FoundOcean Project Blog updates

Clipper Repair Project

Tue, 22 Feb 2011 14:03:34 GMT

To rectify this, a donut-shaped fabric formwork bag was placed around the mudmat at the bottom of each leg and filled with grout. The void between the mudmat and the seabed was then grouted to act as a plug before filling the leg with grout to further strengthen it. This was carried out on each of the four corner legs.

Wednesday 29th December
The FoundOcean crew arrived in Great Yarmouth to board the Seven Atlantic today. The Seven is quite a modern vessel and we comfortably settled to our new surroundings. We steamed out to the North Sea and the vessel resumed its position beside the Clipper PT Platform.

Thursday 30th December
Following the safety meeting and a briefing with Subsea 7 and Shell, all 8 FoundOcean crew worked a single shift today. The grouting equipment and plant was set up and valve assemblies were prepared for grouting operations. A function test was carried out on the primary and secondary grout mixers using seawater. To cover the possibility of high pressure in the grout hoses it was decided that cold work permits were to be in place to cover each 12 hour shift. Colin Barrett (Supervisor) and his crew were to work day shifts and James Ramsay (Mixer driver), Thomas McPake (Lab Technician), Richard Graham (Mechanic) and I were to work the night shifts – from midnight to midday.

Friday 31st December
Weather conditions were favourable for grouting with relatively calm seas. After flushing grout lines and connecting up the various hoses, grout bag A1 was successfully completed. Preparation of mixer and grouting equipment before grouting operations proved to be paramount as the divers had a limited tidal window with spring tides in force. Because of this it was important for the grouting team to be prepared and ready to start work as soon as this window became available.


The Clipper platform	Offshore personnel in their survival suits	The helipad

Saturday 1st January
Mudmat A1 void was completed during the early hours of New Year’s Day. We pumped 2.35m3 of quality grout to the void and achieved the required specific gravity of 1.98. Pumping stopped later that morning at 06:37hrs by which time the operation was completed and accepted by Subsea 7. The purpose of grouting the mudmat void is to act as a plug to seal the lower end of the leg annulus. For the rest of our shift the crew and I remained on standby and carried out general maintenance to the plant.

Sunday 2nd January
Mudmat Void C2 was the foremost operation during the early hours of Sunday morning. After pumping a cubic metre over the theoretical volume it was decided to halt grouting operations. Because of the shallow waters and heavy swell, seawater was surging in and out of the mudmat void causing grout to be sucked out. Operations halted at 02:30 with a view to completing the void over the following days.

Monday 3rd January
As a result of heavy swell the problem with surging water postponed grouting operations. The crew and I carried out routine maintenance to the plant and remained on standby for the remainder of our shift.

Tuesday 4th January
Leg annulus A1 was successfully grouted and completed between 02:00 and 05:00 on Tuesday morning. A total volume of 1.77m3 was pumped into the annulus by which time good returns were overflowing from the leg valve, and confirmed by Subsea 7 divers.

Wednesday 5th January
During this night shift, the crew managed to grout mudmat void A2. After flushing and connecting up the grout hose we pumped 1.88m3 into the mudmat void until good returns were confirmed. The Seven Atlantic steamed back into Great Yarmouth in order to take on a new marine crew. After completing this we resumed our position beside the Clipper rig later that evening. The cube samples from the previous night were weighed, measured and crushed.


The Clipper platform	The Clipper platform	The spread on board the vessel

Thursday 6th January
This was the final grouting operation for the night shift crew. We started pumping grout into leg C1 at 04:00 hrs. Because of a small technical issue with the 12V batch mixer Colin, the FoundOcean Supervisor, implemented a contingency procedure. He decided we should use the smaller 10V backup mixer to complete the grouting operation but because of the tight tidal window we mixed the grout in the 10V and pumped it to the 12V holding tank. This was because the pump on this machine has a higher output and as a result, the reduced pumping time allowed the operation to be completed during the acceptable tidal period. We completed leg C1 successfully and stopped pumping at 05:00hrs. General maintenance was carried out to plant and we remained on stand-by until shift handover at midday.

