Offshore accident rate falls

The number of serious incidents associated with lifting operations involving offshore cranes on the Norwegian shelf fell dramatically between 2000 and last year, according to a new report from the Petroleum Safety Authority Norway (PSA).

However, the PSA also reported that a study of “undesirable incidents” involving offshore cranes in the same period showed that the causal connections when incidents did occur were the same as they were 10 years ago.

Between 50 and 60 serious incidents were recorded in 2004. The PSA said there had also been several serious incidents this year, “which under only slightly different circumstances, could have resulted in fatalities”.

The report – “Causal Connection Analysis of Unintentional Offshore Crane Incidents – Phase 2” has been prepared for the PSA by international consultant Scandpower. It examines undesirable incidents involving offshore cranes recorded in the operators’ reporting systems between 2000 and 2004. In Phase 2, approximately 3,000 incidents have been checked and analysed. Each incident is categorised based on the seriousness of the event (red, yellow, or green) as well as in an MTO perspective (MTO = man, technology, or organisational factors).

The PSA said: “There is a significant declining trend in the number of recorded red and yellow incidents per year linked to cranes and lifting operations for the entire period. The number was at its highest level in 2000, and has been reduced by about 75% up to 2004.”

Despite a positive trend in recent years, however, cranes and lifting still accounted for a significant contribution to risks and injuries on the Norwegian shelf, the PSA said. Between 2000 and 2004, there were three fatal accidents involving cranes and lifting operations offshore (Oseberg Øst in 2000 and Byford Dolphin and Gyda – both in 2002).

The PSA again: “The analysis also shows that incorrect execution of work, breaches of procedures, and equipment faults/deficiencies are the most common direct causes of serious incidents. The most frequently occurring underlying causes are related to inadequate planning, deficient maintenance, and lack of expertise.”

Largest UK wind farm takes shape

The largest offshore wind farm in UK coastal waters is currently being built in the East Irish Sea, approximately 7km south west of Walney Island, near Barrow-in-Furness, UK. When completed the farm – which comprises 30 wind turbines and an offshore sub-station, and covers an area of around 10 sq km – will provide electricity to around 65,000 homes.

The project involves installing up to 61.2m long 4.75m diameter tubular steel monopile foundations weighing up to 452t in water depths between 21m and 23m. All offshore construction work is being carried out by Marine Projects International (MPI) based in Middlesbrough, Cleveland, UK from its purpose-built jack-up turbine installation vessel TIV Resolution.

Bauer Maschinen GmbH of Schrobenhausen, Germany has supplied its BFD 5500 Flydrill System together with support for drilling out the soil and sedimentary rocks from inside monopiles.

The top drill is suspended from a crane placed on top of an isolated monopile in the sea, and operating independently from any other power source on deck of the support vessel.

IMCA publishes updated version of HSE slings guide

IMCA – the International Marine Contractors Association – has produced an updated version of the UK Health & Safety Executive’s (HSE’s) Guidance Note PM20 (Plant & Machinery Series 20) Cable Laid Slings and Grommets because the HSE is no longer issuing this type of guidance.

“I am delighted that our Guidance on the Use of Cable Laid Slings and Grommets (IMCA M 179) follows in the footsteps of PM20,” said Hugh Williams, IMCA’s chief executive.

He added: “The HSE original has been fully reviewed by an IMCA workgroup and by classification societies, and updated as required to reflect current industry best practice. Like its predecessor, it is intended to be of assistance to those concerned with the use of cable laid slings and grommets in very heavy lifting operations. Such operations often use cable laid slings and grommets of 100mm diameter and over, as developed for use in the offshore oil and gas industry. These are generally too large for existing test equipment to be used to test the rope sample to destruction, the biggest being around 500mm in diameter with about 7,000t breaking load. This guidance note, therefore, gives advice on their construction, rating, testing, certification, examination, and use.”

The detailed passages of the document deal with key rope design and usage parameters such as wire rope make up, testing, calculation of break load, splices and termination efficiency, and working load limit as well as giving guidance on inspecting, marking, matching, using and bending slings.

Copies of IMCA M 179 are available at £15 each (£18 including delivery outside Europe) for IMCA members (who can also download the publication from the IMCA members-only section of the website free of charge); and £30 for non-members via the website at www.imca-int.com/divisions/marine/publications; by email at publications@imca-int.com or from IMCA, 5 Lower Belgrave Street, London SW1W 0NR, UK; Tel: +44 (0)20 7824 5520; Fax: +44 (0)20 824 5521.

IMCA is an international association with its 290 members in more than 35 countries representing offshore, marine and underwater engineering companies.

Huisman-Itrec wins marine crane contract

Netherlands-based Huisman-Itrec has been awarded a contract to supply marine cranes for Sapura 3000, the new heavy lift and pipe-laying vessel that will be operated by a joint venture of Stolt Offshore and SapuraCrest Petroleum.

Huisman-Itrec will deliver a 3,000t mast crane; two 40t pedestal mounted offshore cranes; six 50t pipe davits; three 80t tensioners; a bevel station; transfer system; line-up station transfer system; nine firing line working stations; the pipe handling system (including pipe elevator); a 90m Stinger and stinger handling system.

Delivery will be the end of 2006.

Sparrows awarded £15m crane maintenance contract

Sparrows Offshore has been awarded a £15 million, five-year contract with Talisman Energy to provide crane management services covering Talisman’s seven UK North Sea assets.

The award follows a previous five-year contract during which Sparrows claimed its personnel have worked some 500,000 man hours without a single Lost Time Incident.

The new contract secures work for 20 professional and technical Aberdeen-based Sparrows personnel dedicated exclusively to the Talisman contract, together with associated workload for an even larger number of onshore support, engineering, project management, logistics and administration personnel at the company’s Bridge of Don headquarters.

Meanwhile, Sparrows Offshore Services has won a five-year US $87.7m contract from Shell for the management, operation, and maintenance of all cranes on Shell’s installations in UK and Dutch sector waters and onshore cranes at Torry Marine Base.

Sparrows has a current contract with Shell covering 35 cranes on the Mature, Cross Border, Central North Sea Assets and Torry Marine Base. The new contract adds responsibility for a further 53 cranes on Shell’s West Assets in the UK sector of the Southern North Sea (SNS) and East Assets in the Dutch sector of the SNS.

The award directly secures the 69 Sparrows jobs already dedicated to servicing Shell. The addition of the SNS assets will create new jobs with Sparrows in Aberdeen, Great Yarmouth and in The Netherlands.

NME wins marine crane order

Norwegian Maritime Equipments (NME) will supply 10 marine cranes for work on the construction of five new coastguard vessels in a contract worth €500,000.

The first to roll off the production line is scheduled to hit the water before the end of the year, with the last completed by the end of 2006.

The order was received from Sczecin Ship Repair Yard Gryfia SA in Poland, which is building the vessels for Remoy Management AS and Remoy Shipping AS.

All the cranes are similar, but five units can be adapted for grab operations. NME describes them as “combined knuckle and telescopic boom marine cranes.”

The cranes have lifting capacities of 1.3t (1.4 USt) at 10m (32ft) and 2.8t (3.1 USt) at 5m (16ft). They will be delivered with winches and continuous rotation and slew bearings which, NME said, was unusual because these kind of fittings are usually reserved for bigger machines. NME claimed that this was a better solution than slewing with hydraulic cylinders. The cranes will also be delivered with stainless steel pipes and fittings. They will be operated by radio remote control.

NME is a wholly owned subsidiary of Norwegian equipment supplier Stromme ASA.