Transferring Knowledge for Enhanced Safety in Offshore Oil and Gas

T.D. Williamson provides new industry white paper on safe and efficient offshore valve replacement

#OPERATIONOFFSHORE #OFFSHORE #OILANDGAS

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Nov 04, 2015, 08:35 ET

White Paper - Safe and Efficient Offshore Valve Replacement, Non-Intrusive Double Block and Monitor Isolation Technology

TULSA, Okla., Nov. 4, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Senior personnel are retiring from the oil and gas industry in droves, taking invaluable experience with them. As a result, finding ways to effectively capture and share their knowledge and experience has become an urgent priority.

White papers, case studies, and conference presentations are among the tools being used to transfer knowledge and bring clarity to critical industry issues.

For offshore operators, that includes one of the most pressing concerns from a safety, productivity, and regulatory perspective: the repair and replacement of platform and subsea valves.

A new white paper, titled Safe and Efficient Offshore Valve Replacement, outlines how non-intrusive double block and monitor (DBM) plugging technology provides a double barrier isolation for gas export lines during valve replacement, satisfying regulatory requirements and operators' concerns about safety, time, and cost.

An alternative to decommissioning, DBM technology enables operators to avoid depressurizing, bleeding down, refilling, and restoring pressure to the pipeline. This helps ensure minimal production downtime and product loss along with significant environmental and economic benefits.

The document, authored by T.D. Williamson, Inc. (TDW), includes an overview of the steps involved in executing a DBM isolation, and references three case studies in which operators used SmartPlug® pipeline pressure isolation technology to facilitate valve replacements on gas export lines.

Case Study 1 discusses the replacement of the emergency shutdown valve (ESDV) and manual block on a 24-inch gas export pipeline between the Malampaya Shallow Water Platform in the West Philippine Sea and the Onshore Gas Plant at Batangas, Philippines.
Case Study 2 describes the replacement of a trio of defective valves on a 32-inch gas export pipeline on the Gulf of Thailand Bongkot platform.
Case Study 3 demonstrates a DBM isolation maintained for 79 days during ESDV replacement on a 16-inch gas export line at a spar platform 320 km (200 mi) off the coast of Louisiana.

For George Lim, offshore veteran and market development director for TDW, white papers and other formal educational documents have a very distinct purpose "in a world awash with information overload.

"By presenting an unbiased view, white papers help educate and advance the industry at large," Lim says. "I believe that knowledge-intensive industries like oil and gas are constantly seeking to share knowledge and best practices. As such, they tend to appreciate the more systematic description of processes and procedures that white papers and case studies provide."

To download the white paper, visit: www.operationoffshore.com

About T.D. Williamson, Inc.
Drawing upon a 95-year history of industry leadership, TDW is a global solutions provider for the owners and operators of pressurized piping systems. TDW delivers a comprehensive portfolio of solutions for onshore and offshore applications, including hot tapping and plugging, pipeline cleaning, integrity inspection, pigging, and non-tethered plugging pig technology.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20151030/282317

SOURCE T.D. Williamson