-built waste

management centres, direct discharge quayside

locations and unique oil and gas technologies.

Furthermore, its specialised treatment

technologies for drilling muds, slops and

effluents, as well as its new Naturally Occurring

Radioactive Material (NORM) de-scaling facility,

ensure that its facilities are not only conveniently

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waste lineWatching the

PROFILE EnViroCo

Envirocoenviroco.co.uk

ServicesWaste management

Simon Storage facilities. These facilities, located

on the east coast of England, allow for deliveries

of large quantities by vessel, direct to a single

offload point.

This specialised service offering, in partnership

with Simon Storage, further demonstrates

Enviroco’s commitment to supporting the

oil and gas market with innovative, safe and

compliant solutions for the management of

waste materials from exploration, production

and decommissioning activities.

It is clear that Enviroco has worked

incredibly hard since it was founded in order

to create invaluable waste management

solutions. But perhaps most importantly, the

company recognises that its people are the

key to the business’ success. As a result, it

employs a highly skilled workforce, including

some of the industry’s highest achievers. The

company is rightly proud of its people, and

their aspirations to succeed – and it actively

supports and develops all staff, from shop floor

to boardroom.

energy, retail, manufacturing and education and

local authorities. The site was upgraded in order

to meet increasing demand.

Alongside decommissioning, Enviroco also

offers several other services to oil and gas

customers, such as produced water management,

drill cuttings, drilling mud treatment plant and

mercury management.

The produced water management solution

has been developed in partnership with Simon

Storage. The two companies have created a

comprehensive solution for the management

of large volumes of the resulting produced

water from North Sea oil and gas exploration,

production and decommissioning activities.

Some produced water may not meet the

stringent offshore standards to be discharged

to sea and so will be required to be transferred

onshore for treatment and disposal. In some

cases, produced water may also contain NORM.

Enviroco’s produced water management

service ensures the safe onshore transfer and

temporary storage of produced water, using

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Alongside decommissioning, Enviroco also offers several other services to oil and gas customers, such as produced water management, drill cuttings, drilling mud treatment plant and mercury management

PROFILE EnViroCo

The group has enjoyed incredible success

over the last ten years, with turnover

exceeding £50 million in 2011. As demand

has increased for its high quality, innovative

and versatile products, the group has invested

in new yards, offices and facilities across the

globe, as Hayley elaborates: “We needed larger

facilities to continue our work; in July 2011

we moved into a new purpose built head office

and yard in Kintore, Aberdeenshire, which

was followed by a new purpose-built yard and

offices in Perth, Australia in January 2012, a

new office complex was opened in Tananger,

Norway in March 2012 and new offices were

opened in Dubai and Abu Dhabi in September

2012, and we have just moved to a bigger yard

in Singapore earlier this year, things are very

positive for the Ferguson Group.”

Dedicated to offering a flexible and personal

service, Ferguson Group’s success has been

achieved by listening to the market and also the

unique demands of its customers, which has

resulted in high quality, innovative products

that improve the safety, comfort and efficiency

of those working in the oil and gas sector.

The group recently announced a new product

at the 14th Asian Oil, Gas & Petrochemical

Engineering (OGA) exhibition and conference,

which took place in Malaysia from June 5 – 7 at

the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre.

Headquartered in Aberdeen,

privately owned group of companies Ferguson

Group was established in 1976 to service the

container and accommodation demands of

companies in the North Sea oil and gas industry.

Today the group employs over 180 people at

its offices and facilities around the world. “Our

main bases are in the UK, Norway, Singapore,

Australia and the Middle East,” states Hayley

Yule, group-marketing manager at Ferguson

Group. “We also have partners in Kenya,

Ghana, Kazakhstan, Trinidad, India, Indonesia,

Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, East Timor and

New Zealand.”

futureInvesting in the

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Ferguson Groupferguson-group.com

ServicesSpecialist in the rental of containers, refrigeration/chiller, accommodation and engineering modules

The exhibition gave Ferguson Group

Singapore the opportunity to showcase its fleet

and introduce the new six metre accommodation

module that is specifically designed for

customers working in southern hemisphere

conditions. “All of our accommodation modules

are certified to DNV 2.7-1 / EN 12079 and are

designed and manufactured in-house to IS0

9001, ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001 standards,

so we control the design and quality of the

modules ourselves. We are very flexible and

listen to our customers, working alongside

them and taking on-board their comments

to meet their requirements.” The new six-

metre accommodation module offers a safe

and comfortable living space for two to four

personnel through the development of a new

internal fit out, an attractive and relaxing interior

and dual or individual air-conditioning systems

with individual thermostatic control.

With an increase in upgrade and maintenance

work being carried out in the North Sea and

on an international scale, Ferguson Group has

been offering its services to major oil and gas

companies around the world; accommodation

projects have included a 48-person

accommodation complex complete with an

office and medic module, as well as a galley and

food store module for the Angel platform in the

North West shelf of Australia. All modules were

fitted with en-suite facilities, including under

floor heating in wet units, desk and seating

areas, two sets of bunks, high quality fittings and

fixtures and contemporary colour schemes. All

cabins were fitted with advanced integrated split

HVAC systems and a PLC (Programme Logic

Control) fire and gas detection system.

Focused on the continued innovation and

evolution of its product range, a recent product

to be launched is the group’s new six-metre dual

zone refrigerated/chiller container from IceBlue

Refrigeration Offshore, a specialist in providing

refrigeration and freezer solutions and a member

of Ferguson Group. Following extensive market

research, the new product was developed to

offer a flexible solution for transporting a range

of perishable foodstuff with specific storage

condition requirements in one container.

“This dual zone container offers customers

two compartments, so they could have one

refrigerator area and another for frozen products.

The container operates this from memory, with

temperatures ranging from minus 30 to plus 20

degrees,” highlights James Scullion, Business

Development – IceBlue Refrigeration Offshore.

A major product for the group, which boasts a

wide range of innovative features, is its offshore

container division’s closed mud skips. Designed

to improve health and safety standards and the

efficient containment of drilling waste for its

transportation to treatment or disposal sites, the

DNV 2.7-1/EN 12079 fully certified 3.6 cubic

metre closed mud skips are also designed to

meet NORSOK S-002N requirements to improve

health and safety. The product has been designed

to reduce the risk of injury to personnel using

this product; it has a lightweight aluminium

lid to prevent injuries when it is opened and

has been developed to ensure there is no need

for personnel to climb on it, which eliminates

the risk of falls, and is designed so that its

forklift pockets prevent any foreign bodies from

the ground falling on personnel when being

transported.

On top of the health and safety benefits,

the group has looked at issues in the oil and

gas industry and found solutions, such as

a lid sealing system that seals the unit and

prevents water entering the mud skip during

transportation and a drainage plug to remove

any excess fluid, thus preventing the mud skip

going over its payload weight.

Following an impressive 35 years of growth

in the business, the group’s strategic plan is to

continue its international expansion and also

develop a foothold wherever there is demand.

These recent investments and developments in

new facilities and offices, as well as its innovative

product range, will enable Ferguson Group to

continue meeting the increasing demands of its

customers well into the future.

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proFilE FErguson group

A major product for the group, which boasts a wide range of innovative features, is its offshore container division’s closed mud skips. Designed to improve health and safety standards and the efficient containment of drilling waste for its transportation to treatment or disposal sites

Megarme, which was

founded in 1993 in the UAE, is

a specialist rope access solutions

provider that offers turnkey

inspection, repair and maintenance

services to clients throughout the Middle East.

The company currently operates from offices in

Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Qatar, covering the wider

GCC through agency agreements, and it has

plans in place to open a fourth facility in Saudi

Arabia in 2014. Megarme serves clients through

two distinct divisions - the access division and

the inspection and engineering division.

This year marks Megarme’s 20th anniversary,

and as managing director Billy Harkin explains,

it has built a strong reputation based on a

number of key factors: “Reliability, quality and

safety,” he says. “We have consistently been

delivering project after project on time and to

budget for two decades now and our clients

know that they can always rely on us to get the

job done. We have always been a strong brand

synonymous with these qualities, but it was a

management buyout in 2006 and the subsequent

setup of the divisional structure in the business

that has allowed the group to achieve the

considerable growth that we’ve had, and to

position ourselves as a leader and innovator

within our chosen industries.”

Throughout this more recent period, Megarme

has aligned its objectives and consolidated its

business in order to achieve continued growth.

Importantly, as Billy explains, the business has

built longstanding relationships with clients,

a factor that he earmarks as important to the

company’s success. “We have seen a lot of

competitors come and go during this time,

but I believe that clients want to deal with an

organisation that they can build long-term

relations with for many years to come.

“We have ensured excellent client retention

within all sectors, which historically are

shipyards, rig operators, asset owners and

construction companies who have to work

within tight timelines and budgets,” he

continues. “We represent a one-stop-shop for

all of their work at height requirements, which

not only means single source contracting for

ease of business, but results in other benefits,

such as huge cost savings, a lower headcount on

site, one time mobilisation/demobilisation and

less bed and deck space required offshore. We

always work closely with our clients to meet their

objectives and understand their needs in terms of

their main drivers, so time, money and quality.”

Operationally, each of the company’s two

divisions provides distinct advantages to clients.

“The evolution of our access division has meant

that we now look at complete access solutions

from a 360 degree perspective,” says Billy. “Our

philosophy is simple, we try to cater to the

complete access requirements of our clients.

