A philosophy to ensure the safety of floating structures in arctic and cold regions

Abstract

The safety philosophy for floating oil and gas production systems in arctic and cold regions has been enhanced in the recent revision to the ISO 19906 (2019) arctic structures standard. Important changes since the initial publication of the ISO 19906 (2010) standard include the identification of different facility types, depending on whether ice management and disconnection/move-off capabilities are part of the design concept. Because operational procedures are such an important consideration for floaters, additional requirements include operating envelopes and non-physical barriers to ensure that these procedures are conducted safely and in a way that human life, structural reliability levels and the environment are preserved. Arctic standards dealing with physical environmental data requirements (ISO 35106, 2017) and ice management (ISO 35104, 2018) have also been published since 2010. The new data requirements include verifiable data streams, particularly when dealing with weather and ice forecasts. Much of the material relating to ice management in the initial version of ISO 19906 (2010) has been moved to the new standard as well as numerous enhancements related to detection systems and performance requirements. Both ISO 35104 (2018) and the revised ISO 19906 (2019) provide increased focus on ice alert systems under which ice management activities are conducted.