NEWS

DEEPWATER-CLEARTHINKING

DEEPSEA ISSUE 1 • Jan - Mar 2008

The quarterly periodical of DeepSea Engineering & Management

Bloomin’ Asia
DeepSea’s subsidiary in the land of the orchid has a flying start to the year. Welcome to DeepSea News
Last year DeepSea announced the formation barge as well as other significant engineering The DeepSea Group of companies was
of DeepSea Asia Ltd., a subsidiary company projects for Clough and TL Offshore. founded to provide best-in-class deepwater
focused on serving oil and gas operator and engineering services for operators, contractors
contractor clients in Asia. Headed up by newly Geoff T Stone will be responsible for developing and service communities in the global oil and
appointed Managing Director Geoff T Stone, the company’s business across the Asian gas industry.
the company has had a very successful year region. Bringing over 30 years of experience
from its engineering office located in Bangkok, in Project Management and Engineering and Operating through offices in strategic locations,
the economic and financial centre of Thailand. Design Construction, Geoff is charged with and engaged in strategic industry partnerships,
providing a local engineering interface for the DeepSea has established a position as the
DeepSea’s Bangkok office has now completed company’s growing Asian client base. Given worldwide subsea engineering contractor of
two projects, including the detailed design his prior positions as a Fluid Transfer Lines choice.
for 42-inch pipelines, pipeline end manifolds Manger on the Kikeh Project with Murphy Oil
The Group is renowned for both flexibility and
(PLEMs) and single point mooring (SPM) Corp., Malaysia, and Pipelines Project Manager
focus: meeting clients’ needs on a global or
refurbishment for SK Energy based in Seoul, for Premier Petroleum ML in Myanmar, SE
regional basis, as a technical partner in critical
South Korea. The second project, the Bualuang Asia, Geoff has a wealth of expertise with the
phases or supporting senior management
subsea system detailed design, involves a burgeoning Asian market.
through major projects from initial concept to
production and water injection line, power/
installation.
control umbilical, fixed risers and an integrated “DeepSea is going through a strong growth
PLEM/mooring base for GFI, an independent phase, and opening an engineering centre in Fully focused on subsea engineering since the
oil and gas operator based in Houston, Texas. Asia is consistent with our strategy in other Group was founded, DeepSea has developed
The new DeepSea headquarters is also working active deepwater regions,” said Dan Jackson, unparalleled expertise in adding value through
on an articulated, ballastable stinger design for DeepSea Group Managing Director. “Geoff design and knowledge, innovative thinking and
NorCE for their new-build derrick pipelay Stone brings to the company an abundance intelligent engineering.
of expertise and knowledge that will benefit
both DeepSea and our clients. We believe we The Group specialises in
Contents meeting the challenges and
have made the right appointment in light of our
P1-3 News growing business needs, and we are delighted grasping the opportunities
to have him on board.” presented by exploration
Monaco to Malaysia
and production in
Wintershall DeepSea expects its Bangkok operation to deepwater environments
Devon Polvo comprise around 50 technical staff by year or projects with significant
P4-5 Advances in deepwater umbilical design end. Late last year, DeepSea opened an office subsea challenges.
P6-7 Analysing the pipelay process in Aberdeen, Scotland, and an office in Perth,
Australia. More information on how these Dan Jackson
P8 Changes to your business development DEEPSEA Group
offices are doing will be in the next edition of
P8 Charity news DeepSea News. Managing Director
Although every effort has been made to ensure accuracy, no responsibility will be accepted by the publishers for any errors or omissions. Views expressed in DEEPSEA NEWS by contributors may be personal and should not neccessarily be treated as formal company policy.

www.DEEPSEA-eng.com
ISSUE 1
Monaco to Malaysia
with Barry Shepheard
In support of a very significant verification
contract awarded to DeepSea in 2006,
Barry Shepherd has been seconded to
Murphy Oil Corporation in Malaysia for
the last two years as part of the facilities
team responsible for Murphy Oil’s Kikeh
Field development in the South China
Sea.
There were five main facilities contracts:
Kikeh FPSO, Kikeh SPAR, Subsea
Systems, Pipelines and Risers and FTL
GAP. The FTL GAP (Fluid Transfer Line
Gravity Actuated Pipe) contract was
awarded to SBM (Single Buoy Moorings)
in Monaco, which is where he was based
for most of the past two years. His core
responsibilities included Engineering,
Interfaces and Contractor management
support for the FTL GAP.
The FTL GAP is a subsea pipeline system
conveying product from the SPAR (or
DTU, Dry Tree Unit) to the FPSO. These
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©2008 DeepSea Engineering & Management - All rights reserved
DEEPWATER-CLEARTHINKING
facilities are nominally 1,600m apart. The
system consists of a structural carrier pipe
1,300m in length. The carrier pipe supports
four 10” flow lines (three production lines
and one water injection line) as well as a
power and communication umbilical.
Connected at either end of the carrier
pipe are the tow heads suspended 200m
below the water line: at the SPAR via a
taught tether chain, and at the FPSO Turret
via weighted catenary chains. A total of
eight flexible jumpers, four mounted on
each of the two tow heads, connect the
rigid flow lines on the carrier pipe to the
FPSO Turret at one end and to the DTU
production hard piping at the other end.
Rigid spools are used to transition from
the hard piping on the SPAR hull to the
flexible jumpers, and from the rigid flow
lines on the carrier pipe to the flexible
jumpers on the tow heads.
www.DEEPSEA-eng.com
For the past two years SBM has been
engaged in the engineering design,
procurement and fabrication of the system,
which is the first of its kind anywhere in
the world. The system was fabricated
at a bespoke site in Bintulu, Malaysia. It
has been successfully installed and pre-
commissioned and is now live, flowing
product from the Kikeh SPAR to the
FPSO. As well as a production platform
the Kikeh SPAR is engaged in drilling and
completion activities supported by the
TAD West Setia. A Second drilling rig,
The Ocean Rover, is engaged in drilling
the Subsea wells and the production goes
direct to the FPSO via subsea flow lines.
Since March 2007 Barry has moved
to Malaysia to be part of the Murphy
Offshore Team engaged in the installation
activities associated with the FTL GAP:
Launch, Tow, Hook-up, Jumper and
Umbilical Installation and Diving activities.
His assignment with Murphy Oil is due to
conclude in the first quarter of 2008.
Wintershall
Spiral lay
monitoring
During the autumn of 2007 DeepSea
Monitoring Solutions (DMS) provided
Wintershall with a Distributed Strain-Sensing
system to monitor dynamic strain profiles
throughout their novel Spiral Lay offshore
towing trials.
The objective of the Spiral Lay project is to
provide a solution to the Oil & Gas industry
that offers many benefits during pipeline lay
operations. The approach aims to install
prefabricated pipelines in varying water
depths. Pipelines are to be fabricated and
strung out onshore prior to being coiled into
a spiral form in shallow water. This spiral is
then towed to a final lay location and laid in
position by unwinding the spiral and guiding
the pipeline into position.
As part of Wintershall’s initial conceptual
evaluation process, these sea trials were
undertaken off the north coast of Holland,
with a coiled one-kilometre section of pipeline,
and included sea-bound tow, lay and recovery
operations.
DMS’s role was to provide distributed in-
plane and out-of-plane strain profiles for the
Lazy waving with
Devon Polvo
Over the last year DeepSea has been
engineering numerous subsea layout
solutions for the Devon Polvo Project
in Brazil. The subsea engineering is
dominated by the configuration of the
flexible riser and umbilical systems that
have now been installed in a lazy wave
configuration using distributed buoyancy.
DeepSea’s scope expanded from the
operational system design to include the
installation engineering, working closely
in the integrated team for the Installation
DEEPWATER-CLEARTHINKING
duration of the trials. The purpose of collecting
this data was to provide both an insight into the
fatigue life of a pipeline during such operations
and validate previously utilised tow and
deployment finite element models generated
by DeepSea Engineering & Management Ltd.