So, that means consulting with them to ensure

they are always getting the best solution. For

example, we can facilitate a turnkey solution

to even the most complex access challenge,

whether it is conventional rope access, tension

net and deck systems, training solutions, or even

a hybrid of all of the above. In conjunction with

this we can also provide all of the trades and

disciplines required to execute any job scope,

and can also allow third party services to gain

entry and egress the area if necessary.”

Megarme has invested considerably in its

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areasAccess all

proFilE MEgarME

Megarmemegarme.com

ServicesSpecialist rope access solutions

inspection and engineering division in order to

construct and approve an RT bunker facility that

would position it as a first tier inspection and

engineering contractor. “This is a mandatory

requirement to store and transport the isotopes

necessary to carry out radiographic testing,

which is one of the NDT disciplines required

under the long-term inspection contracts in our

region,” highlights Billy. “The process took some

time and investment for the construction, as

well as the stringent new regulations that were

being implemented by the newly formed Federal

Authority for Nuclear Regulation (FANR), but

since then we have secured a couple of long-term

inspection contracts with Occidental in Qatar and

Total ABK in Abu Dhabi as well as other work

with international and local EPC contractors.”

Megarme is highly reputed for its safe, reliable

and high quality approach, a reputation that the

company maintains through stringent training

at its own state-of-the-art facility. “The Megarme

Training Center (MTC) is located in Dubai

Investment Park and is the best of its kind in the

region,” Billy adds. “It is an 18 metre high facility

that caters to the highest IRATA standards and

can be used for basic or bespoke WAH training

packages.”

Although Megarme has only been operational

for two decades, Billy admits that further growth

is high on the agenda. “As we approach the

halfway mark in 2013 our main focus is that we

stay on track to achieve our ambitious growth

targets, whilst staying within our budgets for the

year. As mentioned, we are opening our new

areasAccess all

office in Saudi Arabia in 2014. Its a huge market

and a notoriously difficult one to penetrate, but

the regional knowledge that we have within the

GCC gives us a huge advantage to overcome

the many challenges that are inherent with

operating a specialist services company in this

part of the world.

“We are also being presented with increasing

opportunities in North and West Africa, which

are being explored, and we have had a JV in

India for the last two years as well. Also, we

work in the Caspian region through our partners

there, mobilising projects in Azerbaijan and

Kazakhstan, which are other growth areas for

us. Ultimately we want to continue to innovate

and grow at the trajectory we have been and

prove our replicable business model works

in a number of other countries in the MENA

region. I think that the next decade will be very

interesting, and we are poised to accelerate

our growth and potential from the strong

foundations that we have established over the

last two decades,” he concludes.

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Megarme is highly reputed for its safe, reliable and high quality approach, a reputation that the company maintains through stringent training at its own state-of-the-art facility

in completely new

facilities at the Qidong yard,

which took under two years to complete before

we launched in 2008. Today our core focus is

the oil and gas industry, where we provide LEG

carriers, LPG carriers and LNG middle-scale

carriers. We are also focused on the big offshore

equipment side such as large-scale cranes for

offloading and load outs in the offshore industry;

these range from 800 tonnes capacity to 5000

tonnes capacity. On the other hand, we also

work on topsides for vessels such as FPSOs and

FSOs and our shipyard is focused specifically on

topside process modules,” explains Kevin Zhu,

commercial director of SOE.

With a long-term agenda from the start to

join forces with strong, reputable clients, the

company has already established more than two

years experience and developed its business with

major companies in the market.

A major development for the company is

its recently signed high-profile contract with

Evergas for the design and construction of a

series of DRAGON 2750cbm medium-sized

LNG carriers. The state-of-the-art vessels are

constructed from an entirely new design and

were developed in-house by SOE’s design

department alongside Evergas. SOE’s Qidong

construction base will also design, engineer

and fabricate the LNG cargo tanks in full

co-operation with Wartsila and Wartsila Oil &

Gas Systems for the supply and installation of

the dual-fuel engines, gas plant system and LNG

fuel system on the vessels. “Evergas has been our

client since 2010, so we have learned to work

together for this LNG project,” states Kevin.

“This is also a one-off project with Wartsila,

where we are working together to deliver a

high-quality dual-fuel powered vessel that will

be a landmark in the industry.” In addition to

LNG, the ships will have the capabilities to carry

and reliquefy Ethane and LPG with the cargo-

handling package that Wartsila is supplying.

Anticipated to be groundbreaking and due

for delivery in 2015, the bespoke DRAGON

27500 LNG carriers are designed with features

Privately owned engineering and

manufacturing firm Sinopacific Offshore &

Engineering Co Ltd (SOE) has established solid

foundations and a strong reputation since its

inception in 2007. With a product portfolio

that spans four major sectors of the oil and

gas industry, gas transportation and storage,

offshore drilling, offshore cranes and offshore

production, and focuses on high technology

productions, positive partnerships with

established players and state-of-the-art facilities,

SOE anticipates a rise into the ranks as a key

Chinese player in this market.

“SOE is a young company, which was

established in 2006, since then we have invested

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Sinopacific Offshore & Engineeringsinopacificoffshore.com

ProductsGas carriers, offshore cranes, offshore drilling and FPSO modules

engineering and procurement in preparation for

the vessel’s delivery into the market in the first

quarter of 2015.

Benefitting from its diversity, SOE has been

focusing on offshore equipment contracts while

the market witnessed a lull in activity. “The market

has been very good for us, albeit a bit quiet for the

industry as a whole in the last two or three years.

During this time we have focused not only on

gas carriers, but also on some offshore equipment

projects. In the next few months we are expecting

to begin a number of projects in the international

market,” enthuses Kevin.

Keen to continue developing its staff and

service offering on an international scale, the

company’s shipyard was recently qualified by

Total for its quality control and quality systems,

thus allowing SOE to enter into a new phase of

development. “Over the next three to five years

we are looking to improve our processing and

engineering capability so we can be a qualified

supply chain partner for all major oil companies

and oil suppliers,” concludes Kevin.

specifically tailored for safe, efficient and

environmentally friendly operations. These

include LNG dual-fuel propulsion and an

optimised ECO hull design that will lower

emissions significantly, while the ballast water

treatment system has been designed to protect

the marine environment. To certify the green

vessel profile, the ships will receive Clean Ship

Notation, EEDI compliance, Green Passport,

NOx and Tier III compliance. “This is going to

be the first middle-sized LNG vessel in the world,

so it is a major current focus for us,” highlights

Kevin. “This is a tunkey project to provide the

design, construction and delivery of the vessel.

The design of the vessels is completely new and

was developed in-house, we will also design,

engineer and fabricate the LNG cargo tanks,

which are unique in the market. Using our own

engineering team, we have focused on training

our personnel in specialist skills to ensure we are

fully prepared for this kind of special project.”

With steel cutting due to begin at the end of

2013, the company is currently working on the

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SOG_almaco_living_quarters_200x280mm.indd 1 6.5.2013 14.05

accommodate tankers of up to 110,000 tonnes,

whilst Oil Terminal 2 has four berths and a draft

of 18-metres allowing larger vessels to call.

Container operations at the port began in

1982, since which time it has built up a long

expertise in road relay, consolidation and

deconsolidation, sea/air cargo, and transhipment

services. The Port’s alliance with DP World as

the concessionaries for container cargo has also

strengthened its position amongst the global

network of container ports.

In terms of more general cargo, the Port also

handles a significant proportion of the steel

billets, steel bars, copper concentrate, chrome

ore, iron ore, coal, bagged aluminium hydroxide,

and industrial salt which moves to and from

the UAE, GCC countries and beyond. A major

proportion of project cargo associated with

the UAE Federal Qidfa Desalination plant was

handled successfully through the Port.

As well as a paved storage area of 500,000

square metres which can accommodate general

and project cargo, cars, and containers, the Port

has additional compacted land of approximately

150,000 square metres available for temporary

pre-shipment or post-shipment storage.

Also present at the port is Fujairah Anchorage,

which offers an efficient and varied one-stop-

shop service for up to 100 vessels at any time.

Calling vessels can secure bunkering, ship supply,

ship repair, spare parts, and inspection services,

as well as crew changes to and from anchorage.

In order to keep accommodating the growing,

and diverse, volumes that look to take advantage

of its attractive location, the Port of Fujairah has

long subscribed to a strategy of investment. It

is not only the Authority itself though that sees

the benefit of this approach, private external

The Port of Fujairah is the only

multi-purpose port on the eastern seaboard

of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Located

approximately 70 nautical miles from the

Straits of Hormuz, the Port is positioned at the

crossroads of shipping lines between east and

west making it one of the Emirate’s most vital

facilities, as well as an important hub for the

market activities of the Indian sub-continent and

East Africa.

Construction of the port initially began in

1978 as part of the economic development of

the UAE, with full operations beginning in 1983,

giving it a long heritage in port and terminal

operations. Since then the Port has embarked on

a continuous process of enhancement to both its

facilities, and comprehensive range of services.

These include handling of general cargo, bulk

cargo, wet bulk cargo, container activity, and

facilities for small supply craft users and agents.

