A large German oil and gas producer expanded its global asset base and activities and was looking for a standardized approach to asset management and risk mitigation. After all, while it may be impossible to prevent all incidents, a lot can be done to prevent escalation into accidents. MaxGrip first performed RCM studies in two pilot projects.

The company is active in the trade and transport, exploration and production of oil and gas and is growing and expanding its business around the world.

In the next few years, the company continues to expand its business by exploration, acquisitions and partnerships. “As a fast-growing global player with local operations in very different places, it faces some specific challenges”, says MaxGrip expert. “The company has a high level of technical expertise. It applies the strictest safety standards, and values innovative solutions to make the most of its resources. The speed and scale at which they acquire new assets makes the need for company-wide standards all the more pressing. MaxGrip has the experience and track record to quickly and efficiently develop an asset management framework.”

The company needs to know and show that all of its assets are safe and sound. Risk-based maintenance and a uniform, data-driven approach to asset management will initiate a process of standardization, and help solve other issues such as knowledge retention. Previously, for its North Sea platforms, the company and MaxGrip mapped out the safety-critical elements (SCE’s). “These can be seen as barriers that prevent incidents from escalating into accidents. When you know what the risks are, you can minimize the impact if multiple barriers should be breached. The next step is to translate this knowledge into practical asset management. Having established a good working relationship, we continued with the standardization of the way the company secures asset reliability.”

MaxGrip first performed RCM studies in two pilot projects. MaxGrip expert: “The knowledge sessions with the company’s engineers were very fruitful. They generated many insights and a general understanding of the need for optimization and auditability. While following the company’s guidelines, we defined new Performance Standards and Schemes of Examination. We used our Oil & Gas library to analyze the risks and define the right maintenance measures for all equipment. Such a standardized approach is the basis for proving you are in control of your assets. We focused on the real criticalities in terms of safety and reliability, the cost structure and spares optimization. In the process of making maintenance specific and fully traceable, we laid the foundations for global asset management.”