DMS therefore undertook the installation
of four strain-sensing optical fibres along
the length of the pipeline. The fibres were
installed around the outer circumference of
the pipeline at 90-degree intervals and all
four fibres were interrogated simultaneously.
A Brillouin back-scatter-based interrogation
method was utilised, and strain data was
collected at a rate of one Hertz, with a spatial
resolution of one metre, and a measurement
resolution of 35 micro-strain.
The fibre installation stage of the project
Contractor, the flexible pipe supplier
and the Operator. The project is now
complete and the product is flowing
to the FPSO, much to the satisfaction
of the Devon team. From DeepSea’s
perspective this was a technically difficult
project, as there were many installation
constraints and schedule challenges that
tested our team. Our gratitude goes out
to the Devon team for sending written
thanks to our engineers in recognition of
their hard work and responsiveness.
www.DEEPSEA-eng.com
Jan - Mar 2008
Fibre integrity interrogation after fibre
installation completion.
was completed within seven days in-less-
than-favourable weather conditions, and the
spiralling process took a further five days. With
the sea trials completed and the data collected,
it was concluded that the initial trials had been
a great success. As a result, the lessons learnt
from this trial are to be taken forward and
potentially implemented by Wintershall for a
full-scale installation of a 5.5-kilometre pipeline
early next year.
Finally, DMS was contracted to provide the
monitoring solutions for this project due to
their adaptable, flexible and dynamic project-
based philosophy (from point of first contact
to trial conclusion and decommissioning of
interrogators was a period of some eight
weeks) as well as their novel optical fibre-
based monitoring solutions.
Lazy wave configuration for Polvo with the
distributed bouyancy tanks.
ISSUE 1
Advances in Deepwater Umbilical Design
by Alex Boheimer Business Manager Europe
Until recently, interactions between
internal components of an umbilical have
been more or less neglected in modelling
for fatigue prediction. However, in
deeper waters and larger umbilicals, such
interactions can contribute significantly
to creating the conditions for umbilical
failure. DeepSea has independently
developed a suite of tools and processes
for evaluating the internal performance of
large umbilicals in deep water. These tools
and processes allow the quantification
of inter-component friction stresses,
as an integrated part of current project
execution processes. They enable users
to make informed adjustments to designs
before building and testing them, thus
enhancing the design process, reducing
installation risk and helping to contain
costs through the entire lifecycle of the
dynamic umbilical.
The challenge
Steel tube umbilicals (STUs) link a host/
control platform to associated wells, and
provide the hydraulic, electrical, signal and
chemical functionality required for each
well. Failure of even a single component in
an umbilical will generally halt production,
because well control or flow assurance
requirement has been lost. Locating a
failure presents significant challenges;
repair to a dynamic section is not feasible
because of the high level of structural
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©2008 DeepSea Engineering & Management - All rights reserved
DEEPWATER-CLEARTHINKING
integrity required under the demanding
conditions in which operations take place.
Therefore, the processes and techniques
used to design STU systems for maximum
reliability and integrity need to model the
actual behaviour of the components as
closely as possible.
To date, the relatively simple calculations
used to analyse the behaviour of
umbilicals in shallower waters have
yielded acceptable results. However, as
requirements shift towards deeper water
and larger-diameter heavier umbilicals,
the interactions between the umbilical’s
internal components contribute additional
stress and fatigue. Using traditional
methods of design in these circumstances
can lead to a non-conservative design,
increasing the likelihood of umbilical
failure.
Umbilical design and analysis – the
next generation
Current design practices approximate
umbilicals as a single homogeneous
structure. This approach leads to
adequate modelling of the ‘global’
behaviour of an STU, i.e. the behaviour
of a long length of umbilical; but it falls far
short of representing the behaviour of
the complex system of helically wound
tubes and cables inside the umbilical.
Sophisticated numerical tools such as
ABAQUS are capable of modelling the
complicated geometry and interactions
inside an umbilical; however, they are
very demanding of computing power
and thus impractical for modelling the
entire umbilical.
