Bourbon’s Winning Strategy Is Based on Standardization

In January 2012, BOURBON established Bourbon Docking, a new affiliate in Dubai. Bourbon Docking is in charge of planned vessel maintenance management for all of the Group’s affiliates.

Looking back on the first year and a half, the results are already very promising. The fleet’s technical availability increased, an achievement based on standardized maintenance, which itself is made possible thanks to standardized vessels. A fleet of built-in-series vessels has common features, such as propulsion components.

Downtime reduced from 23 days to 14 days for the Bourbon Liberty 200’s first planned maintenance periods

“In 2012, 14 Bourbon Liberty 200’s were in drydock, for an average downtime of 23 days,” explains Stéphane Burgaud, Managing Director of Bourbon Docking. “The planned maintenance periods for this series were then centralized in Nigeria. Since January 1st, 2013, 9 Bourbon Liberty 200’s were in drydock there, and the average downtime lasted just 14 days, representing a nearly 40% reduction in vessel downtime.”

The strategy involving the standardization of BOURBON’s fleet translates into genuine added value that contributes to operational efficiency, enabling the Group to be a leader in the offshore oil & gas maritime services sector.

Optimizing vessel downtime in accordance with contract end dates

Since they were established in Dubai in January 2012, Bourbon Docking teams have been growing. Management at the affiliate has been hiring and organizing the various departments in order to meet the growing demand for the BOURBON fleet’s planned maintenance periods.

Bourbon Docking mainly consists of procurement, logistics and technical teams working closely with the 15 BOURBON shipmanagers as well as the sales teams.

Maintenance periods are thus planned with customer requirements in mind, making it possible to coordinate vessel downtime in accordance with contract end dates.

The network of 6 BOURBON Repair Centers brings BOURBON expertise closer to operating zones

A global network of BOURBON Repair Centers was launched in order to meet customer availability and reliability requirements. Bourbon Docking manages these 6 centers that deliver the BOURBON standard of excellence:

• Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
• Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire
• Port Harcourt, Nigeria
• Walvis Bay, Namibia
• Singapore
• Dubai, United Arab Emirates

With these centers located near their operating zones, BOURBON regional teams now have access to dedicated maintenance experts and stocks of spare parts required for repairs and maintenance of the vessels in their respective fleets.

Furthermore, the strategic location of Dubai allows Bourbon Docking to contact Asia in the morning, and Africa and the Americas in the afternoon.

94.3% vessel technical availability in 2012, a rate that is right on track with the 95% objective for 2015

“In 2011, the technical availability rate for vessels in the BOURBON fleet was 93%. In 2012, we reached a rate of 94.3%” explains Fabien Monleau, Vice President of Maintenance at BOURBON. “We have taken organizational steps in order to reach the goal that we all strive for: a 95% technical availability rate for vessels in 2015.”

BOURBON, June 5, 2013