Innovation at OMS - our ten year journey
The latest in a series on our third Queen’s Award win and how the OMS approach to innovation affects our clients and our business.
OMS is the world leader in weld inspection equipment for pipes. The company has ridden a wave of innovation led by client needs for more than ten years to develop tools, technology and services that are unrivalled in the industry.
Our Queen’s Award-winning weld inspection system provides a close-up view of the weld with visual images from HD cameras and 3D maps from laser scanners. Traditional weld inspection systems have used cameras to collect video images but these are unable to spot some defects that would have a significant effect on the quality of a weld. For example, the HD camera images can distinguish porosity, oxidation caused by poor purging of the weld, cracks and other features. 3D laser maps would not spot issues such as colour but do provide accurate information on the height and depth of weld penetration, the size of the weld, the match-up of the pipe and any other dimensional feature that may affect whether the weld will pass strict criteria for use.
In the OMS system both camera and lasers align exactly and work at high speed to meet the demands of offshore pipe welding contractors. Both data sources are amalgamated and the results sent to our software package, which starts working directly the system starts operating. It performs sophisticated analysis of the weld area, highlighting any areas likely to be out of specification. Operators on site then use their specialist knowledge, training and skill to make the final call – does the weld pass or fail?
In the context of a huge oil and gas project costing billions of dollars, the brief weld inspection operation can appear trivial. However, in all big projects, taking care of small details is always vital. Once welded pipe has been laid it is virtually impossible to repair – and oil leaks have terrifying consequences for oil companies, both for the environment and their share price. The Macondo blowout is still fresh in the minds of everyone involved in the energy industry – and like most disasters, was a combination of small mistakes that added up to deadly effect.
Considerable problems have been caused by pipe weld issues, although perhaps not to such devastating extent as Macondo. We know of at least project where a multibillion-dollar pipeline had to be completely replaced within a few years because of weld problems. Weld inspection is vital because it certifies that welds meet required standards and are therefore at reduced risk of failure.
OMS has had an interesting and varied journey on the way to winning our third Queen’s Award for Innovation. Here are a few of our steps along the way:
The AUGA
Five years ago we developed the AUGA, our first tool for use on offshore pipe-lay projects. It measured welds at “Station 2” – some 12-14m away from where the first welds are completed. It was a large tool, around 3m in length and weighing 300kg. Getting it to a project was expensive and time-consuming because it had to be sent in a shipping container so within two years we produced the AUGA.lite, which was around 1m long, weighed only 30kg and could be transported in an aeroplane’s hold. Our latest iteration, the AUGA.node is only 30cm long and weighs 3kg.
AUGA.node
Spool pieces
Ten years ago we began our first weld inspection projects by inspecting spool pieces, short pieces of pipe placed under water to control oil and gas flow. They invariably consist of multiple sharp bends, some so sharp that we had to build an articulated tool capable of travelling through them. Our new AUGA.node is short and self-driving, able to traverse complex spool pieces easily without the need for push rods.
Robust tools operating at high speed
Early weld inspection projects involved 30 welds at most and very little time pressure. Later projects have been very different – OMS recently completed a year-long project inspecting more than 10,000 welds offshore. Our robust tools operated successfully 24/7 for the entire period to keep up with the fast production cycle.
Successful operation at greater distance
Our latest range of tools can operate at great distances and up steep, even vertical, slopes. One recent project involved one of the world’s biggest spars (a spar is a type of floating oil platform used in very deep water) where suspected welds protruded too far into a “pull tube” pipe. These pipes pull already installed pipelines onto the spar from the seabed and if welds protrude too far into them the riser pipe could get stuck with very expensive consequences. We adjusted our tool so that it had five crawlers and a bespoke fibre-optic cable and was able to travel 250m into the pull tube along a 15° incline. Resulting information led to a timely grinding of the offending weld, saving huge potential grief for the project.
Coronavirus problems
Covid-19 nearly put paid to one of our most recent projects, which was an assignment to inspect aviation industry pipes in Iceland. The project involved inspecting a complex underground pipe system for which we developed a new method of operation involving a push/pull crawler to navigate various corners and “T” pieces. We shipped the equipment, provided remote training and remote assistance to help navigate the complicated system, successfully inspecting 80 welds.
Slug catcher inspection
A “slug catcher” is a device used to separate oil, gas and water from each other as a pipeline comes ashore. It acts as a buffer to the onshore plant and is vital to the oil refinery’s successful operation. As it operates under high pressure safety is critically important. A client in the Middle East feared there were areas of corrosion that could not be quantified from the outside of the pipe with ultrasonic techniques. We built a robot that could reduce its size to get through a narrow opening and, once inside, could expand to carry out its task. It was able to travel up to 200m along the slug catcher’s “fingers” and provided a comprehensive assessment of the extent of internal corrosion, which allowed our client to certify the pressure at which it could be used safely in the future and decide whether any remedial plan should be implemented.
Inspection in the nuclear industry
The nuclear industry has some of the most exacting requirements in the world. Nuclear power must be safely contained within power stations and equipment protected from radiation damage. OMS has developed a system that can get to very difficult-to-reach locations on a robotic end effector. Once in location our tool can assess the weld and compute the material removal following a grinding operation. Nuclear projects are longer and more complicated than those in the oil and gas industry. Our weld inspection tool is awaiting factory acceptance testing once the coronavirus restrictions are lifted.
Continuous innovation
Innovation is at the heart of everything OMS does and our third Queen’s Award reflects this. Our clients can be confident that OMS staff are always thinking about the best ways to work and always involved in new developments that will improve production and safety. If you are interested in any of our innovative tools or services please contact us here.
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Posted 28.04.2020
[5 minute read]
By Tim Clarke