DeepSea’s approach combines
proven global systems models with
more complex 2D and 3D models
to capture local stresses and contact
between internal components.
Starting with a global model of the
umbilical system, constructed in an
industry-recognised tool, force and
www.DEEPSEA-eng.com
curvature time histories of the components
are generated. These are converted then
used as the input to local finite element
models of the umbilical.
At this stage, either a quasi-3D or a full 3D
approach can be adopted. In the quasi-
3D approach, axial tensions are applied
to the umbilical; the radial forces are
calculated and applied to the components
via a specially developed helical element
producing quasi-3D modelling in a
detailed 2D finite element model of the
cross section.
The quasi-3D approach captures
movements and deformation of all
the layers and components, as well as
the frictional forces between them. It
provides an extremely efficient process for
establishing the friction stress contribution
that should be included in fatigue analysis of
the umbilical, accounting for the inherent
asymmetry of an umbilical’s lay-up.
In a full 3D approach, a representative 3D
length of the umbilical is modelled. This
provides more accurate inter-component
interactions, particularly for large STUs
with multiple layers that are
counter-wound.
In addition, full 3D modelling permits better
assessment of the installation conditions as
the umbilical passes through the tensioner
system, because it captures the correct
load transfer from the tensioner pads into
the umbilical components.
Benefits of advanced modelling
In the past, lack of knowledge about
interactions between STU
components has been a major
issue in fatigue assessment of
these structures. More accurate
modelling can result in detailed
targeted changes to designs and
technical specifications, optimising
performance and minimising
manufacturing cost.
These improved modelling capabilities
can also be applied to the installation
phase. Outcomes include more precise
assessments of acceptable weather
windows, and a greater pool of installation
vessels to choose from. All operations in
the installation and the effects of wave
and current loading during the operation
can be assessed for their impact on the
installability of the umbilical. When laying
umbilicals in deep water, compression
loading at touchdown point can be
assessed with greater
a c c u r a c y.
T h i s
DEEPWATER-CLEARTHINKING
leads to greater confidence in the
assessment, which can allow costly lay
processes – such as lazy wave with
distributed buoyancy – to be avoided,
thus reducing both capital expenditure
and lay time.
The increasing use of DeepSea’s
sophisticated umbilical design methods
allows clients to have a deeper
understanding of the technical
risks they face and inform
better design and
installation
decision making,
thus reducing cost while
increasing design confidence in challenging
environments.
Case Study
Analysis of crush loads during
installation of an umbilical
DeepSea has been frequently
commissioned to assess crush loads
during installation of steel tube
umbilicals.
In one particular case the client’s
concern was the potential damage
through crushing under tensioner
pressure during installation. The
project successfully modelled
the complex interactions under
tensioner loading between the
counter-wound layers of internal
components. A similar issue exists
for umbilicals that provide individual
www.DEEPSEA-eng.com
Jan - Mar 2008
conduits through which the steel tubes
and electrical components are located.
The internal friction associated with this
type of umbilical construction requires
detailed understanding as the fundamental
approach is for these conduits to minimise
friction within the cross-section. This is
beneficial for dynamic fatigue response
but some friction between components
is required to ensure sufficient axial
load sharing between steel and copper
components and that the tensioner
pressure is correctly transferred into the
product during installation.
For the umbilical in question the transfer of
the tensioner grip/pressure to the central
tube was the focus of this study. Detailed
quasi-3D and full 3D finite element
modelling of the umbilical cross-section
under tensioner crush loading and axial
tension was successfully undertaken. This
showed all internal contact and accounted
for the manufacturing tolerances/gaps
between components.
The results from the quasi-3D model
showed that there was sufficient contact
between the outer counter-wound layers
and the central tube after crush loading
and axial pull was applied to avoid its
slipping during installation.
The difference between the quasi-3D and
3D results indicate short samples (less than
a pitch length) are less stiff radially than the
full continuous umbilical, thereby resulting
in greater radial deformation. This was
expected as the total helix structural
capacity is only available for loading over a
long, continuous length of several pitches.
