an engineering imperative

7/24/2019 An Engineering Imperative

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An engineering imperative: Integrating operations into design

To gain operational readiness and improve asset data builds for new facilities,oil and gas companies look beyond simple data hando to collaborativemethods and hub solutions that more eectively bridge the worlds of plant

design and operations.The hando of data from facility design to the world of operations andmaintenance (!"# is more important than ever in oil and gas, given thatthe industry is coming o a record year for pro$ects. %pstream capitalinvestment was up &' in )*&+ to -)* billion. owever, with costsescalating and energy prices down, pro/tability is declining, according toresearch from I0.

The upshot is that not only are many new assets coming online, but theindustry now faces a growing margin s1uee2e. 3ombined, these trendselevate the importance of a smooth, accurate transfer of data from

engineering to operations to ma4imi2e productivity for new assets.5ecades ago, the 6hando7 used to be $ust that8an abrupt transfer ofdocuments and data from engineering, procurement and construction (93#/rms or other contractors to owner;operators. Today, the hando has becomea process, with new supporting technologies such as ?3, an Australian natural gas e4plorer and producer,improve hando processes. Additionally, 93s and owner;operators canfollow the I0 &@)B standard as a base model for information e4change aspart of hando

There are multiple bene/ts to a smooth hando, according to Calph Cio, aresearch director with analyst /rm AC3 Advisory ?roup. 6?etting thenecessary information so that you can properly run and maintain your assetsis important for asset uptime, asset longevity, and the operationalperformance of the plant,7 said Cio. 6If the hando issue is not handled well,all of these ob$ectives tend to degrade, but if the hando is done smoothly,not only can you start o new operations more eectively, you have a basisfor further improvement.7

The end result is that owner;operators have found ways to get better datainto their enterprise asset management (9A"# systems, the key systems to

e4ecute plant maintenance. owever, the hando challenge is comple4.There are many entities involved in ma$or pro$ects, multiple software systemsto pull data from, and while the days of paper=based handos are largelygone, there are key collaborative steps, where engineers on both the designand operations side of the e1uation must engage in eectively.

9volving methods


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Dohn 0anins, senior director of solutions management for Eentley 0ystems, aprovider of software for the design, construction, and operations ofinfrastructure, mentioned that over the decades, there has been muchprogress on the hando issue. In the days before 3A5, the hando was6paper=borne,7 he said, and usually involved sifting through documents and

data duplication.The evolution of )5 and +5 3A5 systems that could hold supporting datahelped the industry move away from paper=based handos, added 0anins,but owner;operators still faced interoperability issues between 3A5 systemsused by 93s. 5uring the past decade, 93s came up with


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6ItHs a great way to depict assets and show how they go together, comeapart, with ties to standard operating procedures (0s# and safety stepsthat should be followed,7 said yatt.

The people factor

There is consensus that technology alone canHt meet the hando challenge.The companies which e4cel at handos tend to be those that combinetechnology with organi2ational methods such as operational readiness groupsthat work with 93s on handos so that the challenge becomes aninterdisciplinary process.

6Absolutely, the ma$or owner;operators have established operationalreadiness teams,7 said 5ee. 6Their $ob is to make sure everything is ready togo.7

Industry companies are embracing the operational readiness concept. At


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reliability, availability, maintainability (CA"# modeling techni1ues and gatherother data on failure trends to ensure that new plant designs make use of themost reliable e1uipment.

91uipment performance and reliability data has always been needed anddesired by the design teams, according to Coy


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The eterhead ?as 330 ro$ect

0hell is developing the eterhead 330 pro$ect, with strategic support from009 ?eneration Nimited, the owner;operator of the eterhead ower 0tation.

Nast year, the eterhead 330 pro$ect was chosen as one of two 330

demonstration pro$ects to progress to the ne4t stage of the %L ?overnmentOs5epartment of 9nergy and 3limate 3hange 330 competition, which isdesigned to support the development of this technology.

TechnipOs operating center is "ilton Leynes will e4ecute the F995 for thisne4t phase. This is the same center that performed a pre=F995 study for theeterhead 330 pro$ect appro4imately &' months ago.

The "ilton Leynes center serves as a center of e4cellence for thedevelopment of end=to=end solutions for se1uestration pro$ects and carboncapture.