Friday 7th January
Today, the crew tried to get back into normal sleeping patterns. The majority of the work today was cleaning down the deck and de-rigging the grouting equipment. Cement lines were rolled up and placed into the storage container, grout hoses were reeled in, the storage container was tidied and work benches were cleaned, pressure was released from silos, cubes were crushed and results were recorded, open vents from silos were sealed, and many other tasks were carried out in order to get the equipment prepared for demobilization.

Saturday 8th January
The debriefing was held with Subsea 7 and Shell. They were happy with the grouting operations by FoundOcean personnel and “hoped to see us again soon!” A helicopter landed on the Seven Atlantic’s heliport at midday. All FoundOcean personnel embarked and flew back over the choppy North Sea to Norwich.

Posted by Erlen Christiansen at 15:03 on 24/01/2011 in North Sea

Ormonde: My first offshore experience

Thu, 21 Oct 2010 10:19:32 GMT

Monday 11th October

I started out from London Euston station and arrived in Lancaster station later that afternoon. After a short taxi ride I joined the Swiber Else-Marie which was docked in Heysham port for re-supplies. The project supervisor, Colin, showed me about the vessel and completed all safety briefs. This was essential as it was my first offshore working experience, and even though I am an experienced social sailor this was important as events later in the week proved; I settled in quite nicely. The Swiber Else-Marie left Heysham port later that night and resumed its position beside the Ormonde Windfarm. The forecast for the week was ideal for grouting conditions for the Swiber Else-Marie and also for jacket installations for the Rambiz.

Tuesday 12th October

After an early start, grouting WTG 28 was underway. This was a new and exciting experience for me as it was the first time I could see the equipment and the team in operation offshore. I started off by helping the Grouting Technician, Stewart, with making the grout cubes. He showed me the ropes and I soon became acquainted with the various duties of this job. This also entailed carrying out compression tests on the 24hr cubes from the morning before. WTG 28 was completed that afternoon with no snags or hitches. After grouting was complete Colin showed me how to write up the daily reports, cube sheets and grouting reports.

Wednesday 13th October

Another early start and WTG 29 was underway. This time I was working alongside Charlie, the Equipment Operator. He showed me the workings of the RJM and I managed to learn the basics of how the machine operates. This was the heart of the grouting operation and I soon appreciated the responsibility and importance of being able to operate the machine effectively. Colin also showed me about the ROV station and taught me how to communicate with the pumping crew whilst monitoring the pumped overage. The weather was very good today. I finished up by completing paper work in the ships office under Colin’s watchful eye.


Jacket OR-A3 at sunset	Looking down the Swiber Else Marie	Rambiz and a jacket in the distance

Thursday 14th October

WTG 30 was grouted today. Colin showed me more of the duties of the Project Engineer and I also got a taste of the Mechanics’ responsibilities. While doing this Stevie gave me an overview of the controls of the pumping system. A damaged valve at the top of the surge tank prevented rotation of the rotary valve and caused some delay. I quickly understood that this is why FoundOcean always carry 100% backup of the equipment so as not to hold up operations. After inspection, Colin decided to switch mixer to the 12V mixer. The 12V successfully completed the remainder of pumping into the final leg of WTG 30. Due to the threat of strong winds and high seas over the weekend, the Rambiz ploughed on overnight and successfully installed an additional two jackets.

Friday 15th October

The Swiber Else-Marie returned to Heysham to resupply with cement. I worked with one of the technicians on dock and helped refill the tanks with cement from the onshore silos. Maintenance was carried out for the rest of the day and we returned to the windfarm at 16:00hrs. The crew had an early night as the plan was to grout two jackets the following day.

