It is again time for the subsea community to meet, socialize and challenge one another. UTC would like to be a vehicle to broaden the applicability and enhance the competitiveness of subsea technology.
This year’s theme ‘Subsea –facing new realities’ is meant to give us the sense of urgency required to get us in mode for change. Following on this the subtheme ‘Market and technology complexity, inspiring industry collaboration’, we believe points toward a crucial enabler. Collaboration in the right setting and mix with competition will position us to achieve our goals.
Our technical program is designed to share important developments and learnings within the different phases of technological and subsea field lifespan from qualification to lifetime extension. Equally important as sharing is getting together to agree on specifications and standards. In this context, I would like to focus the attention on the ongoing JIP’s for Forgings, Umbilical Termination Size Reductions (UMSIRE) and Documentation. Making an analogy with the car industry – which costumer would require his own material properties in the engine block, her own design on the petrol-tanking interface and narrate the script of the owner’s manual?
One such initiative that has succeeded is the Subsea Electrical Power Standardization JIP that has issued the SEPS SP-1001 ‘Power connectors, penetrators and jumper assemblies with rated voltage from 3kV to 30 kV’ as a joint IEC/IEEE standard. Great work – and a key to effective and efficient design and execution of subsea processing facilities, aka subsea factories. As an industry we need to succeed on the other ongoing initiatives – and initiate new ones – to stay competitive. This is a challenge to all of us.
The UTC Program Committee hope you will find this year’s UTC program inspiring and invite you all to take part in forming the next steps within the subsea industry. Check out the UTC 2014 Conference Program HERE
Roald Sirevaag
Chair UTC 2014 Program Committee
VP Subsea Technology and Diving, Statoil