DOF subsea

Source: Exec Digital UK

Date :03/01/2008 11:42:19

Set up in the 1980s, DOF Subsea has gained a reputation for its expertise and high quality services. ExecUK looks at the company’s service offering and its development

Written by Lucy Mowatt and Produced by Alex Smith

Since the 1980s, DOF Subsea AS has been offering a wide range of services to all major offshore regions, including seabed mapping and subsea construction. It has been listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange since November 2005 and has facilities all over the world.

The company has offices in ten countries, including those located in Norway, Aberdeen, Australia, Singapore and Brazil, who all offer a personal service to customers. There are also subsidiary companies based in Norway, Aberdeen, Angola, Canada and the USA.

These units ensure that DOF Subsea offers a complete service to all its clients.

Where possible, DOF Subsea aims to offer its services using its own staff, so that its own expertise is always utilised. 1200 highly skilled people are employed by DOF Subsea and include surveyors, ROV specialists, geologists, geophysicists, technicians, cartographers, data processors, draftspersons, engineers, project managers, divers, machinery operators and support staff.

It is currently looking to take on new employees too, and offers employees a competitive salary and a pension scheme, alongside a supportive and open working environment. Employees are also offered the opportunity to move within the company, through a rotation process, which improves job variety and experience.

Technical expertise

In order to assist these employees in their roles, the company possesses advanced technology and equipment. Among its assets are 23 offshore vessels, 25 ROVs, one AUV (Autonomous Underwater Vehicles, which are also known as Unmanned Underwater Vehicles) and eleven diving spreads.

Its AUV has been bought from Kongsberg and is the Hugin 3000 model, which allows the vehicle to operate at depths of 3000 metres. This equipment does not need an umbilical wire for power either, as it has cells which can operate for up to 60 hours to provide accurate readings of the seafloor in real time.

The 25 ROVs owned by DOF are also highly advanced and accurate. The company has been working with ROV technology for ten years and its systems have been supplied by Perry Slingsby Inc and Schilling Robotics. This technology is operated from on board vessels and can work at depths of 4000m.

This information can be used to develop models and simulations of the seabed. It uses Century C3D™ and Century C4D™ Visualisation Systems to do this type of work. The modelling technology was developed by DOF’s Aberdeen-based subsidiary company, Geo Century.

It allows customers to view a region in all phases, even while operations are taking place, allowing successful monitoring of progress. The programs can also be used in the planning stages of a project, in order to account for all circumstances.

DOF Subsea also uses software which has been developed in collaboration with recognised suppliers to improve its offering and ensure that all processes are maintained in an efficient and accessible way. All of the reporting technology is focused upon video and digital recordings, which can be viewed and analysed.

Service Offering

The company also employs a number of professional divers, who are capable of working with air, mixed gas and saturation methods. These people are capable of working on site to provide inspection, maintenance and repair services (IMR), which are a key element of the company’s offering. They are also employed to enhance the construction aspects of the business, which include light duties in both deep and shallow waters.

In order to improve conditions for divers, DOF Subsea has developed a portable system, which allows divers to become accustomed to increased pressures wherever in the world they are needed. This allows for better preparation for dives and increases the company’s efficiency on projects that require divers to work underwater for long periods of time. This is called the C300 and can be used on a number of vessels.

The construction services offered by the company include the laying of fibre optic cables and flowlines, repair of pipelines, certain installation procedures, jetting, trenching, commissioning and salvage. With a full service portfolio, the company can use the information it has gained in its surveys to offer a bespoke service.

DOF Subsea can also offer support services for other constructions, including architecture, design and engineering advice on a range of different projects. Thanks to its expertise in the subsea industry it can offer cost effective solutions for a diverse customer base.

In addition, batch set drill support is offered, which includes positioning control. Positioning services are often sought by clients, a service which DOF can provide at a competitive price.

Health, Safety, Environment and Quality

All the company’s services have gained the ISO 9001:200 certificate for quality, which reassures customers that DOF Subsea will meet their expectations. It also complies with a number of other guidelines, especially with regard to health and safety.

DOF is compliant with the IMCA guidelines and international standards, and has a Diving Safety Management System, which has been published and is accessible. A strong safety policy has meant that the company has seen no occupational accidents or work related illness, of which it is proud.

The company is also aware of its environmental impact, and works hard to ensure that this is minimised wherever possible. DOF Norway achieved the ISO 14001 certificate in 2006 and the system of environmental management will be rolled out across the company in the future.