Saturday 16th October

On Saturday we grouted two jackets, WTG 16 and 27. I started off by working in the ROV shack and controlled the flushing and grouting operations of the piles. Communication with the ROV crew and our crew proved essential to ensure the correct volume of grout was pumped into the annulus. Throughout the day I worked alongside all four of the FoundOcean crew and learned more. After lunch we started on WTG 27, some small delays were due to cleaning out the grout lines and equipment but all in all Saturday was a success. The forecast was for near gales over the following days with a significant sea state to halt grouting operations.

Sunday 17th October

The Rambiz managed to deploy its final jacket. A crew boat was scheduled for the Monday to exchange captains. As a result of strong winds and high seas no grouting is scheduled until Saturday 23rd. Helping with maintenance and doing the paperwork were my main responsibilities later that day.

Monday 18th October

The crew boat came out and the captain and I departed the Swiber Else-Marie. Two train stops later and I arrived in Euston station at about 16:00hrs. This was my first time offshore and a really valuable experience that made me appreciate the harsh conditions offshore workers sometimes have to deal with to get the job done and the vast experience required to complete a safe and effective grouting operation.

Posted by Erlen Christiansen at 17:41 on 21/10/2010 in Irish Sea

AME Jacket Installations

Mon, 11 Oct 2010 14:37:00 GMT

On arrival in Kuantan (KSB) in Malaysia we loaded the diving vessel (Allied Conquests) with all grouting equipment ready to complete the grouting on three jackets for Petronas plus two grout bags which were to be installed at a pipeline crossing. The Jacket’s to be grouted are TBCP-A, MLDP-A and TBDR-A. All three jackets have been pre-installed prior to us arriving in the field.

On 08/09/10 the vessel departed KSB port to head out to the field. The first jacket to concentrate on was the 8 legger, TBCP-A, where we grouted two legs. Once the first two legs were complete we only had sufficient cement to complete the grout bags at the pipeline crossing. The vessel headed for the crossing and within 24 hours the pipeline was lifted and the grout bags successfully installed and grouted. It was then a sail to KSB port to reload with cement.

After returning to the field on 15/09/10, the vessel was instructed to go to a different platform as they needed the divers on the vessel to carry out important work elsewhere in the field. This lasted for three days before we headed back to TBCP-A where we grouted a further two legs before heading into port again to top up with cement.

This continued for the next two weeks till we completed TBCP-A and MLDP-A (4 legger), grouting two legs at a time due to the vessel’s cement capacity. All packers and grouting on the first two jackets went really well with no problems to report.


Equipment onboard the Allied Conquests	The first two jackets are placed and grouted

On arrival back to TBDR-A we implemented FoundOcean contingency proceedures to complete grouting as the packers had failed.

We are now down on bad weather here as we have been for the last three days so hopefully when the weather calms down we can get the vessel back to the jacket and successfully set the remaining three grout plugs and complete the grouting operations.

Posted by Chris Boyd at 10:46 on 12/10/2010 in South China Sea

Valhall Jacket Strengthening

Fri, 24 Sep 2010 09:41:02 GMT

Sunday 19th September

I flew out from London Heathrow and arrived in Stavanger, Norway, meeting five of the team who had flown from Aberdeen. We joined the vessel after a ridiculously expensive taxi ride from the airport. Greeted by our two colleagues who arrived two days earlier, we got settled in and started to explore the vessel, the Far Scorpion.The windy weather's meant that we're going to set up scaffolding and hang tarpauline around the mixer to reduce any cement dust flying around when the bags are split.

Monday 20th September

Departure day. Following a detailed safety meeting we set sail for the Valhall field. The sea state was slightly bumpy but not too uncomfortable and after I had rediscovered my sea legs the trip seemed to fly by – of course the ships’ entertainment facilities helped!

Tuesday 21st September

I awoke to the sun rising over the illuminated platforms of the Valhall field. The vessel was pirouetting as it completed its dynamic positioning (DP) trials before entering the work zone, giving a full panoramic view of the field out of my cabin porthole.

