oil and gas

Setting sun in the North Sea.

01 Safe Boreas, Prosafe, accommodation vessel, north sea, oil and gas, flotel, flotation, living, hotel, industrial, photographer, Lee Ramsden.jpg

Hello,

Today i would like to share some images of the setting sun in the North sea.

I have been lucky in my time offshore to see some amazing weather.

A spectacular sun rise, or setting sun in the middle of the sea is something really magical.

02 Safe Boreas, Prosafe, accommodation vessel, north sea, oil and gas, flotel, flotation, living, hotel, industrial, photographer, Lee Ramsden.jpg
03 Safe Boreas, Prosafe, accommodation vessel, north sea, oil and gas, flotel, flotation, living, hotel, industrial, photographer, Lee Ramsden.jpg

I hope that you have a good weekend.

Lee

Accommodation at sea

01 Mariner; oil and gas; oil rig; north sea; scotland; Equinor; Prosafe; Safe Boreas, Lee Ramsden.jpg
02 Mariner; oil and gas; oil rig; north sea; scotland; Equinor; Prosafe; Safe Boreas, Lee Ramsden.jpg

Hello,

Id like to share a couple of images of the accommodation vessel the Safe Boreas attached to the side of the Mariner A platform.

Again as previously talked about, all about the timing. There is around 2 hours difference between these two images.

Have a good weekend.

Lee

Prosafe - Safe Boreas

01 Prosafe, Safe Boreas, accommodation, bardge, flotel, Lee Ramsden, Oil and gas, platform, North Sea, uk, Scotland.jpg
02 Prosafe, Safe Boreas, accommodation, bardge, flotel, Lee Ramsden, Oil and gas, platform, North Sea, uk, Scotland.jpg
03 Prosafe, Safe Boreas, accommodation, bardge, flotel, Lee Ramsden, Oil and gas, platform, North Sea, uk, Scotland.jpg

Hello,

I want to share some images taken of an accommodation vessel..

The Safe Boreas is the most advanced and efficient harsh environment accommodation vessel in the world, constructed to comply with Norwegian regulations.

The vessel has the capacity to accommodate 450 persons in single man cabins.

The layout of the unit is unique, with two large internal atriums allowing natural daylight into cabins, mess room and recreational areas.

The vessel is named after Boreas, the Greek god of the north wind and the bringer of cold winter air.

The name reflects that the vessel is designed for operating in the Norwegian and UK North Sea, a geographical area renown for its cold climate and harsh winters.

04 Prosafe, Safe Boreas, accommodation, bardge, flotel, Lee Ramsden, Oil and gas, platform, North Sea, uk, Scotland.jpg
05 Prosafe, Safe Boreas, accommodation, bardge, flotel, Lee Ramsden, Oil and gas, platform, North Sea, uk, Scotland.jpg
06 Prosafe, Safe Boreas, accommodation, bardge, flotel, Lee Ramsden, Oil and gas, platform, North Sea, uk, Scotland.jpg

The key is to wait...

Weather; Mariner; oil and gas platform; north sea; oil rig; lee ramsden; Aberdeen.jpg
Tutorial, Setting sun, Mariner oil and gas platform, north sea, rough weather.jpg

Hello how are you?

Have you had a good festive period.

Thats it all over and back to normal for me now.

Q. What is the difference with the above images?

A. About half an hour..

It is amazing how waiting can have such a difference to your images.

In half an hour the sky semi cleared, even look at the sea, waves calmed down and the setting sun caught the clouds nicely.

So please take your time, slow down, bag the image and then wait till the suns gone as you never know how mother nature will react…

Have a great weekend.

Lee

Oil and Gas platform.

02 Mariner, oil and gas, platform,  oil rig, equinor,  northsea.jpg
01 Marine, oil and gas, platform,  oil rig, equinor,  northsea.jpg
03 Mariner A, oil and gas, platform,  oil rig, equinor,  northsea.jpg

Hello,

Today i would like to share three images, all taken within a few minutes on one another,

I thought it gives a good visual on the setting sun and blue hour.