Among the e4amples of TechnipOs strong record of deploying clean

technologies are the worldOs /rst Koating oshore wind unit and the worldOslargest biofuels unit.

TechnipOs 0enior Jice resident of rocess Technology, 0tan Lne2,commented, QTechnip is committed to the development of innovative,sustainable solutions for our customers and we look forward to e4panding ourfootprint into the carbon capture and se1uestration value chain.Q


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0ince its )*&) ac1uisition of 0tone !


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To be successful, companies should train employees worldwide andprogressively add a business development element to their culture, whereemployees recogni2e the importance of and actively participate and engage

in business development processes focused on creating customer value anddeveloping solutions. This is a shared responsibility for all employees.

0uch enhanced focus will help a company to:

R Improve the pro$ect selection process and capture eorts so when they doa $ob they give their clients the best resources and the customer receives thebest $ob possible

R It will make people more professional in dealing with customers and willallow consistency of process in business development

R It will allow more disciplined, smarter decision=making.

R It will lead to a better understanding of customers and markets.

R It will enable employees to understand the importance of their role and theskills they need to help the company be successful in winning work.

The ac1uisition of new business is vital to the survival of any business. In aneort to increase a companyHs success rate in ac1uiring new business, theymust assess and in most cases, improve, the business development processitself. This involves a systematic approach to help an organi2ation optimi2eits underlying processes to achieve more eGcient results.


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rocess improvement is central to improving the work processes to becomemore eGcient and eective. It is an aspect of organi2ational development inwhich a series of actions are taken by a leader to identify, analy2e and

improve e4isting business processes within an organi2ation to meet newgoals and ob$ectives, such as increasing pro/ts and performance, reducingcosts and accelerating schedules. rocess improvement is also a method tointroduce process changes to improve the 1uality of a product or service, tobetter match customer and consumer needs.

A key element of the business development process is the roposals !9stimating (!9# function, since it touches all aspects of a business anddirectly aects a companyHs ability to win work. The !9 function is the onearea where companies should absolutely focus their eorts for processimprovement.

5espite good people who are working hard, it is broadly acknowledged thatmany companiesH business systems are struggling to support their currentoperations and are unprepared for their future aspirations. "any companiesmust change their business practices if they are to create a sustainableoperation.

Eusiness development is not a linear process, but a cycle of targeting,positioning, managing customer accounts, and developing proposals to winwork. The business development process should be a simple and disciplinedapproach to ac1uiring new business. 9ssentially, there are /ve important

characteristics associated with this process.

It is a process for improving sales through systematic development ofcustomer relationships.

It is a collection of simple tools that work together to improve the sellingeort.

It is a process for positioning to win critical pro$ect opportunities.


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It is a process for identifying and communicating competitive advantages.

It is a process for improving teamwork in multi=functional sales eorts.

Ley features and bene/ts of a disciplined business development approachinclude:

The Eusiness 5evelopment and !9 ?roups should work together toimplement a more structured and disciplined decision=making process,including formali2ing a 60tage=?ate7 process, as illustrated below. This wouldestablish consistent reporting lines, roles, responsibilities, accountability, andperformance measures. It would also empower functional groups with 1ualitycontrol accountability and commitment to the bid inputsS providing input andsupport as re1uired.


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A stage=gated approach to business development and decision=making wouldcreate a visible and measurable function and would ensure support from theentire organi2ation to produce winning proposals.

Deepwater Floating Facilities n !"er"iew

In addition to the mono hull, three Koating structure designs = TN, 0emi, andTruss 0par = have been successfully developed over the past several decades.9ach of these Koater designs has been evolving along with subsea and risertechnology to meet new /eld development challenges mainly related toincreased water depth and reservoir operating pressures and temperatures.5esign improvements continue as new developments in oshore technologyare incorporated into the basic designs.

The functional re1uirements for Koating structures can be generali2ed asS

5rilling facilities

Pumber, type and location of drilling rig

roduction facilities


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As illustrated in the following /gure, the relative hull responses of the threedesigns vary considerably. In all cases the ob$ective is to minimi2e theresponse to the environment.

