Page 10: of Offshore Engineer Magazine (Dec/Jan 2015)

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Opinion

Thought Thought ThoughtStream

Tore Halvorsen, FMC Technologies be shared from project to project and can be installed using the same processes and

Driving cost down procedures. And it stands to reason that the more times the same procedure is per- on a sustainable basis formed, ef? ciencies are found and safety ven before the drastic drop in oil requirements. These solutions can then and reliability improves.

E prices, deepwater extraction costs be con? gured to meet customers’ project-

Five operators, one standard were under examination, as costs had speci? c needs. nearly quadrupled in the past 10 years. The

A “con? gured to order” model allows An example of the industry embracing price collapse has created a greater urgency suppliers to leverage the purchase of raw the idea of standardization is the HPHT for rethinking how the industry does busi- materials in bulk and provides a more joint industry program (JIP) formed by ness and operators and suppliers are more economical way to stock parts, saving FMC Technologies and ? ve operators: receptive to collaborating in new ways. time and money. In a recent internal Anadarko, BP, Chevron, ConocoPhillips,

More than 40 years of subsea devel- study, we found that we were able to and Shell. The partners have agreed to opments have provided a wealth of reduce lead time by 30-50% when our jointly develop a new generation of stan- experience that must be leveraged to customers accepted our design rather dardized subsea production equipment create common, standard speci? ca- than requiring us to create a customer- and systems designed to meet the techni- tions to propel ef? ciency in the subsea speci? c solution. In addition, a cost cal challenges of producing oil and gas industry. Supplier-based standards have reduction of 20-40% was realized. from deepwater reservoirs with pressures the potential to lower costs, shorten lead of up to 20,000psi and temperatures of “Standard equipment systems times and improve quality and reliability 350°F at the mudline. Standardization for multiple operators. of materials, processes, and interfaces, allow for intervention tooling as well as the enhancement of reliabil- to be shared from project to

Cost reduction through volume ity and operability will improve overall project and can be installed

In order to leverage economies of deepwater development, while signi? - using the same processes and scale, suppliers need to buy in volume. cantly reducing cost to the partners.

However, buying in volume requires Downturns are dif? cult, but they often procedures. And it stands to alignment in speci? cations. Today, lead to positive change. Converging to reason that the more times the operators typically put their own techni- vendor-based standardization is a posi- same procedure is performed, cal requirements on top of the industry tive change I hope the industry continues e