Sometimes there isn’t a spectacular sun set.

With these industrial beauties, blue hour is my favourite as the contrast against the warm flood lights look amazing.

I hope that you have a good weekend,

Be sure to subscribe to keep up to date.

Lee

Module removal.

BP, Miller, oil and gas, industry decommissioning, Module removal

Hello, 

Today marks the final post in this series. 

It finishes with the big finale - the heavy lift of the accommodation module. 

Stuart Nuttall, project manager, watching

Project manager looks on with anticipation. 

Saipem s7000, M1, crane lifting, offshore, northsea, floating, heavy lift vessel

Nearly 3000 tonnes being lifted, which is effortless for the Saipem S7000. 

Saipem s7000, M1, crane lifting, offshore, northsea, floating, heavy lift vessel

With additional tugger lines fitter, the huge load can be rotated on its axis and and with great prescission laid onto the deck of the S7000. 

 

I hope that this series of blog posts over the last few months, have been of interest.

I have been working in the oil and gas industry for nearly 15 years and this has certainly been the most interesting project I have been involved in. 

The decommissioning of North Sea oil and gas platforms are unfortunately something that we are going to see much more, as the price of oil falls, and the platforms are becoming a less viable option to maintain and keep running. 

 

Thanks

 

Lee

Saipem S7000

S7000, duel crane, heavy lifting, offshore, oil and gas

The Saipem S7000 arrives. 

With its state-of-the-art J-lay tower, upgraded dynamic positioning capability and fast ballasting system, the Saipem 7000 semisubmersible crane vessel has the capacity to handle the entire workscope of offshore construction developments worldwide, encompassing pipelaying in water depths greater than 2,000 metres and heavy lift operations up to 14,000 tonnes.

 

The vessel’s Class 3 DP system of 12 thrusters ensures that the vessel maintains good station keeping in the most difficult of weather conditions. Additionally, because the Saipem 7000 has accommodation facilities up to 725 people, the vessel can assist hook-up and commissioning as well as initial platform life support activities.

Altogether, this high specification means that the Saipem 7000 can be counted on to provide the highest level of reliability for conventional, deep and ultradeep water development projects.

Saipem, 7000, industrial, oil and gas, crane

VESSEL FEATURES

Length overall 197.95 m

Upper platform 175 m x 87 m x 8.5 m

Lower pontoons 165 m x 33 m x 11.25/15.25 m

Depth to main deck 43.5 m

Free deck area 9,000 sq.m

Deck load 15,000 tonnes

Operating draft 27.5 m

Survival draft 18.5 m

Transit draft 10.5 m

Transit speed 9.5 knots

Saipem, S7000, heavy lifting, vessel
blog, Saipem S7000, heavy lifting vessel, Norway, Stavanger
blog, Saipem s7000, taking image on iphone

Offshore rope access technicians.

blog, Industrial, rope access, IRATA, trade, offshore, oil and gas, safety, acredited, HSE, health and safety, working at height, WAH, photographer Lee Ramsden

Hello, 

Today id like to show some of the IRATA rope access technicians that were involved in the decommissioning of the BP Miller. 

blog, rope access, selective colour, IRATA, abseiler, offshore, oil and gas industry, under deck, BP Miller, BP, Petrofac, ACN, Saipem, Lee Ramsden

Welding on dead weight supports to the risers. 

Blog, welding on the ropes, rope access, IRATA, abseiling, industrial, lee ramsden, BP Miller, oil and gas rig, north sea, offshore, employment, redundancies, oil and gas industry, BP, Petrofac

Rope access welder cutting a riser. 

rope access, IRATA, technician, PETROFAC, north sea, oil and gas industry, abseiler, climbing, rope, industrial, Lee Ramsden.

Long tiring climb back up. 

Happy rope technicians, rope access, IRATA, working at height, oil and gas industry, industrial photographer, Lee Ramsden

Rope techs at height happy in their work. 

