Gangway portfolio expanded

Norwegian-based Brude Safety has expanded its gangway portfolio to cover a range from 2-14m. The two latest developments, the 11m and the 14m gangways, are knuckled versions, giving the shipowner the opportunity to use it for crew-change as well as for standard deck-quay solutions.

The gangways can be installed as stand-alone or they can be integrated into the shipside with a door made of steel and hinged to the coaming. The door is stiffened and made as strong as the ship's side. In the locked position the door fits tightly against a rubber gasket in the coaming. The door and its swing movement is locked by means of a hydraulic cylinder. The cylinder operates two locking cleats mounted in the coaming, which interlock with two press bolts mounted on the door. The door has a hydraulic cylinder for the tilting movements and it is opened or closed by operating the same cylinder. When the door is lowered and the gangway is placed on the quay it has a free float function to absorb the tidewater and the swell movement between the ship and the quay or between two ships.

The telescopic gangway is attached on the inside of the door. The gangway is made of aluminium and has a threefold structure with an inner, middle and an outer element. The middle and outer elements have hydraulic cylinders for telescopic extension of the gangway. Each structure has a fixed handrail.

According to Brude Safety, the aluminium profile of the gangway floor has been specially developed to ensure safe transfer of passengers. The hydraulic unit acts as the control unit for the gangway. The main components are the tank, the hydraulic pump, valves, a 230V/60Hz electric motor and the steering system. The unit is powered by means of 230V from the ship's electrical system and is connected to the door lock cylinders, the door cylinder and the telescopic gangway cylinders. All functions are controlled by means of valves in the vicinity of the gangway. The valves are operated manually or optionally by remote control. OE
 

HEAVE HO: Scantrol believes this illustration vividly demonstrates the value of employing active heave compensation (AHC) as a control system for winches and cranes used for subsea operations. The screen shot from the Scantrol AHC operator’s monitor shows the vessel motion (upper graph) and the corresponding load motion with and without AHC (lower graph). D esigned to give precise control of load position when a vessel is in motion even in harsh weather, Scantrol says its AHC can be adapted to any hydraulic or electric winch, even existing ones, ensuring the operator has precise control over the load. ‘Scantrol AHC is a flexible system that can be delivered in different configurations, ranging from a simple operator panel or radio control to an advanced iSYM system with multiple displays and data recorders,’ says the company.


Gas lift barriers
Declining North Sea production has brought well enhancement techniques into sharper focus in recent years, with gas lift finding favour among operators over traditional systems. Prompted by this and the heightened regulatory focus on well integrity and containment issues, PTC set about developing, manufacturing, testing, qualifying and installing more sophisticated downhole gas lift valves and tubing-annulus safety barriers.

In addition, the company developed and installed new annular and wellhead barriers to ensure full independent gas containment at surface.

With its innovative, patented dart design, PTC says its Safelift gas lift valve (GLV) offers full seal area erosion protection, with the flow dynamic internal geometry delivering uninterrupted gas supply and improved well productivity.

The metal/metal seal and bellows are tested to 3500 cycles to ensure longevity and reduced well intervention frequency, with PTC prepared to guarantee them for two years against mechanical or seal failures. In addition, PTC's Downhole Annular Safety Valves (DH-ASV) incorporate gas lift valve or standard downhole safety valves (DHSV) and the company's Modular Surface Annulus Safety Valve (M-SAS) can be integrated in all wellheads to contain injection gas. These valves are developed and built on the same principles as the GLV. ‘Should any external impact occur, for example from dropped objects, the SAS will isolate the VR profile and contain annulus gas,' explains PTC. ‘The lightweight telescopic VR installation tool allows optimum flexibility and access in almost all wellhead areas.'

Close inspection: Kongsberg Maritime has completed what the company described as the longest multi-sensor AUV pipeline survey to date in the Hjelte fjord near Bergen. The company used one of its Hugin 1000 AUVs, operated from the Royal Norwegian Navy vessel HNoMS Maloy, to conduct the pipeline inspection this February. The craft examined two subsea pipelines feeding into the Mongstad oil refinery, in two eight-hour surveys measuring a total of 60km.

In the first pass of the two-pass mission, side-scan data from Kongsberg's HISAS 1030 sonar was used to detect and track the pipelines in real time, using PipeTracker software. The software, developed in collaboration with the Norwegian Defence Research Establishment, runs as a plug-in module that enables the AUV control system to use identified pipeline tracks to position the AUV at optimal imaging range. The automated process requires no operator intervention,' Kongsberg said.

The AUV followed with a second pass at low altitude using the EM 3002 mutibeam echo sounder and an optical camera with LED lighting. With the post-processed data from the first pass, the collected information gave a detailed view of the pipeline and its surroundings. Kongsberg repeated the eighthour, two-pass procedure the following day on the second pipeline. Both lines were surveyed at a speed of 4 knots and 4m-25m altitude in water depths ranging from 180m-560m.

Step in the right direction
An ultra-compact drilling fluid and well control system has been fast-tracked by Aker Solutions' subsidiary Step Offshore to Rolls-Royce Marine for deployment on the Yme field in the Norwegian North Sea. The skid-mounted drilling fluid circulation and well control system will serve as a light workover unit at the Talisman Energy-operated Yme oil field.

According to Pål Eriksen, president of Step Offshore, the unit is designed for easy transportation to and from the wellhead platform, providing instant and easy hook-up to the workover unit for well intervention operations in already drilled and completed wells.

The system includes trip tanks, pumps, remote controlled valves, standpipe manifold, choke and kill manifold, HPU, instrumentation and controls, and its main functions are continuously monitoring the drilling fluid volume in the well by the dual trip tank system while tripping in and out of the hole; routing drilling fluid from seawater pumps or water injection system to standpipe (hole), trip tank system or choke & kill manifold, and performing choke & kill operations.

The trip tank system is controlled from the driller's control desk, while the chokes are controlled from a stand-alone choke control panel in the driller's cabin. The choke control panel utilizes a 19in touch screen for easy and clear control of the choking process, says Eriksen.