Verification of Fixed Offshore Oil and Gas Platforms An Analysis of Need, Scope, and Alternative Verification Systems (1977) / Chapter Skim
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BACKGROUND
BACKGROUND
Pages 5-14
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From page 5... ...
requires statements by the operator as to sizes and loads on structural members and piling and then requires "the following certification signed and dated with the title of the company representative: Operator certified that this platform has been certified by a registered professional engineer and that the structure will be constructed, operated, and maintained as described in the application, and any approved modification thereto.
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Third-party inspection data will be coded for inclusion in the Platform Inspection System of the Gulf of Mexico, OCS operations, to permit its retrieval separately from inspection data collected by USGS inspection personnel.
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From page 7... ...
The purpose of the study was to: 0 Determine whether or not independent thirdparty review of offshore structures would be of sufficient benefit to the USGS, the companies involved in the design, fabrication, and installation of offshore structures, the operating companies undertaking the recovery of offshore petroleum and gas resources, the public and the Congress, to warrant the time and costs involved; 0 Determine, if the answer to the above is affirmative, the scope and detail that should be recommended for such review and further, to determine the availability of criteria, guidelines, and engineering standards for performing the review; and, 0 Identify and determine the relative merits of alternative organizational concepts for certification. The panel limited its deliberations to the problems of design, fabrication, installation, and maintenance of fixed, bottom-founded, offshore oil and gas structures, that is, production platforms permanently fixed to the seabed by means of piling, spread footings, or other means.
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From page 8... ...
The panel also excluded consideration of verification techniques applied to the structural integrity of existing platforms. A verification procedure for these must take into account the number of existing platforms, their age, the technology used at the time of construction, the cost of bringing them up to acceptable construction design criteria, specifications, etc., and the value of remaining oil or gas reserves.
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From page 9... ...
and foreign verification systems; 0 The adequacy of present industry design, fabrication, installation, and maintenance practices; 0 The legal and public-interest implications of verification; 0 The need for, and the positive and negative effects of/ any change from the present system; 0 The criteria by which the verification system and organizational concepts might be judged for suitability and adequacy; 0 Third-party verification process by which design review and inspection of structures is performed and documented by independent third-party agents. There are numerous variations of third-party verification systems.
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From page 10... ...
The USGS also requested that the panel consider a study being conducted by the Aerospace Corporation, under contract to the USGS, as it related to the panel's efforts and to comment as appropriate. The Aerospace study analyzed various cerification procedures and developed detailed cost estimates, personnel staffing and implementation requirements.
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From page 11... ...
offshore industry have been primarily responsible for the development of OCS technology to its present state of sophistication. The scientific and technical knowledge required to implement a verification system consists of: 0 Environmental data, including atmospheric, oceanic, and geotechnical; 0 Engineering properties of structural materials; 0 Structural design; 0 Response of structures to environmental loads; 0 Fabrication technology; 0 Inspection technology; and, 0 Installation technology.
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From page 12... ...
; 0 Industrial firm design procedures and practices; and, 0 Technical literature. In its study for the USGS, the Aerospace Corporation reviewed API-RP2A and indicated which areas of the state of technology were satisfactory and which areas could be improved.10 While the panel does not entirely concur with their conclusions, the report does provide a starting point for improving the documentation of recommended practices.
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From page 13... ...
Verification Functions The panel identified the functions to be carried out in a verification system: 0 Establish environmental design and construction criteria and prepare basic implementing documentation of policy, regulations, standards, and personnel qualifications; 0 Prepare detailed verification plans which list the criteria and procedures to be used in design, construction, installation, and maintenance and the various design review, inspection, test, and quality control activities; 0 Check and approve (with modifications, if needed) the verification plans; 0 Provide an appeal route for resolving conflicts; 0 Implement the plan (i.e., conduct design review, observe tests, inspect fabrication and installation, and review various quality-control activities)
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From page 14... ...
14 Operate the failure reporting and analysis system; and, Audit the overall implementation of the verification system.
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