The Port benefits from a draft of 15-metres and

1.4 kilometre long main quay. It has a number

of different berths for container, general, and

bulk cargo, and two oil terminals commissioned

in 2006 and 2010 respectively. Oil Terminal

1 is home to three berths with the ability to

facilityVital

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Port of Fujairah Authorityfujairahport.ae

ServicesMulti-purpose port

to cater for trading and bunkering activity, and

new terminal facilities. This is a particular point

of focus for the Port which aims to raise capacity

from around six million cubic metres to ten

million by 2014. This is in response to booming

demand from the Middle East and Asia, which

could see the Port of Fujairah rival the world’s

top bunkering hubs.

With additional berths also scheduled for

delivery, and projects like the ADCOP coming

to fruition, oil is clearly a target market for

the port when it comes to making the best

use of its position. Also in the pipeline is the

new Fujairah Refinery, which is expected to

become operational around the end of 2016.

It is designed initially to produce 200,000 b/d

per day, primarily using feedstock from the

ADCOP, but can also import different grades of

crude through the port. Planning has not only

focused on the facility itself, but also the services

required around it, particularly if products are to

be exported.

Even those sub-trends such as LNG, which

the Port may not be able to cater for directly

through its berth and storage structure, are still

being fulfilled in the area as a result of private

investment. At present a separate LNG facility

to the north of the port is being developed by

Mubadalla and IPIC, and as for all commercial

activity in Fujairah waters the Port will supply

the necessary marine services.

Whilst the Port of Fujairah clearly has a lot

to offer its customer base, its success is not only

down to its favourable location. From the very

beginning the port has grown alongside its market,

enhancing and adding new capabilities to mirror

the requirements it sees. By having a structure that

allows for this evolution, and the determination

to succeed, the port has become a strong marine

logistics hub. Although the acceleration of

investment has seen it become an increasingly

internationally important oil centre, the Port is

not focusing on growth in one area through the

sacrifice of others. As such, it continues to build

on both its oil-based and non-oil activities to

ensure an enduring high level of service.

companies also fund developments within the

port and surrounding area.

One notable project has been the completion

of the Abu Dhabi Crude Oil Pipeline (ADCOP),

which will carry between one and 1.5 million

b/d per day via a 360-kilometre pipeline. This

feeds into 12 million bbl of storage capacity, and

then onto export through three subsea pipelines

and three single point mooring buoys for deep

water loading.

Another recent development is the UAE

Federal Grain Reserve, which in its first phase

contains 250,000 tonnes of grain silo storage,

conveyors, and load and discharge arms. Plans

are already in place for a second phase of

development that will see this capacity increased

to 750,000 tonnes.

Earlier this year a new observation tower was

inaugurated at the port in the midst of Fujairah

Bunkering Week 2013. Fifty-three metres in

height, the tower is shaped like the letter F of

the Port of Fujairah logo and equipped with

radars, navigation systems, and a state-of-the-art

system for calling vessels. It was constructed as

part of an ongoing programme to enhance the

port and increase its capacity to accommodate

more inbound and outbound operations.

The tower will also help the Port of Fujairah

to offer customer service that is on par with

international standards.

Furthermore the port has installed eight

Tideland SB-285P lateral mark buoys north of

the port to mark a new passage where the Port

Authority provides services for the ADCOP. The

buoys are equipped with SolaNOVA-65 self-

contained LED lanterns, the first to be supplied

in the Middle East, and AIS AtoN systems to

communicate with vessels in the vicinity. This

equipment transmits a range of information such

as its position to vessels approaching the port,

and sends a remote monitoring signal back to

base. These are picked up and routed through

to the AIS display system situated in the newly-

built observation tower.

Elsewhere, private companies are continuing

with the construction of additional tank storage

With additional berths also scheduled for delivery, and projects like the ADCOP coming to fruition, oil is clearly a target market for the port when it comes to making the best use of its position

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In what appeared to be a complete

departure for the business after 28 years of

shipbuilding, in 1974 Apply Leirvik shifted its

focus over to the development of living quarter

modules for offshore platforms. Almost 40

years on this has proved to be a shrewd move,

particularly in light of the recent struggles of

the shipping sector compared with the more

buoyant oil and gas industry.

The company quickly established a reputation

for its uncompromising quality, and know-how

through the delivery of several living quarter

and utility modules throughout the 1980s

and 1990s. This includes the landmark Snorre

living quarters project, which at the time was

the largest aluminium structure ever built for

the offshore industry. It also formed the basis

for Apply Leirvik’s research and development

programme surrounding the use of aluminium

in offshore modules.

Today Apply Leirvik is the leading EPC

contractor for offshore living quarters

encompassing everything from engineering

and fabrication to assembly and installation.

Having historically concentrated on the North

Sea, when it comes to oil and gas applications

the company has arguably delivered more living

quarter modules into this region than all its

competitors put together. In fact the first ever

accommodation module delivered by Apply

Leirvik over 35 years ago is still in use today on

Statoil’s Statfjord A asset.

Of course, in the years that have followed the

requirements for offshore living quarters have

moved on significantly as managing director

Lars Solberg attests: “The standard of living has

continuously improved in terms of things like

noise reduction, safety, evacuation systems, and

Opex requirements. Living quarters today are

more sophisticated than they were even ten years

ago, and as Apply Leirvik we are known for our

quality high-end solutions. This is the reason

why our clients continue to come back to us for

their offshore living quarter needs.

“Whilst there are many companies that make

living quarters this is often as one of many other

activities. At Apply Leirvik we have one focus

only, which is living quarter modules, covering

all aspects from initial studies and FEED to

engineering and fabrication. This means that we

have developed a unique competence that none

of our competitors have,” he continues.

Furthermore in 2011 Apply Leirvik acquired a

50 per cent stake in Singapore-based Aluminium

Offshore, which is the world’s leading provider of

aluminium helicopter decks. This has given the

business another means of differentiating itself

in the market by offering integrated solutions

in living quarter modules and helicopter decks.

“Whilst we sell both steel and aluminium

quarters, we believe that the latter have some

particularly outstanding features compared

to steel,” notes Lars. “As with our aluminium

helicopter decks, they offer both weight savings

and low maintenance, and are better for usage

in cold climates so we believe there will be a

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proFIlE apply lEIrvIk

BelowLars Solberg, managing director of Apply Leirvik

Apply Leirvikapplyleirvik.no

ProductsOffshore living quarters

Therefore we will probably look to form other

partnerships and joint ventures so that we can

meet that content requirement,” he adds.

Back in its long established market of

the North Sea, Apply Leirvik has also been

successful in securing a number of project

awards on the UK and Norwegian Continental

Shelves. “In total we have around 2.6 billion

NOK of orders lined up, which is an all time

high,” highlights Lars. “Our most recent delivery

was the living quarters for the Gudrun platform

for Statoil. We had very good feedback regarding

this project due to its on time delivery and high

quality, and were even nominated for Statoil’s

HSE prize because of our excellent results on

that front.

“The analyses that we’ve seen from specialists

working on global oil and gas trends suggests

that there is going to be ongoing growth of

between three and five per cent in the market

until at least 2019. When we look at the

individual projects coming up this seems to

confirm that predication so we see a stable and

growing market in the next five years.

“At present we’re focusing on bidding for five

major upcoming projects including the Johan

Sverdrup and Johan Castberg developments

in Norway, as well as others in the UK and the

Caspian Sea. Some of these will be awarded in

2014 but this process has already begun so we

are hoping to see some success in these as well.

We are seeing a mixture of works in both mature

areas where discoveries are still being made,

and emerging markets within more challenging

locations which increases the requirements

towards living quarters,” he concludes.

growing market for aluminium living quarters.

Last year we sold 40 helicopter decks, and we

expect to surpass that figure for this year.”

Switching his focus to what has been

happening more recently in the business Lars

describes how Apply Leirvik has increased

its global penetration: “We have established

ourselves in both Canada and Houston, partially

as a result of our award of the contract to supply

living quarters to ExxonMobil’s Hebron field

in offshore New Foundland. Whilst this is a

standard modularised living quarter concept,

because of New Foundland regulations regarding

local content we have had to change our method

of working. Typically we fabricate modules at

one of our factories and then ship them for

assembly at the client’s location, but for this

project we have established a joint venture with

a local partner NECL to carry out the work.

“We believe that joint venture working will be

an ongoing trend as there are several other key

markets such as Brazil and parts of Asia where

the requirement for local content increases.

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Having historically concentrated on the North Sea, when it comes to oil and gas applications the company has arguably delivered more living quarter modules into this region than all its competitors put together. In fact the first ever accommodation module delivered by Apply Leirvik over 35 years ago is still in use today on Statoil’s Statfjord A asset

With nearly 40 years of

experience Michell Instruments is nothing

short of a global leader in the field of moisture

and humidity measurement solutions. This

is apparent in its wide range of transmitters,

instruments and system solutions designed and

manufactured in-house. Capable of measuring

dew-point, humidity, and oxygen these products

are utilised in a vast array of applications and

industries including compressed air, power

generation, petrochemical, and oil and gas.

These activities are housed within two main

divisions: Industrial Hygrometry and Process

Instrumentation. Both have continued to grow

quickly over the last five years, however the

success of the process division has recently

outpaced Michell Instruments’ traditionally strong

position in instrumentation for general industry.

“Our growth and success in Process

Instrumentation is a result of individual actions,

one of which is our high responsiveness

to sometimes invisible market swings and

changes,” notes CEO Mike Bannister. “One

such indicator is the rapidly growing demand

for IECEx certified products, to which we

responded much faster than other competitors.”

