New guidance for classification and hull integrity management

Lloyd’s Register Energy has released new Guidance Notes on Risk Based Inspection for Classification and Hull Integrity Management to provide a new approach to preventing risk and unplanned downtime.

The new guidance was written with advice from Lloyd’s Register’s Offshore Technical Committee and it will replace the current ‘prescriptive approach to inspection planning’ by providing floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) and floating LNG (FLNG) unit operators with information on how to utilise a risk based inspection plan.

Compared to a time-based approach, risk based inspection allows operators to prioritise and optimise inspection and maintenance regimes by estimating the likelihood of failures and consequences, identifying high risk components and allocating resource accordingly.

Tim Walsh, Assurance’s Chief Operating Officer, said: “We have a wealth of experience in the implementation and management of risk based inspection for static equipment across the upstream and downstream oil and gas industry, as well as the petrochemical and chemical industries, helping to reduce inspection points by 50% to 90% and reducing risk of failures by 80% to 90%”.

The guidance note is designed to guide the industry in how to implement risk based inspection schemes on units Classed by Lloyd’s Register.

Edited from press release by Callum O'Reilly

Read the article online at: https://www.lngindustry.com/floating-lng/11082015/new-guidance-for-classification-and-hull-integrity-management-1126/