BP Miller, breaking containment

blog, breaking containment, breathing, aparatus, BA, compressed air, drilling, BP Miller, decommissioning, Petrofac, Saipem, Jose, Lee Ramsden, industrial photographer

Hello, 

Today id like to show some images of large task involved when safely decommissioning an oil and gas rig. The task is called breaking containment. 

breaking of containment, gas, h2s, drill, breathing aparatus, BA, oxygen bottle, safety equipment, RPE, industrial photographer, Lee Ramsden

Where pipework has to be cut or flanges opened, we have to prove what was inside the pipe work previously, to ensure that it is safe via a gas test.

breaking,containment, wearing, BA, breathing, saber, drager, aparatus, oxygen bottles, RPE, safety, offshore, oil and gas, Lee Ramsden

To prove that the pipe is safe to cut a gas test is required.  As the pipework has not yet been proven safe, all this is conducted under full breathing apparatus to protect the technicians drilling into the pipes from hazardous substances. 

Breaking containment, drilling, gas testing, breathing aparatus, BA, RPE, safety equipment, industrial, Photography, Lee Ramsden, Offshore, north sea, oil and gas industry
Breaking containment, drilling, gas testing, breathing aparatus, BA, RPE, safety equipment, industrial, Photography, Lee Ramsden, Offshore, north sea, oil and gas industry 02

Oil and gas industry Tool box talks.

oil and gas, tool box talk, TBT, industrial, job brief,

Above is a supervisor conducting a tool box talk with his team, on the task in hand. 

 

A Toolbox Talk is an informal safety meeting that focuses on safety topics related to the specific job, such as workplace hazards and safe work practices. Meetings are normally short in duration and are generally conducted at the job site prior to the commencement of a job or work shift. It is one of the very effective methods to refresh workers' knowledge, cover last minute safety checks, and exchange information with the experienced workers. Toolbox Talks are also intended to facilitate health and safety discussions on the job site and promote the organization’s safety culture. 

Testing of fire equipment.

fire fighting, equipment, fire monitor, high pressure water, jet, helideck, landing pad, offshore, north sea, oil and gas industry, Photo by Lee Ramsden

Along with practicing emergency exercises, an oil and gas platform regularly tests its emergency equipment. Today we see the helideck fire fighting equipment being tested. 

davie jess, david jess, offshore, north sea, oil and gas, deck forman, HLO, helicopter landing officer, on the phone, photo by Lee Ramsden

Tannoy being given, to warn all personnel of cascading water and that fire pumps are about to start. 

John McQuaid, cape, offshore, north sea, deck crew, industrial worker, offshore, oil and gas industry, photo by Lee Ramsden

Technician remote starting pumps from different panels. 

Fire team emergency response exercise.

blog, Fire team, fire chief, weekly, excercise, drill, muster, practice, oil and gas industry, industrial, firemen, rig, platform, BP Miller, Petrofac, Lee Ramsden 01

Hello, 

Following on from last weeks post, today we see the Emergency response team practicing if there was an emergency inside the accommodation. 

Above is the fire team leader, his role here is directing his fire team, maintaining communications between his team, and the platform control room. 

Emergency response, exercise, breifing, offshore,, oil and gas

The O.I.M setting the scene, and briefing the emergency fire team.  

For exercise - there has been indication of smoke inside the accommodation. 

fire team leader, FLT, offshore, oil and gas, industrail, fire man, firefighter, briefing

Fire team leader, briefing his team on a suspected accommodation fire indicated on the panel. 

blog, Fire team, weekly, excercise, drill, muster, practice, oil and gas industry, industrial, firemen, rig, platform, BP Miller, Petrofac, Lee Ramsden 02

Fire team, updating the leader with information. 

fire men, accomodation fire, exercise, drill, practice, door technique, door drills, back of hand, testing, Jim Coyle, James Coyle, north sea, offshore, oil and gas industry, photo by, Lee Ramsden

Fire team, practicing safe fire door drills. 

Emergency response, exercise, breifing, offshore,, oil and gas

O.I.M and his Deputy, reading through the Emergency response plan.