The go ahead was given to start grouting at 1400. The day shift were scrambled and made it on deck in no time. The hoses were slung across from the jacket and everything was connected up ready for grouting to start on leg A1. The grouting process went without a hitch and after I had handed over responsibilities to the night shift supervisor, John Paul, I sat on the upper deck of the vessel and looked out at the platforms lit up across the horizon.


The QP platform at Valhall	FoundOcean spread onboard Far Scorpion	FoundOcean technicians start mixing grout

Wednesday 22nd September

The day began with a hand-over meeting from John Paul; the team had already started to finish off the first leg. We continued with their good work and received returns at the top of the leg after a couple of hours. Leg A1 is complete.

Thursday 23rd September

Weather is still favourable as we started grouting the second Leg, B1. It took six hours of continuous grouting to complete the leg with the equipment and hoses washed out and crew off deck by 1600. We received information that the weather was taking a turn for the worse so the vessel decided to return to port rather than facing the reported 10m waves. I for one was glad!

Friday 24th September

I was woken up by the sea trying to throw me out of my bunk this morning. The sea’s really picked up over night and I’m relieved we sailed in to port.

Saturday 25th September

We’re still sat in port and weather reports aren’t looking favourable for the planned departure this evening. We decided to explore Stavanger and find a shop to stock up on essential supplies. Unfortunately the walk was about an hour further than I anticipated, but the mission was a success!


The grout mixer with scaffolding and tarp	Looking out to sea from the port	Looking inland from the vessel in port

Sunday 26th September

News arrives that the weather is looking better offshore and we leave the port at 1300. The mood is lifted amongst the crew who are anxious to get back out to site and finish off the last two legs. We’re due to arrive back on site early tomorrow morning and depending on conditions there, we’ll start grouting leg three of four.

Monday 27th September

Weather in the Valhall field is atrocious. There were a few green faces around (including my own). Not the weather to be grouting so everyone sought refuge in their bunks for the day.

Tuesday 28th September

A marked improvement in the weather. We moved in to the jacket and started grouting again. We finished the third leg by 1400 and moved on to the fourth and final leg after we had cleaned out the equipment, the end was in sight... At 2100, as we moved on to complete the last section we faced a blocked hose. With time running out we decided to call it a night and disconnect the hoses and continue again in the morning.

Wednesday 29th September

The last section of the leg was grouted this morning and we’re on our way back to port. Equipment has been made ready for demob in the morning. The ship was travelling at a fair rate of knots and we made it into Stavanger before midnight.

Thursday 30thSeptember

All the equipment was unloaded from the vessel this morning and after a couple of meetings with the client, the crew is demobilised too. The project was a success in grouting terms but owning to the unpredictability of the weather, took longer than anticipated.

Posted by Richard Latham at 10:41 on 27/09/2010 in North Sea

Ormonde Offshore Windfarm: Mobilisation Three

Wed, 15 Sep 2010 12:43:59 GMT

Day 1: We travelled to Heysham today to swap out three men. 12 of the 31 jackets are completed so far and after a handover and a description of the day to day routine, we’re ready to take on the next stage of the operation. We finished loading cement at noon and had 12 hours to settle in before the Else Marie sailed again to the Ormonde Offshore Windfarm.

Day 2: Sailed last night at about midnight. The short trip was a little bumpy with a fair bit of wind blowing. After a 6h30 breakfast I had a look on deck to confirm the weather was too bad for some routine maintenance, as the odd wave sloshed across the deck. Early evening and there’s still plenty of white horse’s about but we seem to be getting our sea legs and the colour is returning to a few faces. The barge is expected on Tuesday and hopefully with weather permitting we can get started by mid week.

Day 3: A vast improvement in the weather today meant we could do some maintenance and a function test on our equipment. With a clearer view we could also see the sheer scale of the windfarm project as the installations stand proud around us in organised rows. The barge is due tomorrow with the next four jackets and hopefully this good weather will stay with us for a while.


