Integrated Team Approach to the Design, Construction, Start Up, and Operation of the World's Most Modern Drilling Rig

Abstract

Summary This paper describes how an integrated team approach was applied to the design, construction, start up, and ultimately the operation of a high technology drilling rig. The rig was built to conform, wherever possible, to the stringent regulations in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea. The paper, which also contains a technical description of the rig itself, also addresses the issue of automation and it's effect on manning of a complex drilling unit and the importance of high quality training of the personnel selected to operate the rig. In 1994, Phillips Petroleum Company Norway, the operator of the Greater Ekofisk Area fields in the central North Sea, signed a contract for the construction of a state of the art, fit for purpose drilling rig to be located on the new Ekofisk 2/4 X wellhead production platform. The rig was an element of major importance to the Ekofisk II project, the redevelopment of one the largest fields in the North Sea. The start up of drilling on the 2/4 X platform was the first major milestone in the Ekofisk II project and the timely redrilling of the Ekofisk field wells from the new rig was vital to maintain production levels. On 26th October 1996, exactly on schedule, the first well on the 2/4 X platform was spudded. To date six wells have been drilled by the rig including the fastest well ever drilled in the Ekofisk field. The drilling program is currently on schedule and the rig has operated at an average availability of 98%. The success of this project can be attributed to a number of factors, however, one element stands clearly as the key success factor—a truly integrated team approach to all phases of the delivery of the rig! From the very beginning, representatives of the real customer of the product, the offshore drilling team, joined the rig supplier's design team to work shoulder to shoulder on the specification and preliminary design of the rig. As the design process moved forward, the customer representation on the team was strengthened. Ultimately, the customer participated in an active manner in all aspects of design, construction, commissioning, and start up of the rig. This paper will detail both the underlying philosophy and the practical process by which this state of the art rig was successfully built and put to work. The paper includes a description of the rig itself, a review of how the integrated team approached the various phases of delivery of the rig and an outline of how the project was managed. The paper then discusses the issue of whether an automated rig can lead to a reduction in manning levels and covers the unique way in which the rig crews rig were trained. Some equipment performance figures are included to demonstrate the successful operational capabilities of the rig, and finally some conclusions are drawn from the lessons that have been learned.