The radial stiffness of the full 3D model
is a more accurate representation of the
true physical situation.
Through use of the quasi-3D and full 3D
modelling techniques, it was possible
to demonstrate to the client with high
confidence that the friction acting on the
central tube due to load transfer from the
tensioner pads was sufficient for installation
without risk of damage, while ensuring
good dynamic fatigue response.
ISSUE 1
Oil and gas developments in the Caspian
region hold important potential for shoring
up security of European supply over the
coming decades. The world’s largest oil
discovery of the last ten years was reported at
the turn of the millennium in shallow waters
offshore Kazakhstan, where original oil in
place is estimated to be as much as 38 billion
barrels. Across the Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan
has the fourth highest proven oil reserves in
the Europe-Eurasia region, and ranks eighth
in proven gas reserves. Turkmenistan, also
bordering the Caspian Sea, has nearly twice
as much gas as Azerbaijan (but much less oil).
The region is the focus of ongoing
political developments (such as the recent
alliance formed by Russia, Kazakhstan and
Turkmenistan that could mean Central Asia’s
gas exports are all headed for the Russian
pipeline network; and the deal by Gazprom
with OMV – the EU’s construction partner
for the proposed Nabucco gas pipeline – to
develop gas infrastructure in Austria).
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©2008 DeepSea Engineering & Management - All rights reserved
DEEPWATER-CLEARTHINKING
However, for operators in the area, the
highest priority remains unchanged: making
successful finds and establishing production as
rapidly as possible.
Challenging project
This task is a challenging one. The area presents
unique requirements for engineering design
and installation. In particular, as the Caspian
is an inland sea, vessels and equipment for
use there need to be transported on barges
through the region’s network of narrow canals.
This places a considerable size restriction on
the types of equipment and vessels that can
be employed, and calls for innovative thinking
around installation.
In the first phase of development in the Azeri
ACG Phase 3 project for BP with construction
contractor McDermott Caspian Contractors,
Inc. (MCCI), DeepSea Engineering &
Management was commissioned to carry
out detailed engineering analysis and assist
with developing the offshore procedures for
installation of flexible pipelines, flowlines and
www.DEEPSEA-eng.com
umbilicals systems – and associated pipeline
end manifolds, pipeline end terminations,
subsea umbilical terminations and tie-ins – in a
two-manifold layout on the Azerbaijan side of
the Caspian Sea.
The purpose of DeepSea’s analysis was
to define an optimised approach to laying,
start-up, lay down, assembly and repair, and
associated lifting and pull-in activities. This
work complemented that of other partners
in the project such as KBR, charged with
detailed design of the platform and technical
procurement support.
Weather aware
DeepSea’s contribution to the project
incorporated full static and dynamic analysis
of the installation conditions, including the
definition of weather windows and laying
states. The analysis also had to take into
account restrictions such as the limited winch
capacity on the installation vessel.
For the weather-related part of the process,
DEEPWATER-CLEARTHINKING
Analysing the pipelay process
by Martijn Makkink
and his riser team
DeepSea has developed its own tools to world. The procedure is most feasible in water
speed up the analysis of vessel response depths of 100-300 meters: i.e. not so deep
to weather conditions. These automate as as to result in excessive tension, and not so
much of the calculation as possible, looking shallow as to raise the possibility of problems
at interactions between vessel Response with the dynamic motions of the vessel (as
Amplitude Operators (RAOs) (e.g. metre non-benign combinations of the vessel motion
per metre, degree per degree) and weather and sea state could lead to high compression
conditions using meteorological data supplied. loads in shallow waters).
