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Australian Energy Producers Journal Australian Energy Producers Journal Society
Journal of Australian Energy Producers
RESEARCH ARTICLE (Non peer reviewed)

The case for integrated IMR programs: increasing operational efficiency with a holistic approach that reduces risk and carbon emissions

Ka Henney A *
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A Oceaneering International Services Limited, Aberdeen, Scotland, UK.




Ka Henney serves as the Products and Services Manager for Oceaneering’s Offshore Projects Group. She has 16 years’ experience in the offshore energy industry and extensive experience in senior management roles. She joined Oceaneering in November 2022 after 5 years, having previously executed the role of Vice President of Americas for a global subsea technology organisation. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Marine Biology and a Master of Science in Marine Fisheries and Environmental Science from the University of Aberdeen.

* Correspondence to: khenney1@oceaneering.com

Australian Energy Producers Journal 64 S247-S250 https://doi.org/10.1071/EP23188
Accepted: 3 April 2024  Published: 16 May 2024

© 2024 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing on behalf of Australian Energy Producers.

Abstract

This paper discusses the positive impact of adopting an integrated, customisable inspection, maintenance, and repair (IMR) approach when addressing subsea assets. Primary focus and expenditure are typically committed to the design, planning, and engineering of infrastructure. Of paramount importance, but often overlooked, are the ongoing health checks required of the subsea assets. These activities are regularly left until an issue is found, production is affected, or subsea asset data is required to enable decision making to ensure the lowest level of risk and maximise uptime. How the operations and maintenance approach used for subsea assets is best addressed using an integrated philosophy that streamlines not only contract management, but the collection and analysis of data is detailed. By supporting a more holistic view of assets not only by field, but regionally and globally, operators are best positioned to apply advanced technologies including machine learning for the development of risk-based inspection programs that provide insight into potential failures and anomalies. Building and adopting truly optimised IMR programs also reduces vessel days by leveraging already deployed assets, advanced technologies, and remote piloting to complete varied inspection tasks simultaneous to other ongoing operations, lowering emissions and risk associated with mobilisations and personnel on board. The impact of optimised inspection planning on users’ in-house resources is detailed. With internal experts dealing with IMR planning, analysis, and data management often stretched, adopting this forward-thinking approach to IMR has the potential to alleviate the burden associated with targeted planning and clearing backlogs that manage risk.

Keywords: data-driven inspection, IMR, inspection, maintenance, and repair, subsea integrity.

Biographies

EP23188_B1.gif

Ka Henney serves as the Products and Services Manager for Oceaneering’s Offshore Projects Group. She has 16 years’ experience in the offshore energy industry and extensive experience in senior management roles. She joined Oceaneering in November 2022 after 5 years, having previously executed the role of Vice President of Americas for a global subsea technology organisation. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Marine Biology and a Master of Science in Marine Fisheries and Environmental Science from the University of Aberdeen.

References

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