Case study · Offshore geotechnical
Downhole tooling, without the handover
An electro-hydraulic remote tool handling system for offshore geotechnical drilling – full positional interlocking, and installed without hot work.
Deploying downhole sampling tools traditionally means people working at the roosterbox and the compensated platform, handing tools across while the rig is live. It is manual, it is repetitive and it puts crew in the worst place on the rig.
GeoQuip Marine needed the tools deployed safely with minimal operator intervention.
What we did
We designed and supplied an electro-hydraulic remote tool handling system for the safe deployment of downhole sampling tools on a geotechnical offshore installation.
The system removes roosterbox and compensated-platform access and handover from the drilling sequence altogether. Electrical position monitoring is combined with drill position to give full interlocking, so the handler and the string cannot be in conflicting states.
Design features
- Removes the access and egress requirements that put crew at risk
- Wireless remote control, with manual backup
- Electrical positional monitoring combined with drill position – full interlocking
- Robust, intuitive cable and hydraulic hose management
- Short operator training requirement
- No-weld installation
Two days, no hot work
The installation detail is the one that matters commercially. The system mounts to the drill derrick with no welding and no fabrication on the vessel, and goes on in two days.
On an offshore installation, hot work means permits, fire watch and often a stand-down of adjacent activity. Designing it out is not a convenience – it is the difference between an upgrade that fits inside a port call and one that costs a vessel days.
The result
Downhole tooling runs with the crew clear of the handover points, on a system built for the people who operate and maintain it rather than for the drawing. It went on in two days without a welding set.