9Gcient design of Koating structures is predicated on functionality andperformance it should be capable of supporting all the necessarye1uipment for production and related tasks while meeting all performancecriteria. The structure should provide suGcient space and robustness to ful/llits intended purposeS also, the Koating structure should be built at aminimum of cost, which is governed mainly by the hull steel weight.

ull weight estimates are based on global si2ing, which is determined by thenaval architectural and structural design. ?lobal si2ing is a key engineeringdesign process in both the concept selection stage and design phase of aKoating structure. The si2ing of a moored Koating structure considersrelationships among the payload, the si2e of the hull, and the mooring

system. 5uring the concept selection phase, eorts are concentrated on themain dimensions and weights under the consideration of design standardsand performance re1uirements without a high degree of engineering detail.Finali2ed dimensions and main properties of the Koating structures will bedetermined in the front=end engineering and design (F995# stage throughvarious analyses.

0par Technology


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The /rst 0pars were based on the 3lassic design. This evolved into the Truss0par by replacing the lower section of the caisson hull with a truss. 0pars areoften considered along with TNs for dry tree solutions because they oersmall vertical motion. owever, 0pars are dierent from both 0emis and TNsin the mechanism of motion control. ne of the distinctions of the 0par is

that its center of gravity is always lower than the center of buoyancy whichguarantees a positive ?". This makes the 0par unconditionally stable. The0par derives no stability from its mooring system, so it does not list orcapsi2e even when completely disconnected from its mooring.


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The deep draft is a favorable attribute for minimal heave motions, its deepdraft and large inertia /lter wave fre1uency motions in all but the largerstorms. The natural period in heave and pitch are above the range of waveenergy periods. The long response periods for 0pars mitigate the mooringand riser dynamic responses, which are common to ship shaped F0s and

0emis. The deep draft, along with protected centerwell, signi/cantly reducethe current and wave loading on the riser system. These loads normallycontrol the tension and fatigue re1uirements of the production risers on TNor 0emis

ne of the principal advantages of the 0par over other Koating platforms liesin its reduced heave and pitch motions. Now motions in these degrees offreedom permit the use of dry trees. 5ry trees oer direct vertical access tothe wells from the deck, which allows the 0par to be con/gured for fulldrilling, workover, production processing, or any combination of theseactivities.

Truss 0par 3onceptThe Truss 0par is divided into three distinct sections. The cylindrical uppersection, called the 6hard tank,7 provides most of the in=place buoyancy forthe 0par. The middle truss section supports the heave plates and providesseparation between the keel tank and hard tank. The keel tank, also knownas the 6soft tank,7 contains the /4ed ballast and acts as a natural hang=olocation for e4port pipelines and Kowlines since the environmental inKuencesfrom waves and currents and associated responses are less pronounced therethan nearer the water line.


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In the original designs, the hard tank architecture is the same in the 3lassicand Truss 0par designs. FloaT93 also developed a Cing 0par architecture forthe ard Tank. This architecture reportedly oers a more fabrication=friendlyoption with reduced fabrication costs. ori2ontal decks and radial bulkheadsdivide the hard tank spaces into tanks and voids. The lower set of tanks iscon/gured to contain seawater ballast, which can be increased, decreased,or moved between tanks to correct for ma$or changes in topsides weight,

topsides eccentricity, 03C weight, or hull Kooding resulting from damage. Aring of additional voids is provided at the waterline area. These are usedduring topsides installation and prior to TTC installation. The trussed mid=section of the hull is an U=braced space frame constructed of tubularmembers and Kat plates called 6heave plates.7 The heave plates increase theadded mass in the vertical direction and thereby increase the natural heaveperiod of the 0par and bringing it above the range of periods in the waveenergy. In a Truss 0par, they also increase heave damping.


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The third section of the hull is the 6keel tank,7 which is attached to thebottom of the truss at the keel. It provides the buoyancy while the 0par iswet=towed hori2ontally to site for installation. The keel tank is Kooded toinitiate upending and, /nally, receives the /eld=installed, /4ed ballast, which

is key to the 0parHs unmatched stability. The porches for the steel catenarye4port pipeline risers are on the perimeter of the keel tank.

