Technology Category
- Drones - Drone Payloads & Accessories
- Platform as a Service (PaaS) - Application Development Platforms
Applicable Industries
- Marine & Shipping
- Transportation
Applicable Functions
- Maintenance
- Quality Assurance
Use Cases
- Infrastructure Inspection
- Structural Health Monitoring
Services
- Testing & Certification
About The Customer
Zakum Development Company (ZADCO) is a leading oil company developing the Upper Zakum field, the fourth largest oil field in the world, on behalf of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) and shareholders in the joint venture between ADNOC, ExxonMobil, and Japan Oil Development Company Ltd. ZADCO is committed to managing the Upper Zakum field in a way that is safe, efficient, and environmentally responsible. The company faced a significant challenge when a marine vessel collided with an operating wellhead platform in the field, causing a halt in oil production and threatening the structural integrity of the platform. ZADCO's primary objective was to quickly assess and repair the platform to minimize losses and ensure safe startup, while also substantiating the accident and resulting damage for an insurance claim.
The Challenge
Zakum Development Company (ZADCO) faced a significant challenge when a 1,600-ton marine vessel collided with an operating wellhead platform in the Upper Zakum oil field, located offshore of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The impact threatened the structural integrity of the platform, causing a 6.6 percent loss in platform strength. The platform was capable of surviving seasonal storms post-impact, but could only support the landing of helicopters and docking of light vessels. With oil production halted until repairs could be carried out, ZADCO was tasked with quickly assessing and repairing the platform to minimize losses, ensure safe startup, and avoid environmental pollution. The company also needed to substantiate the accident and resulting damage for an insurance claim. The structural analysis of the platform was complicated by several factors, including the absence of a current SACS model for the required analyses, unreliable vessel speed data for modeling the impact, and the difficulty of modeling the nonlinear soil-pile interaction in combination with a nonlinear inelastic structure.
The Solution
ZADCO decided to conduct a rapid, iterative boat-impact analysis in-house using various SACS modules. These included SACS Precede for platform modeling and load application, SACS PSI for pile and soil property modeling, and SACS Collapse for non-linear boat impact analysis and parameter coding, and for result verification. The non-linear boat impact analysis performed in the SACS Collapse module helped to accurately simulate the post-impact behavior of the platform and the spread of damages. ZADCO performed a linear static in-place analysis to assess the damage caused by the impact and verify whether the damaged platform’s primary members and piles were safe for a one-year storm event. The team also carried out detailed dent mapping, and subsea and topside inspections. By conducting impact analyses with SACS, ZADCO was able to optimize the scope of the inspections and focus attention on critical subsea nodes that required a more detailed review. The optimized inspection scope and schedule allowed work to be performed within the narrow window dictated by weather conditions.
Operational Impact
Quantitative Benefit
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