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Du Pont's Maintenance Painting Service Lowers Costs On Offshore Platforms After building a 12-year onshore success record, Du Pont has moved its cost-reducing Maintenance Painting Service (MPS) offshore to oil drilling and production plat- forms and other marine structures. In the past two years, Du Pont's Offshore MPS (OMPS) has helped Conoco Oil's New Orleans Division cut maintenance painting costs by 25 percent at its Grand Isle offshore production platforms in the Gulf of Mexico. At the invitation of Du Point, Maritime Reporter and En- gineering News recently visited sev- eral Conoco platforms to view the procedure and the results (photos). Conoco officials credit the reduc- tion to the systematic OMPS pro- gram, which combines tight man- agement controls with flexible scheduling to cover contingencies such as weather and platform oper- ating emergencies. Working with Conoco's New Or- leans Division, OMPS specialists prepared a program for painting 75 platforms in a 600-square-mile area to specific coverage standards at a guaranteed price that, according to Du Pont, turned out 15 percent below Conoco's lowest cost in the past 20 years. OMPS offshore oper- ations manager Gene Ivey reports that 25 platforms were painted on schedule at a lower cost than esti- mated. Du Pont will adjust the con- tract accordingly. "Offshore painting is three to five times more expensive than onshore painting," Mr. Ivey said. "Weather and water conditions and operating emergencies can affect scheduling, and rigging is more complicated and time-consuming. Because labor is the most expensive component of a painting program, we kept costs down by using highly qualified, effi- cient painting contractors and by planning backup work in case of emergencies or weather problems," he said. Du Pont built its MPS success on the combination of its ability to manage maintenance painting pro- jects for quality within prescribed deadlines and budgets, and for its technological expertise in prepara- tion and painting of production fa- cilities. In the past 18 years, Du Pont has saved as much as 60 per- cent in maintenance painting of its production facilities, which repre- sent a capital investment of more than $10 billion. Du Pont began offering MPS to chemical and in- dustrial production facilities 12 years ago, and its success prompted the company to look offshore for another outlet for the service. "We felt that our expertise in con- trolling corrosion and in managing painting contracts would work off- shore, and the Conoco program seems to confirm that," said Jack Jones, OMPS marketing manager. "As the managing partner of the Grand Isle Project, Conoco had to consider the interests of other own- ers in getting the best performance at the lowest price," said E.L. Mof- fatt, division production superin- tendent. "The entire program is geared to efficient planning and management. We surveyed the corrosion levels and painting needs of all of our plat- forms with the OMPS people to match critical areas with production priorities and locations. This gave us primary areas and backup areas, which is something previous paint- ing contractors didn't do. As a re- sult, we are able to have something painted even if painters have been working in an area where a produc- tion emergency occurs. That's been a key factor in keeping our program on schedule and within budget," Mr. Moflfatt said. Predictability, accountability, and protection are the cornerstones of OMPS. Du Pont assumes the responsibility for painting plat- forms and other marine structures at an agreed-upon level of protec- tion and/or appearance for an ex- tended period at a predetermined fee, subject only to change in labor rates and material costs. The annual price for the first five years will be at or below the price quoted by Du Pont before the program begins. OMPS consists of preparations, finishing, and inspection. It includes all vessels, structural steel, walk- ways, piping, and all the surfaces constantly exposed to deterioration from weather, corrosion, and wear and tear. OMPS specialists devote full-time attention to planning, scheduling, supervision, monitoring, and follow-up. This regimen is nec- essary to keep a job on target. Offshore painting can run $5 to $6 per square foot, sometimes going as high as $12 in hard-to-paint spots. This is an average of three to five times higher that the cost of land- based painting programs, and most of the cost is labor-related, especial- ly for rigging. OMPS is investigating a rigging method that involves rig- ging an entire platform leg at one time, which has great promise of reducing labor significantly, and a non-painting technique for protect- ing platform splash zones. Along with technological ad- vances, only safety-conscious, high- ly productive contractors are select- ed before work begins. In addition to being productive and reliable, contractors hired by OMPS must be able to furnish work crews capable of performing under difficult ma- rine conditions. Once work begins, OMPS man- agers hold periodic reviews with fa- cility managers and technical per- sonnel to stay current with their changing needs and to assess the program's progress relative to objec- tive. Additional Services Based on its offshore success, OMPS is extending its inspection and monitoring to integrate ca- thodic protection services with painting for complete structure pro- tection. With 15 years of cathodic protection experience, Du Pont will apply the same approach used for painting. Specialists will survey and ana- lyze existing cathodic protection systems and develop a planned ret- rofitting program for optimum con- tinuous protection. Du Pont will de- sign, engineer, and install all anodes and continuously monitor and in- spect them. With its expanded services, OMPS is preparing to extend the geographic range of its operations into the North Sea. For a free 12-page color brochure on Du Pont's OMPS, Circle 65 on Reader Service Card 32 Maritime Reporter/Engineering News