The 0par hull includes two access shafts. These shafts contain the ballast andutility piping and instrumentation. They also allow direct personnel access tothe piping and to every void tank without re1uiring workers to pass throughan intermediate compartment. nly one void need be open at a time. Accessshafts are painted, lighted, and vented, as re1uired, for entry.

The seawater ballast system has a dedicated centrifugal pump at the bottomof each access shaft for discharging ballast water. Eallast water is supplied tothe tanks from the utility seawater manifold. 9ach seawater ballast discharge

pump services the same two ballast tanks served by its access shaft. Allballasting is over the top of the hull, so that ballast tanks have to beintentionally /lled by the ballast operator. This eliminates the possibility ofinadvertent Kooding, which can occur if a sea=chest system is used.

TN Technology

The main principal of the TN is to assure that the vertical forces acting onthe platform are in balance, i.e. /4ed and variable platform loads plus tendontension are e1ual to its displacement. The J3? should be close to theplatforms geometrical center. ositive displacement is obtained by lockingthe platforms draft below the /4ed and variable payload displacement draft.

This will result in an upward force applied to the tendons, thereby keepingthem in constant tension.


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As a conse1uence the vertical platform motions (heave# is almost eliminated,e4cept for motions resulting from tendon elasticity and vertical motion asresult of environmental introduced lateral platform motions. The tendons doallow a lateral motion of the platform as a result of wind, wave and current.

This motion is similar to an inverted pendulum e4cept for the fact that thedisplacement variation by pulling the hull down is giving a restoring force tothe lateral movement. The tendon tension is set within prede/ned values, orwindow of operation. If the variable load of the platform e4ceeds thesevalues by adding risers or drilling loads etc., the tendon pretension isad$usted by re=ballasting of the platform. 3onse1uently the hull iscompartmented into void, machinery and ballast spaces. The TN has acontrol system monitoring ballast and J3?. 0eawater is used for ballastad$ustment.

As an evolution of the 3lassic TN design, the 9TN (94tended Tension Neglatform# has been developed. 0ome of the drivers behind this designdevelopment are:


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5e=coupling of tendon porch separation distance from the topsides deckdesign produces ma4imum design Ke4ibility.

9TNs have been successfully designed, fabricated, and installed at theLi2omba A, Li2omba E Nocated oshore Angola and "agnolia locations in the?ulf of "e4ico. "ore recently, the 9TN was selected for the apa=Terra

pro$ect oshore Era2il (the /rst for Era2il# and the Eig Foot pro$ect in the?".

Typical TN CAOs


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0emisubmersible Technology

0emi units oer a number of bene/ts, including large payload capacity,limited sensitivity to water depth, 1uayside integration and the ability torelocate after /eld abandonment. A typical 0emi design has four columnsconnected at the bottom by pontoon with a nominally rectangular cross=

section. A truss structure connects the column tops and supports topsidesmodules. This arrangement provides a high degree of Ke4ibility in fabricationmethodology.

The 0emi is designated as a 6column stabili2ed units7 (%03?, AE0, 5nJ, etc.#.The columns are 6stability columns7 and primarily provide Kotation stability.Important design variables are columns dimension and spacing, pontoon si2eand the ratio of pontoon width to pontoon height, draft of the hull, etc. Inorder to satisfy the stability and motion re1uirements, ranges for thevariables and critical parameters such as ?" value, free board value, heavenatural period, etc are set set as the constraints. 3olumns are si2ed toprovide ade1uate waterplane area to support all anticipated loadingconditions, spaced to support topsides modules, and tuned for a naturalperiod of at least )* seconds. These columns are supported by two parallel

pontoons or a ring pontoon. ontoons are si2ed to provide ade1uatebuoyancy to support all weights and vertical loads, and proportioned toma4imi2e heave damping.

Typical 0emi CAHs


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E"al#ating megaprojects$ What constit#tes s#ccess%

"egapro$ects always face challenges, but looking only at cost and timingmay not be the only way to $udge their success.

Jirginia A. ?reiman, professor of megapro$ects and planning, Eoston%niversity

"egapro$ects will always struggle with unforeseen events, regulatoryre1uirements, technical diGculties, /nancial constraints, and politics. Thecosts8at least & billion8of megapro$ects are high. The comple4ity isincreased by the fact that there are many dierent stakeholders, includingowners, managers, sponsors, and local communities, and they all havedierent perspectives. "oreover, delays and budget overruns are,admittedly, the norm rather than the e4ception. As a result, many

megapro$ects are remembered more for these issues than the lasting goodthey produce.

