Offshore service vessels: comply with rules and regulations

Learning from operations and casualties is of great importance for state of the art rules and regulations, according to Rasmus Stute, GL’s Head of Department Service Vessels in a presentation at the Seatrade Middle East Maritime conference in Dubai. Rules and regulations maintain safety standards and keep up with technical developments and improvements to reduce the risk of accidents and casualties. Due to the technical evolution of offshore service vessels (OSV) and the vast demand for new OSV in deepwater oil/gas exploration areas as well as operating offshore wind parks, GL recently launched new rules for these ship types.

The GL rules are intended for offshore support and supply, offshore towing, well stimulation, and other specialized offshore services. For these ships the class notation OFFSHORE SERVICE VESSEL has been assigned, complemented by optional further notations, such as HNLS for ships carrying hazardous and noxious liquid substances, AH for anchor handling tug/supply ships, WSV for well stimulation vessels, and WTIS for wind turbine installation/construction support ships. The offshore supply vessel sector provides transportation services to offshore drilling rigs, fixed platforms, and floating platforms. These vessels are used to deliver drilling supplies, fuel, water, and food for crew.
They move personnel to, from, and between offshore installations. In particular, heavy lift vessels tow rigs from one location to the next, placing or retrieving its anchors. Offshore supply vessels are used to provide safety and emergency response services and are necessary during offshore construction projects.

Design and operation of offshore vessels differ significantly from those of general cargo ships. Comprehensive international regulations are needed to specifically account for practical demands of OSVs. “GL’s rules reflect today’s offshore support vessels to support design and build safer and more robust offshore service vessels while minimizing operational risks.” said Rasmus Stute. Using Anchor Handling tugs (AH), Towage Approvability Certificate (TVS) and gas as ship fuel (GF) as examples, Stute discussed operational safety case studies and GL class notation services.