On an offshore production platform or FPSO, bed space (POB) and helicopter seats are the scarcest resources. Rope-access NDE technicians and API inspectors fly out for 14-day hitches, work across multi-deck process modules and splash-zone risers with intermittent satellite bandwidth, and must complete every assigned visual, UT, eddy-current, and API RP 2D crane inspection before the chopper flight home.
Current state before intelliSPEC
- End-of-hitch report backlog: Technicians spent the last three days of a 14-day offshore hitch typing field notes and sorting SD-card photos in the galley instead of on the steel.
- Splash-zone and CUI findings stranded in PDFs: Riser clamps, caissons, and insulated topsides piping inspected by rope access were delivered as static PDFs that onshore integrity engineers had to re-enter into the risk register.
- BSEE SEMS (30 CFR Part 250) audit prep: Pulling proof of mechanical integrity, crane load tests, and inspector qualifications for Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) reviews required cross-checking onshore and offshore servers.
Configured path
The operator deployed intelliVISION, intelliEDGE, intelliINSPECT, intelliNDT, intelliINTEGRITY, intelliPAINT, and intelliCREW.
- Hitch-length offline checkout: Before boarding the helicopter, rope-access crews synced the platform's topsides vessels, piping circuits, risers, and cranes to
for up to 30 days of offline work. - Voice and gauge capture on the ropes: Hanging on the splash zone or under deck grating, technicians dictated findings by voice, marked up photos, and streamed UT thickness and DFT readings without paper clipboards.
- Low-bandwidth delta sync: When crews stepped back into the quarters Wi-Fi,
synced field-level updates to onshore, updating API 510/570 corrosion rates and RBI scores immediately.
Measured outcome
- More tool time per offshore hitch: Reports are signed on the deck as the inspection finishes, eliminating night-shift typing in the accommodations block.
- Live onshore engineering review: Onshore integrity engineers review anomalies and sign API 579 screening dispositions before the rope-access crew de-riggs the drop.
- Complete SEMS audit trail: Every vessel, riser, and crane inspection carries its verified API / IRATA / ASNT credential and calibration record.