As much as 40% of maintenance work carried out by Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel operators is unnecessary, according to latest findings by Lloyd’s Register (LR). By reducing these unwarranted manhours, operators could save on average almost £600,000 per asset each year, which is equivalent to £15m over an assets’ life.
Balancing OEM maintenance guidelines alongside flag, class and country regulations is exceptionally challenging. That, coupled with the tough market conditions we face today, means operators are under more pressure than ever to manage costs and prioritise maintenance activities that reduce risk,
…explained Victor Borges, Lloyd’s Register’s expert voice on FPSO maintenance optimisation.
Using its AllAssets software, LR found that on average, FPSO operators could be spending 500 manhours per specific equipment group (such as an electric motor supporting a compressor or a centrifugal pump) on maintenance activity that fails to reduce the risk of failure or preserve facility uptime.
Therefore, the findings identify room for improvement in the way maintenance is planned, highlighting the need for a consistent strategy across equipment groups, systems and production units.
They identified that relying purely on Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) guidelines meant that operators were unable to qualify whether maintenance activities were essential, demonstrating that OEM guidelines also don’t take into consideration the ever-changing nature of offshore operations.
As a result of this approach, there is an increased risk of failure as a backlog of maintenance is generated, increasing spend and inappropriately targeting resources.
There is a perception that implementing the methodologies that can actually help optimise maintenance activities is time consuming, complex, cumbersome and costly. This attitude, however, only drives a vicious circle of tackling small issues, instead of designing a systematic, informed and optimised maintenance strategy. This approach would see operators save significant time and money longer-term,
…he added.