He continues: “Another example of our

innovative potential in response to customer

demand is our Field Hydrocarbon Dew-point

Analyser, the Condumax II Transportable.

What was previously always considered as a

purely online analyser is now highly mobile.

This innovative product saves money and offers

successour customers in natural gas transmission the

opportunity to maintain and validate their

pipelines wherever and whenever they want.

Knowing how much is sometimes at stake when

the quality of the transmitted gas is in question

the Condumax II Transportable is just a must

have for anyone who wants peace of mind.”

Having built its success on leading the

market with technologies for the measurement

of humidity and oxygen, Michell Instruments

is therefore always able to respond to its

customers with the right technology to fit

the specific needs of the application. “We are

always searching for newer and better options,

and our co-operation with universities and

various research institutions in the UK and

France provides us with many opportunities.

Our market research people are scanning the

industries and applications and evaluating the

synergies and benefits, and as of now we can

say that there are indeed areas at which we are

taking a closer look,” describes Mike.

“Our business model is around creating own

markets and demand. For the past five years our

strategy has been to outpace the general market

development by anticipation of the potential

changes. One of the areas that caught our attention

is the growth of renewable energies. Biomass is an

extremely interesting market for our products as

it involves humidity and oxygen measurement.

We believe that this development will continue

and offer us more opportunities in Europe and

especially in some of the BRIC countries,” he adds.

Instruments of

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www.pressure-tech.com

StainleSS Steel preSSure regulatorSDeSigneD anD manufactureD in the uk

HigH Pressure regulators• Piston sensed self-venting or non-venting• Gas or hydraulic applications• Spring or ratio loaded options• 50bar to 1380bar control ranges

NeW HigH FloW regulators• Diaphragm and piston sensed • ½” to 2” port sizes – threaded or flanged connections• Spring or dome loaded options• Unique design service for bulk industrial gas lines

aNalyser / iNstrumeNt regulators• Gas cylinder regulators• Heated regulators to ATEX & IECEx• Auto-changeover regulators• Point of use regulators

the lf-690 hyDraulic preSSure regulator

• Inlet pressures to 1380 bar (20,000 psi)

• Ceramic seat as standard, a material which lasts 5

times longer than tungsten carbide

• Superior performance compared to plastic and metal

seated regulators currently in the market

PRESSURE TECH LTD, Unit 24, Hadfield, Glossop, Derbyshire SK13 1QHTel: +44 (0)1457 899307 Fax: +44 (0)1457 899308e-mail: info@pressure-tech.com

Ceramic seat fits perfectly, increasing control

Ceramic Shuttle Ball tip wears evenly, reducing downtime

Design eliminates unstable frequency resonance

www.pressure-tech.com

Designed and built in the UK

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Pressure TechPressure Tech has developed a range of subsea pressure regulators to operate at depths up to 3000m/10,000ft using the external seawater pressure as a reference pressure with the ability to vary the set-point relative to the ambient pressure conditions. Alternatively we can offer a completely sealed spring chamber to ensure the set pressure is not affected by the external conditions. Our most recent subsea application is a hydraulic system operating at 1300m for several weeks at a time. Due to the growing demand Pressure Tech has invested in a 19.5 litre hyperbaric chamber to simulate external seawater pressure up to 300 bar whilst pressures up to 1034 bar/15,000psi are applied to the internals of the regulator. This will enable Pressure Tech to maintain complete control of not only design and manufacturing, but also in-house testing prior to shipping.

Michell Instrumentsmichell.com

ProductsMoisture and oxygen analysers

RS, is an ideal starting point. However there is

more to come, and we will very soon be offering

a calibration system for oxygen as well.”

The last year has been something of a

consolidation period for Michell Instruments

with the company using this time to readjust its

organisation and procedures to suit the increased

size of the organisation. This includes the

addition of several new highly qualified staff in

critical positions. “Although these are early days

we already can see the positive impact of this

and are convinced that this will continue in the

months to follow,” highlights Mike.

“Michell Instruments will continue to

strengthen its position in all current markets

while looking for opportunities in related

markets and industries. We certainly will not

just rely on market developments but will carry

on in creating our own business opportunities.

This could be new products, co-operation with

partners, or acquisitions. However, the focus will

stay on organic growth through innovation and

excellent service.

“We owe it to our customers and are

absolutely certain that this approach will take us

forward with double-digit growth rates.

“We have world-class, highly motivated staff

and our new organisation structures enable us to

make decisions more quickly – so we are not only

able to spot opportunities more quickly, we are

also able to take action faster than many others.

“A key target for the years to come will

certainly be to further develop the skills of our

people. As a growing organisation we know

perfectly how much effort it takes to attract top

talent and develop it to become the type of expert

our customers trust and rely on,” he concludes.

This is apparent from Michell Instruments’

recent formation of a subsidiary in Brazil.

Already a global organisation with subsidiaries

and offices in ten countries, this new entity

enables the company to fill a gap by directly

supporting and servicing products in the

entire region with its own moisture and gas

instrumentation experts. This also serves as a

strategic move for the business in anticipation of

the further development of the process industry

in South America.

Alongside measurement instrumentation,

calibration equipment is also of great

importance in the process instrumentation

sector and beyond. “Being the pioneer in

humidity measurement equipment means that

we have developed an impressive range of

calibration instruments that we use in our own

manufacturing and laboratories to ensure the

highest quality in the products we make. In the

past years this aspect of our business was not

enjoying the attention that it deserves though,”

notes Mike.

“It is a fact that when it comes to calibration

equipment for humidity we are the market

leader and the hidden champion. No one else in

the industry offers a similar variety of products,

ranging from a portable validation dew-point

meter to high precision VDS calibration system

for laboratories. It is not a great secret that

some of our competitors use our equipment

in their own manufacturing processes – which

is something we are naturally quite proud of.

One of our future moves will be to promote

our capabilities and the necessity of regular

recalibration to our customers. Our recent

product, the chilled mirror hygrometer S8000

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Being the pioneer in humidity measurement equipment means that we have developed an impressive range of calibration instruments that we use in our own manufacturing and laboratories to ensure the highest quality in the products we make

Jian Feng Sling is a leading

manufacturer and supplier of a wide range of

lifting and rigging products such as wire rope,

wire rope slings, chain slings, sling fittings,

lifting equipment, synthetic slings, tie downs

and accessories.

“Jian Feng is a manufacturer and supplier

of an integrated range of lifting and rigging

products,” says Clarence Cui, director of

overseas sales at Jian Feng Sling. “We are

also a solutions provider for many difficult

tasks in lifting operations. Our 30 years in the

industry has given us enormous experience

and knowledge in supplying different fields

with the right products and technical services.

Our objective is to continuously improve in

providing the industry with better services and

higher levels of safety.

“Our products are not only used in the

offshore oil and gas industry, but also in a range

of other sectors such as shipbuilding, ports,

transportation, construction and mining,” he

adds. “Jian Feng is a well renowned brand in

China that has a reputation for the high quality

that we inject into the industry here. Alongside

that presence in our home market we are

also stretching ourselves to a growing extent

internationally by looking to gain recognition for

our reliable and quality products.”

As Clarence explains, the company has

considerable experience in the industry,

which means that it is able to meet the

most demanding quality requirements of its

customers. “Culturally, the commitment to

product quality management from everyone

here in Jian Feng has been the key to our

competitiveness throughout the years,”

he comments.

“When it comes to that quality, our slogan is

‘Our Service, Your Safety’. In the industries that

we are dealing with, safety is always the first

priority. You have to fully recognise this fact

and the needs of your customer, and build your

image through strong and consistent product

quality and reliability. Trust is something that has

to be built through time, and this is what we do

on a day-to-day basis.”

In order to maintain such high standards in

its products Jian Feng employs skilled technical

experts and engineers, many of whom are

situated at its state-of-the-art testing facility.

“Technically we have the most advanced

in-house testing centre in China, facilitated with

both hardware and software to perform a series

of quality tests including tensile strength, break

load, elongation, fatigue and hardness etc.,”

says Clarence. “This ensures that all products

supplied by Jian Feng are not only manufactured

according to the relevant standards but have also

gone through the necessary tests to prove their

safety level. Third party certification testing from

DNV, ABS, Lloyds can also be easily performed

here as well.”

Jian Feng carries out a great deal of work in the

offshore sectors, providing a range of handling

and rigging solutions to clients such as CNOOC

(China National Offshore Oil Corporation),

COSL (China Oilfield Services Limited), Saipem

Singapore, CIMC (China International Marine

Container), and CIMC Raffles.

“We have undertaken a range of projects with

these clients,” Clarence explains. “For example,

in November 2012, Jian Feng designed and

provided a testing solution for CACT operators

group on eight pieces of FPSO mooring wire

rope slings. CACT is a joint venture company

by CNOOC, ENI, Chevron and Texaco, and we

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Strength and

proFilE Jian FEng Sling

Jian Feng Slingjfsling.com

ServicesLifting and rigging equipment

provider in China.

“Building a brand is a long process, but I

believe Jian Feng and its products will start to

receive more international recognition in the near

future. We have very good partnerships with

distributors worldwide and I believe that over the

next three to five years, the international industry

will really see more of what we can bring to the

global market,” he concludes.

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proFilE Jian FEng sling

performed a series of tests including making the

test samples, bending, fatigue and breaking. We

were the only organisation able to perform these

tests with our in-house 1000t tensile test bed

and 1000t fatigue test bed. The good feedback

from CACT led to two more similar testing

projects with CNOOC, which we are currently

working on.

“Elsewhere, we are the qualified contract

supplier for COSL and its deepwater semi-

submersible platform 981, for which we supply

a full and complete range of lifting slings and

components. We have also worked closely with

COOEC since 2004, and in 2013 we supplied

them with a lifting solution that consisted of four

pieces of O156mm endless wire rope grommets

equipped with four pieces of WLL 500T wide

body shackles for the BoHai LD10-1 oilfield

platform installation projects.”

Alongside these more local companies the

business also exports around 40 per cent of its

products and solutions to overseas markets,

including Europe, the Americas, the Middle

East and Southeast Asia. “The Middle East and

Australasia are two regions with stronger growth

at present,” highlights Clarence. “We would also

like to see more business activities in Africa in

the near future, and we are looking to expand

our product range further into the Americas in

the coming years.”

Growth and expansion is very much at

the core of Jian Feng’s vision for the future,

as Clarence says. “The offshore oil and gas

industry is definitely what Jian Feng is focusing

on this year. We have launched two particular

products, which are leading our overseas

expansion - JF brand Wide Body Shackles

ranging from working load limit 200T–1500T

that are CE certified by DNV, and offshore

container lifting sets, for which Jian Feng is

the first and only DNV2.7-1 Type Approved

Gunnebo IndustrIesGunnebo Industries is one of the world’s leading companies in the lifting industry, developing and manufacturing products and solutions of the highest quality, safety and functionality. To meet the stringent demands of the offshore industry it has a full range of offshore shackles, master links and hooks tested to the requirements of the offshore container standard, DNV 2.7-1. This verifies that the products have a high, consistent level of production stability in the entire process.

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For over 150 years Sandvik has

been engineering high-technology, advanced

products for a wealth of specialist niche

markets. These operations are based on unique

expertise in materials technology and extensive

insight into customer processes. As a Group,

Sandvik concentrates on five main business

areas, one of which contains Sandvik Process

Systems. This world-leading manufacturer

produces steel belts, and steel belt-based

processing systems, which contribute to

customer productivity, reliability, cost efficiency,

and reduction of environmental impact.

One key application for this expertise is

sulphur solidification and handling systems. This

has in recent years seen Sandvik Process Systems

become a partner to several internationally

renowned engineering companies serving the

petrochemical industry. In total the company has

delivered sulphur solidification solutions to over

200 customers, totaling 600 plants worldwide,

the latest of which is Hellenic Petroleum’s Elefsis

refinery in Athens, Greece.

This is part of a large-scale modernisation

programme taking place at the refinery, which

will see it able to produce ultra low sulphur

fuels in accordance with the new European and

international specifications, as well as improving

its ability to handle different kinds of crude.

Other goals include a significant reduction

in emissions, efficiency enhancements and

improved safety conditions.

By reducing the amount of sulphur in its

products though the refinery faced a challenge

in terms of storing and transporting this waste

material. As such in January 2009, Sandvik

In theprocess 49

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proFilE sandvik procEss systEms

was selected to supply a turnkey end-to-end

sulphur solidification and handling system at

Elefsis in order to counter this. This builds on

a long-standing relationship between Sandvik

and Hellenic Petroleum, which dates back to

1986. “In this case the project consisted of

three main parts – the solidification system

where we turn the liquid sulphur into solid

pastilles, a storage capability for this product,

and a means of discharging it onto a ship,”

begins Ulrich Nanz, sales and marketing

director of Sandvik Process Systems.

“As such we delivered this in partnership

with our sister company Sandvik Mining in

Finland, which delivered the downstream

storage and handling activity, whilst Sandvik

Process Systems supplied the core solidification

system. This underlines our competence as a

Group in handling larger packages of work for

EPC contractors,” he continues.

Commissioned in August 2012, the

solidification system is based upon Sandvik

Process Systems’ patented Rotoform technology,

the basic principle of which is that droplets of

liquid sulphur are deposited onto a continuously

running stainless steel belt that is then cooled

from the underside by sprayed water to form

solid pastilles. As the Rotoform produces these

materials mechanically, subsequent grinding or

crushing is not required therefore eliminating

associated costs, noise, and dust, which can be

an environmental concern.

“Our process is the only indirect sulphur

solidification method available on the market

as the steel belt means that there is no cross-

contamination between the water and sulphur.

All competing systems are direct processes,

which either cool the sulphur using air or water,

which leaves the client with sour water or dust

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EvonikFor many years Evonik has been supplying TEGO® Sulpho 1 to the sulphur forming industry. Our product works directly on the steel belts, supporting the formation of uniquely shaped, hemispherical pastilles and providing an excellent release effect to easily remove the pastilles off the belt after cooling. Our latest development, TEGO® Sulpho 2, ensures an even more economic and efficient process. It has been especially designed for the new spraying technology of our partner Sandvik.

Sandvik Process Systemssandvik.com

ProductsProcessing systems based on steel belts

emissions. This makes the Rotoform process

incredibly clean in comparison,” notes Ulrich.

This latest incarnation of the Rotoform

technology has previously been installed in

two other facilities for Bapco in Bahrain and

Reliance in India. Its use at Elefsis provides

Sandvik Process Systems with a reference project

within Europe, which will benefit the business

in promoting its capabilities in this market – a

region where Ulrich predicts demand will

continue to grow: “The main driver behind the

modernisation of Elefsis was to enable Hellenic

Petroleum to sell their products in Europe under

current regulations, and this is the case for many

other operators as well. At present specification

in Europe under Euro 5 is some of the

toughest in the industry, and we will see Euro 6

introduced in 2014, so in order to comply with

this producers have to remove the sulphur from

their products.

“Our pastille product is one of the very few

that meet the Sulphur Development Institute of

Canada (SUDIC) recommendations for premium

sulphur. This is an international standard that

defines everything from moisture and dust

content to size distribution, so our clients can be

assured of the quality of their product,” he adds.

Another major driving force in choosing such

equipment is lifecycle costs. “Customers now

look at the initial cost of investment combined

with the first five years of operations,” elaborates

Ulrich. “Our technology not only has very

low consumption of energy, but it also has an

on-stream factor of 96 per cent, which means

it is incredibly reliable with very minimal

maintenance to also lower running costs. In

Hellenic Petroleum’s case they have 1200 metric

tonnes of liquid sulphur coming out of Elefsis

every day and if our machines are down they

cannot switch off the refinery, nor do they have

significant capacity to store liquid sulphur, so

reliability is a number one concern.”

The completion of the work at Elefsis marks

the fifth such project where Sandvik Process

Systems and its sister companies have delivered a

complete end-to-end solution. The ability of the

Group to deliver these highly reliable technical

solutions, which have minimal environmental

impact, suggests that this approach will continue

into the future.

PROFILE SandvIk PROcESS SyStEmS

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fabThe PressureFab Group, founded

only four and a half years ago, has already grown

and developed into a leading designer and

manufacturer of specialist offshore containers

and subsea equipment. Operating from its

11,000m2 facility in Dundee, Scotland, the

privately owned company is recognised by the

oil and gas industry for its exceptional quality

and superior customer service.

As Hermann Twickler, company founder

and managing director explained, its customers

are both local and global: “We do a lot of work

for smaller companies, but we also work with

world leaders, including, National Oilwell

Varco, Honeywell International and Halliburton,

among many others,” he said. “As a team, we

have a very impressive portfolio, and we are one

of the largest manufacturers of containers and

containerised equipment in Scotland. Basically

our customers are looking for quality solutions

and products that arrive on time and on budget

and that is what we provide.”

Hermann explained that the company’s

philosophy was borne out of thinking from the

customer’s perspective: “When I established this

company, I based it on what I believed a supplier

should offer to blue-chip clients and to me

those areas of top quality, reliable delivery and

adhering to budget were paramount.”

He started the company following a career

working for large shipbuilding corporations.

“I always wanted my own business,” he said,

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“so when the company I was working for went

through a large buyout, I decided it was time for

me to look for other opportunities, and I chose

to go into bespoke steel fabrication. I established

PressureFab in 2009 from scratch, with the

intention of growing it from a small business

into a sizeable concern. So we started with three

employees and now have over 100, and have

developed a very strong team.”

Hermann may sound modest when describing

how he founded the company but it mustn’t

be forgotten that just months into its inception

a major recession hit Europe and much of the

world. However, he steered PressureFab through

the challenges and in acknowledgement of his

achievements he was crowned Scottish Emerging

Entrepreneur of the Year in 2012. “As this award

is for personal entrepreneurship I felt really

proud and honoured to receive it,” he said. “It

recognised the risks and the hard work involved

with forming a business from scratch in a

recession, and to me winning it was very special.”

When Hermann founded PressureFab it was

without a single customer, but now he is pleased

to draw attention to the two largest contracts it is

currently working on, which together are valued

at well over £2 million and highlight how far the

company has come. “One of these is the HESS

Project through National Oilwell Varco, where

we are supplying a complete solids and fluid

management control system. This consists of the

oil tanks, mud tanks, fluid and mud lines, all the

Absolutely

belowHermann Twickler, company founder and managing director at PressureFab Group

M.I.S. ProductS LIMItedM.I.S. Products Limited has many years experience of developing, manufacturing and supplying components to the offshore container building industry in the UK, mainland Europe and globally. We welcome the opportunity to develop trading relationships with old and new customers alike and wish Pressurefab Group every success with their business developments

PressureFab Grouppressurefab.com

ServiceSpecialist offshore containers and subsea equipment

It is clear that PressureFab is maintaining its

growth trajectory, but Hermann is determined

not to chase expansion at the risk of losing

quality or job security for his team. He summed

up the plans he has for the future: “Going

forward I think we will diversify a little more,

as the expertise we have in oil and gas can be

applied to the renewable sector as well, and

that is an area I am looking forward to getting

more involved with. We have already provided

equipment to the Orkney Islands and Shetlands

for the EMAC project and so I am keen to look

into what renewable customers might want to

fit into a containerised unit, rather than wait for

them to tell us. I prefer to offer a solution rather

than waiting to be asked.”

He concluded: “I believe we are in a good

position - customers are looking for a supplier

that has capacity and resources available and

they can see we are innovative, we hit our

deadlines, and meet our budgets. We also have

ideas, and that overall package is what our

clients really appreciate.”

suction equipment and pumps.

“What made this project unique was that

usually pumps and tanks are connected using

flexible pipes or hoses, but in this case, because

it is to be run for two years in the North Sea,

HESS insisted on having it all hard piped. As

a result we constructed the entire unit, we got

everything into position, and then connected

all the skids and tanks with each other using

steel pipe and set it up exactly how it is going

to be on the oil rig, and then we have operated

it here for a week as trial run to make sure

everything is functioning as it should. It is

due to be delivered in July to Denmark, has

been through its final full function test, and

just needs a few modifications, painting and

wrapping before shipment.”

He added: “We are also finishing a mud cutting

processing plant, for which we have built all the

tanks, the pipes and the mud cutting skips, for

National Oilwell Varco’s Environmental Division,

and when it is complete it will be represent about

£1.5 million worth of equipment.”

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can handle customer demands and opportunities

when they present themselves.”

The CEO also had some exciting news to

share about AXEL’s French facility: “We are now

preparing to relocate our plant in France,” he

announced. “We are only planning to move

three kilometres but the new location is a bigger,

more suitable industrial site where we can grow

and expand our operations.”

The investment and development across

AXEL’s business is all targeted to meet the needs

of its customers, which comprise many of

the world’s major oil, regional oil, specialised

lubricant and wholesales companies. One of the

main factors that attract these demanding clients

to use AXEL’s services is its utter dedication

to customer service. Johan explained that the

company regards this area as paramount and it

measures customers’ perceptions of all aspects of

service through annual anonymous interviews.

“The most recent survey showed excellent

results, with a mark of 4.27 on a scale where

five is the most satisfied. This is an all-time

high and we are very proud of it, but it is still

essential to continue to focus on improvement

opportunities,” he said.

Nonetheless, Johan cites customer service

as one of the key strengths of AXEL, alongside

product quality and research and development

(R&D). “Product quality is extremely important

and such is our dedication to diligent quality

control in every single batch that we very rarely

have any quality issues,” he stated.

“R&D is necessary because we are always

trying to identify what products will be

demanded in the future, as well as helping to

solve clients’ problems. We have substantial

in-house resources to commit to different kinds

of R&D projects or developments and we can

do that in collaboration with clients or on our

own initiative.”

The innovative products referred to by Johan

Axel Christiernsson (AXEL) is a

leading lubricating grease manufacturer, with

its headquarters in Sweden. It focuses on the

development and manufacture of lubricating

greases, sold under what it terms ‘customised

label’, which means that every product

leaving its plants is customised to the needs

of customers and labelled in their name. This

consistent approach is distinctive and it means

that customers can partner with AXEL in

confidence, knowing that it does not compete at

the end-user market.

The company has hundreds of active

formulations in total, many of which are

customer unique. Its products are created at

three production sites in Europe - in Sweden,

the Netherlands and France, plus at two plants

in the US. In fact, the US operation was added

as recently as 2011, as Johan Stureson, CEO of

AXEL explained: “The asset acquisition of Jesco

Resources in early 2011 was a carefully planned

step to expand our presence outside Europe,

and to follow many of our largest customer

groups into another market. It also gave us

access to new technologies and broadened our

customer base, which gives opportunities for

cross selling,” he said.

Alongside the US facilities, AXEL is

continuously investing in its European sites in

order to meet the increase in continental European

orders and customer outsourcing contracts. “We

address areas such as safety, efficiency and capacity

increases,” Johan added. “We have adopted this

approach for many years, because in order to grow

we have to make sure our production capacity

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Grease is theword

proFilE AXEl ChristiErnsson

BelowJohan Stureson, CEO/managing director of AXEL

Axel Christiernssonaxelch.com

ServicesLubricant and grease manufacturer

formulations and they are used in almost any

industry, so our whole ethos is that we sell

products to any single field of industry that has

lubrication requirements,” said Johan.

“Our products are extremely versatile in that

respect, however it also illustrates a bit of the

complexity that we have to manage, because we

have so many different formulations and pack

combinations, and we are dealing with such a

wide variety of customers.”

Over the 125 years since Axel Christiernsson

founded the company, AXEL has established

itself at the forefront of lubricant technology.

Johan noted that going forward more growth

is on the agenda, both organic and through

acquisition. “As well as maintaining a quality

service to our existing customers, we are looking

at certain markets through a structured process,

but also staying ready for opportunities that may

arise elsewhere,” he said. “AXEL is a market

leader with a strong reputation in our industry

and we welcome other companies that wish to

discuss a possible acquisition.”

include several technologies that the company

has developed to substantially improve the

properties of its lubricating grease for special

applications. He gave some examples: “Our

EPOCH technology is a polymer based non-

ionic lubricant, which means it is not soap

thickened grease. It provides excellent long life,

improved additive effect and greater flexibility in

choice of additives, and better resistance to water

and aggressive chemicals in the application.

“We have also created what we call functional

soap, where we have enabled the additive to

become part of the soap structure. That means

that the soap carries the additive molecules to

the metal surface of the bearing and improves

the performance of the product. One of its major

benefits is extremely low friction.”

He added: “A third example we have

developed is a thread compound designed to be

used in the oil industries in the North Sea, which

meets the highest environmental standards.”

This is just a tiny representation of AXEL’s

range. “We have several hundreds of different

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At a time when supplies of ‘easy’ oil are

perhaps falling away, Xcite Energy Limited

is marking itself out as an appraisal and

development company focusing on offshore

heavy oil. The company believes that this area

presents a niche for significant growth and

value addition. Through its subsidiary, Xcite

Energy Resources Limited (XER), these activities

have so far been focused on the development

of discovered resources in the UK North Sea,

namely the Bentley field.

“We acquired this field through the Promote

Licence Round in 2003,” explains Charles Lucas-

Clements, director of strategy and business

development. “We’ve pursued a methodical and

progressive appraisal programme over the years,

enabling us to bring oil to surface in 2007, through

to delivering 250 million barrels of 2P reserves

in 2013 after a highly successful pre-production

extended well test (“EWT”) which was completed

in September 2012. We also have peripheral assets

and were awarded three adjacent blocks in the

27th Licensing Round last year.”

Looking at this activity in more detail, XER

has actually successfully conducted three drilling

programmes with five penetrations of the field,

including sidetracks and laterals, since the

licence award. The total investment to date has

been around $350 million, approximately $250

million of which went into the EWT.

“Throughout the EWT we gathered a vast

amount of information, which together with new

3D seismic, has enabled us to increase our in-place

volumes, revise our development plan and

materially increase our reserves. It has required a

long year of hard work to deliver, but the EWT

has met and exceeded our expectations not only

in its results, but also the quality and extent of data

that was collected,” enthuses Charles.

In preparation for the EWT, XER expanded

its corporate office to bring in necessary skills

timesExciting

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Xcite Energy Resources Limitedxcite-energy.com

ServicesAppraisal and development

Alongside this work, XER has been running

a programme to identify enhanced oil recovery

techniques (EOR). After lab work based on

samples taken from the reservoir and aquifer,

the company has shortlisted polymer injection

as the most suitable EOR technique. It is

also building a pilot programme into the

first stage of development in order to prove

the concept, and lead the way for a full EOR

implementation in Phase 2.

The year ahead again looks busy for the

business as it works to capitalise on the last

decade of work in this challenging niche. In a

further step forward, XER recently started the

farm-out process, which it sees as a key part of

the future financing strategy for the development

of the field. “We also hope to expand the RBL

facility based on the increased scope of the first

phase development. These will trigger the full

development programme,” notes Charles.

Certainly the industry seems to be pricking up

its ears with regards to the progress the company

has made in transforming heavy oil resources

into viable development propositions, and it

comes at a time when heavy oil projects are

being advanced in the North Sea.

Picking up the thread Charles adds: “In the

process of executing the programmes so far we

have developed an extensive knowledge, not

only of the Bentley field and the engineering

solutions needed to successfully commercialise

a reservoir of this type, but also how to manage

a significant offshore, heavy oil project. One of

the key things in this industry is the sharing of

knowledge when moving into new areas, and we

are keen to do this with others just as they are

keen to speak with us.”

Indeed it seems the Bentley field is just the

starting point. XER has also been collecting

licences in neighbouring blocks, most recently

in the aforementioned 27th Licensing Round.

‘It is our belief that these prospects may contain

a lighter oil which could be used as a diluent

in the future, so the aim is to appraise these

with a view to a tie back into Bentley as we go

forward,” comments Charles.

“This forms part of our strategic plan for the

next few years which is centred on selecting

a suitable development partner, completing

financing, and getting the Bentley field

producing. We also want to prove the EOR

techniques through the pilot programme, and

implement the second phase of development,

whilst continuing to look for other suitable

opportunities,” he concludes.

including the appointment of a new operations

director, operations manager, and engineering

manager. “I think that key to our success has

been finding highly experienced people that can

really contribute to the team,” notes Charles.

“As well as operations, we have been building

up our engineering and well completion skills

sets, based on the importance of drilling and

operations going forward.”

The results of the EWT have been critical to

planning the ongoing development programme,

which is split into two phases – Phase 1 and

Phase 2, covering the northern and southern

areas of the field respectively. The development

programme extends over approximately two

years with current anticipation of first oil in late

2015, with the phases now being of a similar

size, with Phase 2 beginning some five years

after the start of Phase 1 and then both running

concurrently from that point onwards for the

35 years of field facilities design life. The EWT

has also proven up many of the engineering

solutions and techniques to be utilised in the

development plan, such as the use of an FSO to

dehydrate the fluid.

Certainly the industry seems to be pricking up its ears with regards to the progress the company has made in transforming heavy oil resources into viable development propositions

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successfulUniquely

Since its inception in 2007,

Houston based niche drilling firm BassDrill has

enjoyed substantial growth, which has increased

massively over the last 18 months. Formed

to design, fabricate, market and operate safe

and efficient drilling equipment in a heavily

dominated market, the company has quickly

become a strong competitor with its offering of

state-of-the-art vessels, as Kerry Kunz highlights:

“BassDrill entered this market because we saw

an opportunity to provide new and innovative

designs to customers requiring safe, efficient and

comtemporary drilling units. We started with

registering the company in 2007 and in 2008

we ordered our first barge tender assist vessel,

the Alpha, which was built on speculation and

delivered in 2010 before being mobilised in West

Africa where it has worked continuously since.”

In late 2009 the company began interacting

with Petrobras over the prospect of a large

development project in the Campos basin,

Brazil. In 2010 a long-term contract was signed

and soon thereafter BassDrill began with the

construction of its second unit, the semi-tender

Beta, for mobilisation to Brazil; the vessel of

which is being built in China for delivery in H2

2013, while the modular drilling equipment was

constructed in the US. “The Beta will be the first

semi-tender assist unit in Brazil and we believe

further opportunities will appear in Brazil for

this type of unit in the future,” says Kerry. “In

the fall of 2012 we ordered a third unit, which

again will involve the vessel being built in China

and the modular package being produced in

the US. The ‘Gamma’ unit is being built on

speculation and is scheduled in the third quarter

of 2014; similar to the Alpha, it is a barge tender

with a 30 per cent increase in capacity. It is being

built under a $124 million turnkey construction

contract with Dalian Shipbuilding Industry and

Dalian Shipbuilding Offshore, China.

All three tender assist designs are ABS class

approved, with the two barge designs intended

for benign environments in shallow waters

of 15 metres to 200 metres; the semi-tender

design, meanwhile, is configured for use in

deepwater environments in conjunction with

Spars or TLPs, as Kerry highlights: “The semi-

tenders are able to operate in more challenging

environments, not the North Sea, but they are

able to go into deeper water and beyond the

traditional tender assist areas, which expands

the market. For example, the unit in Brazil

is going into an area that is 31 degrees south

latitude in the Atlantic, so we have taken

this tender market well beyond its traditional

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proFilE BaSSDrill

http://www.seatrax.com

Seatrax, Inc.As the worldwide leader in the manufacture of kingpost marine cranes, Seatrax provides Bassdrill with cranes, service and engineering support for many of its endeavors, including the Alpha medium tender barge, the Beta semi-submersible and the Gamma heavy tender barge. With its unique design, Seatrax provides the flexibility to configure its product based upon customer requirements regardless of application. Each Seatrax crane is based on proven design concepts with patented Seatrax design features that include the hemispherical kingpost, self-aligning lower kingpost bearings, mechanical anti-two-block system as well as in-house manufactured fail-safe draw-works type hoists.

BassDrillbassdrill.com

ServicesManufacture and operate drilling equipment

vessels on the market,” says Kerry.

Having enjoyed huge success over the last

few years, the company plans to continue

bringing new vessels into the market while

also focusing on the offshore industry, with

substantial demand seen in areas such as Brazil,

West Africa and quite possibly in the future, the

GOM. Utilising its semi-tenders, Beta and Delta,

BassDrill offers oil companies considerable cost

savings on total development costs, where dry

trees/surface are utilised. Tender and semi-tender

drilling rigs also have significantly less weight

requirements than platform rigs, thus allowing

oil companies to build lighter and less expensive

TLPs, Spars or fixed platforms.

“The deepwater developments we are involved

in have surface trees and surface wellheads,

which offers significant benefits over wellheads

located on the seabeds as it removes the need for

expensive and sophisticated equipment that goes

with sea floor development,” highlights Kerry.

Surface wells heads are often required where

flow assurance is an issue and re-entering of the

wells is required on a frequent basis. Surface

wells permit the operators to use inexpensive

means to perform remedial work on the wells

without the use of an expensive deepwater rig.

“The trend is to look at more marginal fields

or fields with flow assurance issues with the

application of surface developments that could

prove to be cost effective, which will translate

into huge opportunities for Bassdrill. We are on

track with our plans for growth and are very

positive about the future.”

exclusive area within equatorial waters.”

Focused completely on development drilling,

the company tends to benefit from longer

term contracts and the ability to build against

contracts, something that Kerry is keen to

continue doing: “If you first secure a contract

and build against it, this is heavily applauded

by shareholders because it a much more secure

option than building on speculation and

financing is readily available. We have been

uniquely successful in building vessels against

contracts and this is how we would prefer to

move forward whenever possible. It offers more

security to grow and a much safer route for

the shareholders of BassDrill.” The company

holds long contracts due to the number of wells

that the developments require, which offers

increased stability in terms of revenue, financing,

budgeting purposes and manning.

In early 2013 the company secured a contract

for a fourth unit with Total Congo for a high

profile deepwater development; the semi-tender

vessel, Delta, is an enhanced version of the Beta

design and will be utilised on the Moho Nord

development commencing in 2015. Looking

to continue its spate of aggressive growth, the

company is currently interacting with operators

on additional potential opportunities. “We came

into a market that was traditionally dominated

by large players, which made it challenging

to obtain our first contract because we

hadn’t proven ourselves in this business.

Our first contract showed the industry that

we could bring new and innovative designs

with the latest technological features to offer

operators the safest and most contemporary

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proFilE BassDrill

The semi-tenders are able to operate in more challenging environments, not the North Sea, but they are able to go into deeper water and beyond the traditional tender assist areas, which expands the market

Solutions for a safeand secure workplaceA trusted partner for manufacturing and industrial businesses for over 50 years!

www.seton.co.ukSecure 24 hour online purchasing

Website

0800 5855018:30am - 5.30pm Mon-Fri, GMTOutside UK: +44 1295 227227

Freephone

sales@seton.co.ukPlace an order, get quotes, ask questions

Email

Please reference 'GasOil' when you contact us

Established in 1984, privately

owned V Ships has expanded significantly in

recent years through organic and inorganic

growth to become the world’s largest supplier

of independent ship management and marine

services for the shipping industry worldwide;

with a fleet of over 1000 vessels and a crew

roster of 24,000 staff, its core ship management

and manpower services are managed by three

operating divisions – V Ships Ship Management,

V Ships Leisure and Manpower Services. These

units work in close association with the V Ships

Marine Services and V Ships Capital divisions,

which provide a broad range of related technical,

operational, financial and commercial services.

V Ships Ship Management encompasses a

network of 18 ship management offices from

which its fleet, in excess of 1000 vessels, can be

managed with support from the divisional team

in Glasgow. Offering technical, risk management,

procurement and financial expertise and

experience, its 600 dedicated employees deliver

ship management services to a diverse fleet of

cargo-carrying vessels, such as crude, products,

LPG/LNG and chemical tankers, bulk carriers

ranging from self-dischargers to VLOCs,

containerships from feeders to 9000TEU units

and various specialised vessel types related to the

offshore sector. These include FPSOs, seismic

vessels, diving support/subsea units and cable

layers that service the expanding offshore market.

As a complete service provider for value-

added solutions, V Ships increased its

business offering in April 2013 with the

launch of its new unit, V Ships Offshore,

headed by group director Lawrie Campbell.

The company aims to harness and share the

collective knowledge and experience of its

business units into one team, giving V Ships

Offshore the benefits of a global network and

extensive operational expertise. Providing

at-cost management services to the offshore

industry, V Ships Offshore also offers technical

management, crew management, project

management, consultancies/pre-purchase

inspection, procurement/warehousing, marine

insurance services, marine health, safety

and environment prevention (HSE)/quality

services, underwater repairs, surveys and

cleaning; it also offers engineering and naval

architecture and new building supervision

via SEATEC, and engineering consultancy

services via RC Consultant. Unique in the

offshore market for its one-stop-shop service

offering, the division has specialised offices

in strategically located areas that have seen

impressive growth in the oil and gas industry,

such as Scotland, Norway, the Middle East, the

Far East, Brazil and the Gulf of Mexico.

As the world’s largest provider of ship

management services, the company further

enhanced its service offering by establishing its

V Ships LNG division through a contract with

Awilco LNG to become its technical manager

in January 2003 when procedures, operating

manuals and policies related to LNG were

fleetA strong

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SetonSeton is one of the world’s leading manufacturers and distributors of health and safety and facilities management solutions. With businesses in 18 countries, Seton ships millions of orders worldwide to over 500,000 customers every year.With established relationships with customers such as V-Ships, Halliburton, Shell, Esso and several more within the oil and gas sector, Seton has the experience and the products to ensure you can provide a safe workplace.Health and safety laws grow increasingly complicated. Seton makes it easy for you to comply with legislation by providing products that meet necessary standards.Seton also has the capability to manufacture bespoke products such as signage and labels, ensuring that its customers get a personalised service.

V Shipsvships.com

ServicesGlobal one-stop-shop for value added solutions

Registry and RINA for the LNG training courses

as recommended by SIGGTO. Since then the

company has conducted training courses for

its own officers and third party client officers

at its own in-house training centres and on

board its vessels. Courses for steam training for

engineers were also developed and approved by

ExxonMobil and Marshal Islands.

Today recognised for assistance in the

manuals on LNG Shipping Knowledge, an

industry standard publication from Seamanship

International, V Ships LNG has also been vetted

and approved by BG, Nigeria LNG Limited

(NLNG) and Gazprom. This dedication to

gaining knowledge and experience in a relatively

new and increasingly demanding sector is certain

to bring opportunities and benefits to V Ships

LNG throughout 2013 and the coming years.

Having developed a strong reputation as

a leading outsourcing group of companies,

the future looks positive for V Ships as it

continues to integrate its services to offer

the best turnkey solutions to its customers.

Furthermore, the company aims to develop

a stronger foothold in the booming oil and

gas industry, while also reaping the benefits

of its expertise in the LNG industry, which is

continuing to see increased demand.

developed. Today Awilco LNG is the owner

of three 125,000 cbm second-generation LNG

carriers, WilGas, WilPower and WilEnergy, and

is further adding to its fleet with two 155,900

cbm LNG newbuildings, estimated to cost $200

million per vessel, due for delivery in August

and November 2013. Furthermore, the division

benefits from having a highly experienced

director at the helm; Bert McAughtrie compiled

LNG standards in 2005 when chairman

of the SIGGTO engineers working group,

while another manager participated in the

development of standards for steam engineers.

Bert also represents V Ships at SIGGTO’s

general purpose Committee (GPC), the society’s

technical directorate, which is comprised of 30

senior operational executives who offer LNG,

LPG gas tanker and terminal experience.

The LNG division began with a pool of

officers trained for third party clients such as

Sonatrach and Chemikalien See Transport.

Supervisors were also later supplied for the

supervision of newbuilding LNG vessels as well

as asset protection services for existing ships.

Following this, V Ships saw potential to expand

into training services and was the first to attain

approval from UKMCA, LISCR, The Nautical

Institute, Bahamas Registry, Marshal Islands

V Ships Ship Management encompasses a network of 18 ship management offices from which its fleet, in excess of 1000 vessels, can be managed with support from the divisional team in Glasgow

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Leading manufacturer of

American Society for Testing and Materials

(ASTM) approved online physical property

analysers for the world’s major refining

firms in the oil and gas markets, Analytical

Technology & Control Ltd (ATAC) also designs

and manufactures a wide range of bespoke

analyser systems, such as analyser cabinets,

field houses, sample conditioning systems and

sample recovery units. Established in 1993, the

Wiltshire based company enhanced its service

offering and system integration capabilities

with the acquisition of Sysco Analytics in 2002;

Advanced Holdings, a Singapore based leading

global supplier of equipment and products to

customers in the energy industries, acquired

ATAC eight years later in 2010. “Through

acquiring the assets of Sysco we gained two

established brands, Hallikainen and Hone, which

have both been synonymous with physical

property analysers since the 1960s,” says Daniel

Merriman, sales and marketing director at ATAC.

“Meanwhile, the synergistic acquisition of ATAC

by Advanced Holdings has led to us working

with two other divisions, California based

Guided Wave, which manufactures NIR & UV/

VIS analysers for the petroleum and chemical

industries, and Advanced CAE, a larger scale

system integration firm that is able to execute

turnkey packages to the oil and gas industry.”

The acquisition of ATAC has resulted in

the company gaining a unique position in

the market as it now has the facilities to offer

turnkey analyser packages to its customers on

top of its core business; these packages include

equipment such as sample systems and analyser

houses. “This extended capability results in a

greater added value to our customers,” enthuses

Daniel. “Being part of the Advanced Group also

gives us the opportunity to develop new product

lines and also update various other systems

in our product range for release. The recent

acquisition of ATOM Instruments is an example

of this, by gaining access to the company’s

advanced technology, we can create new and

exciting products for the petrochemical and

refining industries.”

A recent new product, the ATAC 1077

viscometer+, was added to the company’s

portfolio of online physical property analysers

in January 2013. Setting the standard for

viscometers, the product incorporates a unique

responsive touch screen that has a Zone 1

IIC rating without the need for purge air. Its

modular control assemblies are all plug and

play, communicating through an internal CAN-

bus that offers immediate and comprehensive

diagnostic capability. Furthermore, the optional

addition of a second oil bath to the viscometer+

enables measurement of viscosity at two different

reference temperatures, providing a very precise

Viscosity Index in accordance with the ASTM

strandard. “Through the development of our

new viscometer, particularly with its unique

touch screen capabilities, we have effectively

developed a new common platform for our other

products. Over the next two years we will be

launching new versions of our analysers, which

will boast innovative electronics, touch screen

and software,” says Daniel.

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proFiLE anaLyticaL tEchnoLogy & controL (atac)

Lee-DickensLee-Dickens is pleased to support ATAC, which has been a loyal customer for more than 17 years. We have supplied ATAC over those years with a range of instrumentation, of which the majority were Isolating Signal Converters. We are a UK manufacturer of process control instrumentation including a range of VA flowmeter alarm units, trip amplifiers and signal converters. These have, in most cases, been assessed and awarded SIL2 rating. The SIL rated products are all non-processor based, which is especially important to industries such as oil and gas, nuclear power generation and steel, where safety is critical.

Analytical Technology & Control Ltd (ATAC)atacgroup.com

ServicesManufactures online physical property analysers

working in hazardous areas, as Paul elaborates:

“We invest a lot in the training of personnel,

particularly when you consider everything we

do is related to hazardous operations, we need

to ensure our staff not only design and build

analysers, but can also offer high quality services

such as maintenance to the required standards

of the industry.” By rigorously training its staff

to be fully qualified with up-to-date credentials,

the company can retain a competitive edge over

other firms. “When we present these credentials

to our customers, we prove that we are

competent, trained and certified to any current

regulations that are in place at any refineries

around the world,” adds Paul.

Following the acquisition of ATOM in 2013,

the company is focusing on the aggressive

schedules it has in place to develop new

products throughout the rest of the year. It is

also executing a major new project to supply

multiple analyser systems for the BP Claire

Ridge offshore platforms. Looking further

ahead, ATAC has a strategic aim to double the

size of its business over the next three to five

years through increased product developments

and acquisitions. “We are also looking to

develop a presence in areas that we may not

have had much focus on in the past, such as

the Americas, and being part of the Advanced

Group gives us immediate access to China

and the wider Asia Pacific territories, there is a

great deal of economic growth and potential,”

concludes Paul.

With increased demand expected, the

company is busy expanding its R&D facilities,

as managing director Paul Warburton

highlights: “We currently have a very active

R&D programme, which has led to an increase

in personnel to be a part of these exciting

developments. We are also in the process of

expanding our R&D facilities here, with two

more rooms being constructed. Advanced

Holdings is also supporting us financially during

this process as it views ATAC as a centre of

excellence for research and development.”

Following the recently launched viscometer+,

the company is also due to release a new and

enhanced version of its cloud point analyser.

As well as having a more rugged measurement

cell, the new analyser utilises digital rather than

the earlier analogue control to significantly

improve the precision of cloud point detection.

The new version cloud point analyser is also

capable of switching between very different

petroleum products without the need for

operator intervention. ATAC has also introduced

hardware improvements that have reduced

the product’s maintenance requirements. “The

introduction of our newly upgraded physical

property analysers is a major focus for us right

now; a new vapour pressure analyser is also due

to be released soon,” says Daniel.

On top of manufacturing, the company

offers maintenance, training, commissioning

and consulting services to its customers, so it is

imperative staff are fully trained and prepared for

PROFILE AnALytIcAL tEchnOLOgy & cOntROL (AtAc)

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f r o m e x p l o r a t i o n t o e n d u s e r

Schofield Publishing Ltd10 Cringleford Business Centre Intwood Road Cringleford Norwich NR4 6AU

T: +44 (0) 1603 274130 F: +44 (0) 1603 274131

editor Matt High mhigh@schofieldpublishing.co.uk

sales manager Rob Wagner r wagner@schofieldpublishing.co.uk

europeanoi landgas.co.uk

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