Germany: GL Noble Denton Issues Guidelines for Float-Over Installations and Moorings

GL Noble Denton has issued new guidelines for float-over installations and for moorings. These guidelines have been developed on the basis of GL Noble Denton’s experience as the industry’s leading consultancy and assurance service for floatover operations and mooring installations.

They are now available for oil and gas companies, designers and contractors and describe current “industry good practice” which help oil and gas companies to have their mooring systems or float-over operations approved by GL Noble Denton. An approval by GL Noble Denton may be a requirement of an insurance warranty or to ensure that operational risks are as low as possible.

Industry First: Float-over guidelines

The float-over guidelines (0031/ND) are an industry first and reflect the current popularity of float-over operations. The guidelines draw on GL Noble Denton’s unique and extensive experience of float-over operations, both on to floating hulls and fixed platforms. The recent trend to use dynamic positioning (DP) for the float-over operation is also covered. The guidelines now complete the whole topside or deck installation sequence namely, loadout, transportation and the float-over operation itself.

The mooring guidelines (0032/ND) embrace not only the ISO 19901-7 standard on station keeping, which has also had GL Noble Denton input, but also address quayside moorings and short term moorings for marine operations such as load outs and float-overs. These guidelines are drawn from the experience and involvement of GL Noble Denton in the design and operation of floating installations, mobile offshore units and installation vessels around the globe.

Pioneering mooring input of GL Noble Denton to the industry dates back to the1970s and included the design and installation of the mooring system for the first Floating Production Unit in the North Sea: “Transworld 58” in the Argyll field. The leadership of GL Noble Denton continues today in assisting in the development of the ISO 19901-7 standard and in running the Joint Industry Programme on mooring integrity.

The guidelines are developed by GL Noble Denton Technical Policy Board, which includes 15 worldwide Technical Authorities, assisted by over 60 Technical Correspondents who contribute their expertise and knowledge acquired in different areas of the world.

Four further guidelines updated

GL Noble Denton has also issued updates of the following guidelines:

“Self-Elevating Platforms – Guidelines for Elevated Operations” (0009/ND) now incorporates the recent updates to SNAME T&R Bulletin 5- and includes the GL Noble Denton “Good Practice Recommendations for Preloading at ‘Difficult’ Locations” and “Good Practice Recommendations for Jack-Up Recovery from Punch-Throughs etc”.

“Guidelines for Loadouts” (0013/ND) now references “Guidelines for Moorings” to update its mooring sections.

“Concrete Offshore Gravity Structures – Guidelines for Approval of Construction, Towage and Installation” (0015/ND) includes many updates and now also references “Guidelines for Moorings” and “Guidelines for Float-over Installations” for consistent adoption of the updated guidance in these areas.

“Seabed and Sub-Seabed Data Required for Approvals of Mobile Offshore Units (MOU)” (0016/ND) now incorporates clarification of the required depth of intrusive site investigations, and the data expected from them.

All GL Noble Denton guidelines can be downloaded from HERE.

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Source:GL , January 28, 2011;