Independent Inspection Services
The impact of the recent Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico will mean that oil and gas pipeline installations are likely to come under far greater scrutiny from industry regulators over the coming months and years.
Engineering specifications and inspection requirements are already stringent, and pressure is only likely to increase on oil companies and their contractors to demonstrate that they are meeting their engineering and inspection obligations.
The bigger issue is how the oil industry as a whole can minimise risk and ensure the safety of its personnel and the integrity of its drilling rigs and pipelines. Independent dimensional and visual inspection is a component of this picture. This will encompass, for example, measurement and inspection of pipe geometry, welds, pipe fit up, bevels and counterbores, to ensure specifications are fully met.
Demand is likely to growing for services from independent inspection companies, who can offer the full range of pipe measurement and inspection services to the highest standards, including full traceability and calibration.
What OMS can offer:
• Third party, independent pipe weld measurement & inspection expertise.
• Technical prowess and proven track record in oil & gas pipe inspection work.
• Expert advice and guidance on the effects of pipe geometry as regards delivering better weld quality, improved engineering as well as determining and quarantining pipes or parts that fail to meet specifications.
• Involvement in pipe reeling trials, Weld Performance Qualification Tests (WPQTs), and pipe fatigue trials in order to help improve the engineering integrity and inspection of subsea structures.
• Inspection consultancy services and onsite surveys.
The quality of supplied parts is also a factor in the delivery of engineering programmes to specification. Unfortunately it’s not always the case that supplied parts meet the applicable specification. This can lead to disputes between suppliers and contractors. OMS has significant experience as an independent expert authority, called in to objectively evaluate parts against the applicable criteria. OMS can offer:
• Experience in defining and interpreting specifications.
• A wide set of calibrated specialist tools to carry out survey work to exacting standards.
• Experience in resolving disputes between suppliers/installers/operators over engineering & inspection specifications.
• Clear, concise & informative reports generated for customers, detailing whether pipes or parts are in or out of manufacturing specifications.
• Experience in providing expert testimony and preparing supporting documentation for contractual negotiations or legal court cases and disputes.
Examples:
Onshore
On a large, land-based pipeline, supplied pipes were causing unacceptable welding defects due to issues with bevel geometry, damage to bevels, end squareness, out-of-roundness, corrosion, pitting and paint contamination. The client was having to re-bevel all the pipes in order to bring these back into a satisfactory condition for welding. OMS was called in to conduct a multi-site survey of several pipeline spreads.
In order to carry out the inspection survey, OMS developed procedures and custom measurement tools to provide an irrefutable approach to pipe end dimensional inspection.
OMS staff recorded measurement data of pipe weld defects and gathered supporting photographic evidence, including photographs of gauge measurement readings. Each defect found was measured and recorded using two alternative measuring devices/systems, in order to provide comprehensive, irrefutable evidence for legal disputes. Other supporting documentation included operator details and tools used.
The findings included many problems with bevel angle, land thickness, end-squareness, diameter variation issues, coating contamination of pipe ends and bevel damage including pitting, excessive corrosion, dents and gouges.
On completion of the independent inspection survey, OMS reported that more than half of all pipes supplied were out of specification.
Inspection documentation, photographic evidence and expert testimony provided by OMS resulted in a multi-million pound settlement between the pipe supplier and the customer.
Offshore
On a recent customer project, OMS was asked to provide independent inspection services for an offshore oil pipeline. This involved the inspection of pipe diameter and wall thickness to ascertain what percentage of pipes supplied were outside their manufacturing specification.
This involved comprehensive, verifiable inspection of pipe end dimensions. Those that were found to be out of their specification tolerance were quarantined while discussions with the supplier of the free-issue pipe were undertaken to resolve the technical and commercial issues involved.
For another oil and gas customer, OMS was asked to provide a pipe end dimensional survey covering corrosion-resistant flowline pipes, which had a clad weld overlay inside pipe ends. The pipe supplier and installer were disputing whether the machined clad weld overlay met specifications, and had been unable to resolve this dispute based on calliper measurements. Furthermore the pipe geometry was causing extreme difficulties in fitting up and welding to specification.
OMS was required to inspect pipes both onshore and offshore for this project. A special ‘travelling microscope’ tool was constructed to resolve the contractual dispute objectively, and end dimensioning services were used to solve the engineering problems with installing the pipes. A sequencing exercise was then carried out, whereby OMS advised the customer of the sequence that the pipes should be fitted up and welded in order to meet the Hi/Lo specification for the project.
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