New to the underwater industry and subsea projects?
Please do not re-invent the proverbial wheel:- we have a tremendous amount of knowledge borne out of working in the subsea environments since the 1970s. We were at the forefront of diving and underwater operations and we have learnt how to get it wrong and then put it right, often in very painful ways. Unfortunately the industry learnt the hard way and the cost in terms of lives lost was ridiculously high for a number of years.
Through the offshore diving industys trade association, IMCA, a vast amount of guidance in the conduct of safe diving and subsea operations has been written. However, this knowledge is not always applied to inshore operations, and with many windfarms being positioned within the 12 mile limits, and with non-IMCA contractors, there is concern that hard-earned knowledge may not be utilised and both safety and financial costs may again be high.
The NHC can advise and guide clients new to the industry and help avoid mistakes.
Selection of Underwater Contractors
Many underwater contractors now have excellent procedures, and adopt industry best practice therefore it should be simple to select a professional and responsible company. In reality it is not that easy. Many companies claim to work to best practice, but they do not achieve this.
The National Hyperbaric Centre offers consulting and expert advice in a wide variety of subsea activities.
Most projects need a mix of skills which are rarely all available from within the Project team. The NHC can supplement that knowledge by providing access to its pool of trusted, known and vetted consultants.
The flexibility gained from this approach overcomes the lack of client internal resources, enables true strategic interventions that generate greater safety, operating efficiencies, increased profitability through performance improvement and knowledge transfer, and permits true expertise to be incorporated into projects.
Need assistance in specialist areas?
The need for specialist skills has been recognised by key clients such as BAE Systems, the Ministry of Defence, Windfarm owners and companies venturing into the subsea industry for the first time, or indeed to greater depths and in conditions in which they have limited experience.
Projects may include:
- Diving in Contaminated waters seabed chemical analysis, effects of the chemicals on divers and in hyperbaric conditions, equipment selection, decontamination
- Enclosed space diving procedures and equipment selection
- Thermal performance evaluation and testing
- Underwater noise and explosions effects on divers and their proximity to operations
- Windfarms diving contractor selection, review of procedures, diving operations and live electricity cables
- We also have a number of consultants who work with us to provide an even greater depth of knowledge. Many of these experts are very keen to be involved in some of the more adventurous aspects of R&D and interesting Project works.
Our current list of subsea and industry experts includes:
