32
|
Oilfield Technology
May
2016
CONDITION MONITORING
IN THE EXTREME
Mike Dines, Parker, UK, presents
different methods for monitoring the
condition of critical equipment in
extreme environments.
A
ttrition is a hot topic in oil and gas. Oversupply problems and
plummeting oil prices have sparkedmajor budget cuts and a
dramatic fall in new rig and vessel orders. Operators are under
severe pressure to scrutinise operations for cost savings, manage
exposure to risk, and extend the life of assets. The challenge lies in
improving safety and reliability with a limited budget, and in some of the
most extreme operating conditions of any industry.
The
‘Oil and Gas UKHealth and Safety 2015’
report highlights the
industry’s already growing backlog of safety-critical maintenance, putting
vital equipment at a greatly increased risk of failure and placing even
further strain on stretched budgets. Improving operational efficiency
and the reliability of critical equipment not only ensures the safety of the
crew, but alsominimises the risk of losses fromunscheduled downtime.
In a buyer’smarket with a high level of competition for drilling contracts,
‘better than the competition’ uptime data and a proactive approach to
improving reliability can give a real commercial edge.
In extreme operating environments, vital assets such as top drives are
not only difficult to inspect and potentially dangerous to repair, but also
the logistics involved in replacing the equipment following a failure are
complex and expensive. Therefore, beingmade aware of potential issues
before they cause extensive damage becomes essential to preventing
catastrophic failure and significant expense. One operator reported that
drilling rig non productive time (NPT) due to equipment failurewas 5%of
their total operating time. With a single thruster failure having previously
cost a drilling contractor over US$10million, fewcan afford such losses,
especially in the toughmarket conditions endured by the industry today.