5e/ning success is complicated. It might seem straightforward to considerpro$ects successful that come in on time and on budget, but what if the/nished venture doesnHt solve the problem it was meant toV If a high=speedrail system meets its time and budget commitments, for e4ample, but cannot


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attract the ridership necessary to alleviate traGc congestion and improve air1uality, it is still a failure.

n the other hand, comprehensive research has found that pro$ects that areboth late and costly can still be considered successful if they deliver what ispromised and if associated socioeconomic bene/ts are accounted for.

%sually, however, such bene/ts are not even identi/ed. For e4ample,EostonHs Eig 5ig8a comple4 plan that rerouted an interstate and built abridge, a tunnel, and a greenway8was a source of enormous frustration andcontroversy because it took many more years and many more billions ofdollars than pro$ected to /nish. Pow that it is done, though, residents andvisitors are en$oying the bene/ts of dramatically reduced travel time, as wellas improved waterfront access, wildlife conservation, new and e4pandedparks, and increased business development. Eoston is a better place becauseof the Eig 5ig.

This is not to say cost and schedule do not matterS of course they do. Nike

everyone associated with the Eig 5ig, I wish it had gone more smoothly andless e4pensively. Eut its history also hints at another point: sponsors need todo a better $ob of assessing and then communicating the bene/ts a pro$ectwill deliver.

ro$ect=management success versus megapro$ect success

There is a dierence, in short, between successful pro$ect management andsuccessful pro$ects. ro$ect=management success has traditionally beende/ned as meeting scope, schedule, and costcompliance re1uirements.These three factors constitute what is known as the 6iron triangle7 and arethe traditional benchmarks used to evaluate most pro$ects. There are

additional attributes, however, such as socioeconomic improvements,technological innovation, and improved environmental conditions that couldand should be part of the e1uation in determining whether a pro$ect is asuccess.

In recent years, 6comprehensive bene/ts assessment7 has been used toattract /nancing for big public pro$ects and to build community support. Thisterm means that all bene/ts, tangible and intangible, are taken intoconsideration in assessing a pro$ectHs $usti/cation. Intangibles include skilldevelopment, alleviation of poverty, knowledge sharing, and institutionbuilding. %ndertaking a comprehensive bene/ts assessment is becoming thenorm for determining the likely long=term success of pro$ects and inKuencing

decisions about priorities and resource allocation. I believe that all pro$ectsshould incorporate a comprehensive assessment from the start and developpractices to implement and measure these bene/ts. For e4ample, the worthof technological improvements can be measured by the increased value ofthe intellectual=property portfolio.

There are dierent ways to measure these bene/ts. ne method is to do1ualitative and 1uantitative analysis of pro$ect and industry data, including


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stakeholder surveys, screening, and observation. Typically, there is a base=case cost=bene/t analysis to which investment alternatives are compared.The analysis addresses these 1uestions:


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0ustainability normally refers to environmental practices. In megapro$ects, abroader de/nition, including concepts of economic, social, and institutionalsustainability, is appropriate.B The 0an Franciscoakland Eay Eridge, whichwas damaged during the &' earth1uake and reopened in )*&+, was @billion over budget and took ten years longer than originally pro$ected. Eut

the bridge was built to last for &@* years8much longer than the typical @*years of service8and to withstand earth1uakes and seismic activity of thehighest magnitude. Eoth factors will support substantial savings down theline.- Although determining the bottom line on the Eay Eridge as constructedis diGcult, the point is that cost and schedule are not the only ways to $udgesuccess. ther factors must be incorporated into the pro$ectHs cost=bene/tanalysis.' There needs to be a framework to help governments8and thepublic8understand the larger bene/ts of a pro$ect and to include the impactof economic and social development in the /nal analysis. That doesnHt meanthat residents will be less irritated at the daily disruptions of pro$ects thatnever seem to end. Eut perhaps, looking at the bigger picture, they will

consider them worth the trouble.

an engineering imperative

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