Promising Start for DNVGL-RP-0101

Just a few months after its release, oil companies and major subsea contractors are adopting the new Recommended Practice for Standardised Subsea Documentation. GAP analysis versus current practice shows large savings potential of up to 50 – 70 per cent!

At our seminar about the new Recommended Practice (RP), Statoil, Det norske and Aker Solutions reported that they are all in the process of implementing the RP. From the audience we learned that major subsea actors like FMC and OneSubsea are also in the process of taking the RP into use.

Statoil Taking the Lead

Statoil has paved the way and included the text from the draft version of DNVGL-RP-O101 in the Statoil Requirements Document «TR2381 Life Cycle Information». These requirements have already been specified for use in the subsea parts of the giant Johan Sverdrup project, and implementation has already started.

By comparing preliminary results from Johan Sverdrup with equivalent previous projects, a very significant saving in terms of number of documents has already been identified. Moreover, the RP has resulted in less discussions on what is to be delivered, more predictable document deliveries and less engineering judgement required to understand what is to be delivered.

Large Potential Savings

At our seminar about RP, Det norske presented their improvement project for technical documentation for subsea projects, where DNVGL-RP-O101 has been an important element. A GAP-analysis carried out by recalculating the documentation cost of a previous project, revealed a cost saving of 64 per cent in the best-case scenario. Det norske intends to set DNVGL-RP-O101 as a requirement for new subsea contracts.

Aker Solutions presented their ongoing process for implementation of the RP, and they estimate a potential cost saving of 30 – 50 per cent. Their main motivation for adopting the RP can be summarised as follows:

• Cost documentation deliverables more accurately
• Schedule documentation deliverables with greater predictability and accuracy
• Standardise documentation requirements towards suppliers
• Utilise their own and supplier documentation, re-use concepts
• Decrease review time and engineering hours during project execution
• Decrease cost of document control and LCI services in projects

Aker Solutions hopes to be able to stimulate other operators to follow suit with Statoil and Det norske in adopting the RP.