Ormonde jackets with Barrow Windfarm visible	A calm day out at the windfarm	Sunset over Rambiz and the jackets

Day 4: The sun is out again today although there is a definite drop in the temperature. Autumn is well on its way; it gives a sense of urgency as it won’t be long before the cold winds and constant swell comes. For now all we can do is sit and wait for the delivery.

Day 5: Good weather again today and the news is it is expected good for five days. We grouted WTG 13 today and it all went very smoothly. We expect to complete four jackets in four days weather permitting. The Rambiz has installed the next jacket ahead of us for tomorrow and judging by the time it took, from our view is also seems to have gone quite well.

Day 6: Another early start today but the good weather has all of the crew in good spirits. Grouting of WTG 17 was completed with no difficulties today and the forecast is still good for at least the rest of the week. The Rambiz has installed another jacket at its ease this afternoon and we will grout it tomorrow. All going well we will finish these four by Saturday 2nd and head to shore to load with cement before returning to location and starting again.

Day's 7-8: Operations are on hold as of last night but we're using the time to clean and test our grouting equipment. There’s a slight breeze gathering; I hope the weather isn’t changing on us as it would be a pity to have missed out on a good weather window.


FoundOcean cement silo	FoundOcean crew pumping grout	Technician making grout cubes

Day 9: Grouting of WTG 15 went well today! Weather wise there was a slight breeze and a bit of rain, certainly it was too rough for the Rambiz to install a jacket but it was well within our grouting limits. We started our operations at 7am after our toolbox meetings. We finished grouting around 13h. The fresh air will have done us all good and we will sleep well tonight!

Day 10: There is a bit of a swell today and there no more jackets are being installed until the piles have been cleaned, nevertheless we were out on deck early and did some equipment maintenance. We plan to head to shore tonight and load with cement tomorrow morning and change out some of the crew. Everybody is looking forward to getting their feet on solid ground if only for one night.

Day 11: Transferred the cement today. We took 150 tonne aboard to replenish our stock. Three of the crew changed out and at 19h we are to sail for operations location again. The cleaning equipment for the piles is due in the next day or so and all going well, we will be grouting again by the 9th.


Inspecting the surge tank	Oh, how the weather can change!	The underside of the WTG jackets

Day 12: We sailed out to the windfarm last night and are still on standby for the cleaning operations. A serious weather front across the Atlantic is occurring and we know it will only be a matter of time before we feel some of the effects on this side.

Day 13: On standby again today with weather but the news is we might get a short window of opportunity for a few days’ operations from tomorrow. We will make the most of it.

Day 14: Grouting operations are still on standby but the good news is that the weather has improved just enough for the Rambiz to install a jacket today and we expect to grout it tomorrow. Unfortunately a weather front from the west looks as if it will put us on hold for a few days after tomorrow. We ran our equipment for a short time to ensure all is ok before tomorrow and an early night will help.

Day 15: An early start this morning and by early afternoon we had completed grouting of WTG 14; meanwhile the Rambiz has installed WTG 18. The weather is set to deteriorate from tomorrow so we concluded that as WTG 18 was installed we will grout it this evening rather than take our chances with the weather tomorrow. A few hiccups with fuses etc. nothing major but it meant an 18hr shift. We finished the grouting of the second jacket by 24h and soon after we were in our bunks for a well earned rest.

Day 16: Weather is not as bad as I expected this morning but we cannot install another jacket and grout it as the weather is set to change severely tomorrow. High winds and waves of up to 5 meters are expected over the next few days so we will sail to port tonight and get some leave until the weather improves. The Rambiz has sailed to take shelter around the Isle of Man. We will clean and store our equipment and leave the vessel tomorrow.

Posted by John Paul O'Sullivan at 22:12 on 12/09/2010 in Irish Sea