Mapping Ocean Currents to schedule deep-sea Asset Inspection
- Arpit Shah
- Apr 30, 2022
- 3 min read
Updated: Apr 10
INTRODUCTION
It is remarkable how one instinctively tends to know the exact effort needed to completely dissolve the ingredients in a beverage while keeping the liquid at a soothing temperature at the same time.
Upon stirring, the wavy patterns that form on the surface are alluring - volatile on the edges and frothy towards the shallower centre, the eye of the storm in a manner of speaking. Dip your finger in here and you would feel the suction drawing you to its depths.
BACKGROUND
Ocean Currents are complex, scaled-up versions of the same phenomena, stirred by Mother Nature. Influenced by gravity, water density, winds and the earth's rotation, these gyres play a vital role in regulating the water temperature, salinity and nutrient flow across the planet.
Physical Inspection of Assets is a fundamental activity under the purview of functional specialists in Maintenance, Reliability and Safety. Routine checks help to prolong the life of the asset, detect defects and deterioration, monitor incidents and protect man-made and natural resources. While organizations are expected to take proactive measures towards this activity, they are often compelled to do so by external stakeholders such as regulatory, environment and government bodies.
The video demonstration covered in this post dwells on the inspection of Oil Wells at Offshore locations which entail the extraction of petroleum by drilling holes into the seabed by exploratory vessels called Drillships or from stationary Oil Platforms/Oil Rigs.
Remotely-operated Underwater Vehicles (ROUVs) are routinely deployed from the surface to inspect the Oil Well infrastructure at depths beyond the reach of human divers in a reliable and safe manner.
The risks involved in offshore oil operations are immense - remote locations out in the high seas, transfer of flammable fuel, choppy waters, turbulent weather - all these make for hostile operating conditions for human as well as technology resources, thereby necessitating the need to have stringent inspection protocols.
Having toured an operational Coal Mine recently, I became familiar with the risks involved in extracting natural resources from below the Earth's surface. Strict guidelines are set by the mining regulatory body, extraction operations are kept in constant vigil, and manpower safety is given the highest priority. The mine executives were interested to explore my firm's non-invasive Subsurface Mapping solutions in order to characterize the colliery and make the extraction operations less-wasteful, and safer for the manpower, assets and the environment.
OCEAN CURRENT MAPPING TO SCHEDULE OIL WELL INSPECTION
Credit: Esri Learn ArcGIS
Modern geospatial software can perform a plethora of workflows for a variety of industries - I had demonstrated a high-utility Aviation-specific use case in my previous post. Here, you will be acquainted to the intricacies involved in scheduling asset maintenance activities underwater - it is not straightforward to do so because ocean surface turbulence can disrupt these operations and one has to find the right window of opportunity to dispatch the ROUV underwater.
The aspects that will be covered in this demonstration are-
loading the data for Oil Well Infrastructure at offshore locations in the Gulf of Mexico onto GIS,
loading Hybrid Coordinate Ocean Model (HYCOM) - Ocean Prediction System data next
performing geospatial analytics factoring in ocean current velocity to determine suitable time-slots for safe passage of ROUV
visualizing the output in 3D and interpreting it
Interesting isn't it?
ABOUT US
Intelloc Mapping Services, Kolkata | Mapmyops.com offers Mapping services that can be integrated with Operations Planning, Design and Audit workflows. These include but are not limited to Drone Services, Subsurface Mapping Services, Location Analytics & App Development, Supply Chain Services, Remote Sensing Services and Wastewater Treatment. The services can be rendered pan-India and will aid your organization to meet its stated objectives pertaining to Operational Excellence, Sustainability and Growth.
Broadly, the firm's area of expertise can be split into two categories - Geographic Mapping and Operations Mapping. The Infographic below highlights our capabilities-
Our Mapping for Operations-themed workflow demonstrations can be accessed from the firm's Website / YouTube Channel and an overview can be obtained from this brochure. Happy to address queries and respond to documented requirements. Custom Demonstration, Training & Trials are facilitated only on a paid-basis. Looking forward to being of service.
Regards,