O&M Software Solutions

EPOCH & GIS (Operations & Maintenenance total software solutions)

GIS (Geographical Information Systems) provide wind farm owners an ideal solution to manage their wind farm assets both topside and subsea with respect to data storage, integrity monitoring, engineering design, maintenance and annual data comparison for potential intervention requirements. GIS can also be time synchronised with subsea video images (including audio/ commentary and overlay) using digital video techniques, from a Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) or other subsea vehicle to provide an enhanced information service and visual experience to the wind farm operator.

However, conventional GIS software solutions and yearly update, maintenance and support come at a price. A new GIS solution has entered the market to compete against the GIS monopoly provided by ESRI and GeoMedia, offering identical quality and functionality, but at an affordable price. Therefore making this asset management and monitoring solution reachable to the smaller wind farm operator as well as those with more significant offshore wind farm assets.

Combine the above GIS or VisualGIS solution with Offshore Marine’s in-house developed EPOCH (Enhanced Project & Offshore Cable History) suite, which provides live cable/ survey vessel data during  offshore project operations via a client tailored web viewer, the wind farm operator/ Marine Coordinator has a total solution to manage wind farm past, current and future events/ requirements and offshore operations.

The suite can equally be utilised by submarine cable installers to monitor pre surveys, RC, PLGR, installation, burial/ trenching, inspection and guard vessel movements during a live project.

The need for subsea & topside asset annual inspection & integrity monitoring

Offshore wind farms are increasingly becoming busy environments with vessel traffic even after installation. Due to constant O&M requirements and the need to not be QHSE complacent, the Marine Coordinator/ Project Manager requires to daily monitor wind park activity with respect to O&M (IRM) operations, crew boat locations and transfers to turbines or sub stations, as well as local fishing activity. The EPOCH suite provides this information in one combined visual aid for both operational aspects as well as vessel monitoring.

Wind farm topside and subsea asset (export and inter-array cables) data management on an annual or continual basis is becoming an increasing requirement for operators with respect to O&M (IRM). The need to be able to integrity monitor and analyse subsea remedial action and intervention requirements is critical if the operator is to maintain the life cycle of an operational wind farm. Operators are requiring continual subsea security and confidence checks.

With the increasing amount of spatial data acquired and when also combined with subsea digital video image technology, means that data storage and fast access for data, project, engineering and O&M analysis is becoming ever more important. The need to also inter relate annually acquired data to visualise subsea and product/ asset changes allows the wind farm operator to make informed decisions to either remedy situations or potentially defer to a later date with further monitoring. The integrated GIS and digital video suite provides the operator with the tool to address all these requirements in a user friendly, data and visual experience.

For OMM's inspection capabilities, please see Subsea Inspections.

EPOCH (Enhanced Project & Offshore Cable History)

The EPOCH suite allows for multiple vehicles to be displayed for any one vessel setup (i.e. Vessel with ROV) and also multiple vessels to be displayed.

The system utilises a web interface and displays certain vessel & survey parameters, such as position, heading,  speed, tow tension, depth of burial, KP and others, in near real time.  The data is delivered to the Offshore Marine host server  (via the onboard marine satellite communication system) by a send module onboard the operational vessel interfaced to and receiving the required string format from the survey/ navigation software where it is then overlaid onto a client web viewer. The client is provided with the web receiver http/ website address and the required user name and password. The client is then able to view at will the vessel position with RPL (Route Position List) and other key topside/ subsea assets on a Google Map/ Satellite backdrop (or a hybrid of the two), with data fields for the vessel presented  down the left hand side and graphed data  (i.e. tow tension, depth of burial) also depicted within the viewing pane. The plan window allows for zoom and pan functionality. A client logo is also depicted to personalise the service.

The suite can also be configured to show other field data and live graphs for project operations such as PLIB, cable installation, cable route surveys, wind farm operations etc.  With the integration of the AIS live data feed, the suite provides a total solution for Marine Coordinators to manage project operations as they unfold with respect to all vessel traffic and activity. Further development phases of the suite include the addition of GIS layers (DTM, contours, bathymetry, side scan mosaics within the plan view pane), meteorological data, RPL annotation when zoomed in and exportable reports from the logged data for statistical analysis and marine coordination review & managing.

HydroGIS

The HydroGIS suite is a multi user web based server application that once populated provides the operator with a wealth of topside and  subsea spatial data sets including  pictures , images, engineering drawings,  subsea asset digital video images, survey data (topography, colour banded DTM’s, contours, side scan mosaics), geotechnical data, geophysical / sedimentary data, oceanographic data, environmental data to name but a few. All can be layered and co related to provide the operator with the bigger picture, invaluable data management and importantly a decision making processing tool.

The O&M suites will provide significant improvement to the operator in respect of subsea monitoring techniques, ensuring  longevity of the subsea assets due to managed remedial & intervention decisions based on the information provided and ultimately saving costs.

For further information please email: survey@offshoremm.com