What is Offshore Engineering?

Offshore engineering encompasses all forms of engineering found on land, but with the added difficulty of often being situated on an isolated structure which has to be self-sufficient to a high degree for energy, food, water, materials, equipment, labour and expertise. Furthermore, this structure is usually located in a very harsh environment – deep water, heavy seas, severe weather, marine saline atmosphere – and far away from external assistance and a safe location to escape to should the need arise.

Offshore engineers have to live and work in this setting despite these disadvantages and perform their jobs to a very high standard, knowing that that there is less margin for error in the unforgiving environment. Mistakes may cost millions of pounds, cause significant pollution or damage to the environment, or lead to injury and even death.

Engineering activities offshore typically include:

• Location of oil and gas reserves
• Assessment of size and viability of discoveries
• Extraction of oil and gas from reservoirs beneath the seabed
• Design, construction, operation and maintenance of offshore installations and equipment
• Ensure maximum efficiency of production and reduction of costs
• Limit environmental damage and waste
• Ensure all activities are performed safely and are compliant with HSE legislation
• Management of personnel, equipment and budgets
• R&D to provide better (eg cheaper, quicker, or more accurate) ways of performing of all the above

Offshore Wind Turbines

A £100bn expansion of Offshore Wind Power has been announced by the Government. There are currently half a dozen Wind Farms generating electricity in and around the UK coastal waters, all in about 20m of water. These wind turbines are producing up to 700MW of electricity from typically 2MW units per turbine. For the UK to meet the target, of 25GW by 2020, then many more Wind Farms will need to be sited off the UK coast. These will comprise larger units in deeper water with up to 5MW generators installed.

 The technology to accomplish the task is new and challenging. The UK could benefit from the design, build, installation and maintenance of these wind farms provided that the professional engineering skills are available.