Learn how we helped a Houston-based energy company better manage their risk, optimize costs, and maximize equipment availability of its facility through a semi-quantitative RBI program.
The Challenge
A Houston-based oil and gas exploration and production company operates in the United States, Middle East, North Africa, and South America. As part of its asset integrity program, the company identified the need to implement a more robust inspection program that included Risk-Based Inspection (RBI).
Featuring more than 600 fixed equipment assets and an even larger quantity of piping assets, the company’s operations had implemented a time-based inspection program with a qualitative RBI methodology. Planned outages are conducted and often include intrusive inspections to satisfy the time-based inspection plans. Many of the assets have internal coatings for corrosion protection, which results in negligible corrosion rates as long as the coating is intact. Due to the asset’s increasing size and complexity and growing intrusive inspections, related production interruptions and maintenance costs were forecasted for the coming years. The company needed a solution to manage risk, optimize costs and maximize equipment availability, while following the Recognized and Generally Accepted Good Engineering Practice (RAGAGEP).
Pinnacle's Solution
Pinnacle, in conjunction with the company’s experts, developed a semi-quantitative RBI methodology based on the American Petroleum Institute (API) 581 standard. Pinnacle, which specializes in comprehensive reliability and asset management plans, implemented a customized RBI and planning solution. As part of this process, the Pinnacle team set up procedures for the company’s evergreening program for sustainability and provided training to its end users.
Results
The company will now experience the following business benefits, including:
- An electronic document library housing design and inspection documents. (Pinnacle was able to identify and close gaps in the operation’s systems by creating this electronic library.)
- An Inspection Data Management System (IDMS) that is successfully populated with design and operational data for all of the company’s in-scope assets.
- A validated corrosion model.
- Risk ranking for assets within its semi-quantitative RBI module.
- Exact inspection due dates and recommended inspection effectiveness as part of the Inspection Planning module.
Following the completion of the RBI and planning program implementation, the results from the data will be used to extend the turnaround interval to beyond the facility’s existing six-year requirement.
The company can now optimize its “unit” turnarounds per a risk-based model instead of a pre-determined interval. In addition, development of the integrity program includes ensuring various efficiencies are gained in manpower, and lost-productivity due to unorganized and inaccurate data is reduced. Today operations can better optimize for unplanned and unnecessary costs.