Emergency response, exercise, breifing, offshore,, oil and gas

O.I.M updating the platform personnel, on the situation. The deputy O.I.M calling the coast guard, for exercise purposes informing them of our drill, and establishing helicopter response times.

Emergency response, exercise, breifing, offshore,, oil and gas

The scribe, updates relevant information, like wind direction and sea conditions incase we needed to evacuate. 

Offshore control room, emergency exercise.

OIM, manager, oil and gas, rig, briefing, emergency response team.

Hello, 

Over the next couple of posts, ill like to show the different roles involved in the unlikely event of an emergency occuring. Today I will start with the control room. 

 

The alarms have sounded, and a scenario has been set. Everyone on board the platform is making their way to their allocated muster points, 

For exercise - We have a missing person and the O.I.M is briefing the emergency response team and what actions they are to take and provide them with information. 

BP Miller OIM, calling a muster, tannoy, addressing the crew, control room, muster, exercise,

For exercise, for exercise - the O.I.M keeps all persons on board updated on the situation. 

oil rig, emergency drill, fireteam muster

The scribe regularly logs the situation and ties all the information together in one place, to make it easier for the manager to make their decisions. 

OIM and his Deputy, reading, ER plan, Emergency response plan, control room, oil and gas, industry, emergency. Lee Ramsden

The O.I.M and his Deputy O.I.M, reading through the Emergency response plan, making descisions on what actions are required. 

Highest point in the north sea.

blog, Flare view, heighest point, in the, north sea, 162m, BP Miller, oil, gas, rig, platform, Aberdeen, BP,Petrofac, Saipem, Lee Ramsden industrial photographer

The BP Miller, has the tallest flare stack in the North Sea, at 162m high, 

(4m taller than Blackpool tower)

blog, Flare view, rope access, IRATA, industiral, technicians, top of BP Miller, danny king, Petrofac, BP, Saipem, ACN, Steve thorogood, Lee Ramsden, photographer, photography.

Caught our breath back, after a lung busted 15 ladder climb. 

blog, Flare view, pointing, rope access, IRATA, industiral, top of BP Miller, danny king Petrofac, BP, Saipem, ACN, working at height.
blog, Marathon oil, brae Alpha platform, Lee Ramsden, occupational, photography, photographer, industrial, oil and gas, industry

Image of the Brae Bravo platform, from the top of BP Miller flare. 

25 years of rust, in the North sea.

 

 

Here, are two images 25 years apart. 

The images are of the "pig launchers", on the cellar deck of the BP Miller platform,

one while the platform was being commissioned, and put together,

and the second, while decommissioning.

 

 

Thanks

 

 

Lee

Offshore, oil and gas rig catering crew.

blog, Catering, chef, campboss, hotel manager, incharge, cooks, kitchen, working, industrial, aramark, offshore, north sea, BP Miller, Petrofac, hotel, Photo by Lee Ramsden.

 

Today we meet, the small team involved in feeding and looking after all 80 workers, on a North Sea oil and gas platform. 

These guys do a fantastic job, with such a small team in cleaning, preparing meals and trying to keep moral high for a large crew of guys. Who are working hard in all weathers, away from home for long periods, missing their families.

It is un-measurable their involvement, but any rig worker will tell you, that a clean accommodation and a good hearty meal, makes for a happy crew. 

blog, Catering, steward, Stan Macintosh, aramark, offshore, north sea, cleaning, cleaner, hospitality, oil rig, BP Miller, Petrofac, hotel, Photo by Lee Ramsden.
blog Catering, chefs, cooks, kitchen, working, industrial, aramark, offshore, north sea, hospitality, oil rig, BP Miller, Petrofac, hotel, Photo by Lee Ramsden.
oil and gas, sunday roast beef, yorkshire pudding, carvary, chef, offshore, north sea, Ronnie Lambert, portrait, by, Lee Ramsden

Roast beef, and Yorkshire puddings... must be Sunday! 

People, made out of food

 

Thanks

 

Lee

 

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