This streamlined RAO screening process
enables the rapid identification of worst case However, an important hindrance to deploying
conditions for installation in terms of heading the mid-line join procedure in this particular
wave period and wave height. instance was the 38 tonne winch capacity of
the installation vessel. The vessel itself was
Expansion without shut-in large enough to hold the pipe during the
Whilst the project plan in hand incorporated join procedure, but as soon as any load was
two manifolds, a stipulation was that it should applied its winch capacity would have been
be possible to allow a third manifold to be insufficient to support the process. The limited
added to the development without shutting size of the vessel made installing a bigger
the field in, since winch questionable.
no construction ‘We are all very excited about the As bringing in a bigger
work would upcoming East Manifold installation vessel was precluded
be able to take phase, where I will be based in Baku and by the constraints
place within the of the region’s
working offshore to ensure a seamless
exclusion zone on transport options,
commencement interface between the engineering phase and reworking the
of production. performed by DeepSea in London and the lay vessel would have
This called for MCCI project team in Baku’ been too costly, the
some innovative Martijn Makkink mid-line join was
thinking around not deployed in this
pipeline laying and the analysis required for it. project.
Manifolds were designed such that the pipelay
was initiated at this point and for project cost So MCCI and DeepSea are currently working
considerations it was desirable to use the same together to study and develop a new,
design for the third manifold. However, the alternative technique for the Caspian project,
flexible pipeline would have to be laid away which adopts second-end abandonment using
from the platform before commencement of a stab and hinge mechanism for attachment.
production and a method laying the rest of This approach has not been used elsewhere in
the pipeline and joining this to the manifold the past. DeepSea has undertaken modelling
devised. to see whether a device originally designed
for initiation with a stab and hinge mechanism
MCCI and DeepSea worked together to could be lowered carefully to be abandoned
explore different methodologies. A number in the correct position relative to the pipe.
of different solutions were considered in
DeepSea’s analysis. One incorporates a It became evident that lowering the device
surface mid-line join procedure, rather than a using only a crane would not work, as it would
more traditional approach using pipeline end result in lateral loads which the crane would
manifolds and a spool. This approach would not be able to support. This led to a decision
allow production to be maintained, and also to employ the winch in a controlled manner
result in cost and time savings in the installation as well. This combination of winch and
process. crane control would enable the device to be
lowered to the correct position without the
Mid-line joins have been carried out successfully risk of overbending. The results of DeepSea’s
with steel pipes in many projects around the modelling indicated that this approach based
www.DEEPSEA-eng.com
Jan - Mar 2008
on second-end abandonment has good
potential to yield a cost-effective solution with
a high level of confidence.
Unusual phenomena
The dynamic analysis for installing the pipeline
end terminations and subsea umbilical
distribution systems uncovered some unusual
structural phenomena which warranted
further investigation. The combination of a
light umbilical in shallow water, with a small
laying vessel displaying significant motions at
certain wave periods, led DeepSea’s analysis
to predict a compression wave, which would
travel down the umbilical and, where it
touches down, cause bending and undesirable
bending moments in the umbilical termination.
Bending moments on umbilical terminations
would cause any manufacturer concern.
As the nature of the project dictated that
more and more umbilicals were going to
be installed in more and more challenging
situations, a balanced approach to establishing
optimum laying conditions was required.
Having calculated that the significant wave
height (i.e. the wave height at which
unwanted effects would kick in) did not give
a sufficient workability window, DeepSea
adopted a probabilistic route to the definition
of reasonable conditions. Calculating the
probability of a given wave height and wave
period occurring, this approach made it
possible to make a reasonable extension to
the laying window for the umbilicals in the
subsea distribution system on the sea bed.
The analysis was backed up by DeepSea’s
random wave analysis using data widely
available in sea state diagrams from the
Caspian. By considering both random and
regular seas, it was possible to make sure any
levels of conservatism in the analysis were well
understood by the project partners.
Design for installation
The collaborative ethos established with
MCCI in the project, and the creative inputs of
the project partners, have provided the right
environment to design the project for efficient
and cost-effective installation – an important
precursor to successful and sustainable
operation.
ISSUE 1 DEEPWATER-CLEARTHINKING

Changes to your business development team

Ivan’s title is Business
Manager UK, and he has
been working for DeepSea
since October 2006.
Recent projects at DeepSea
include managing global
configuration design and
analysis for disconnectable
Ivan Sladojevic turret systems, design of
risers and an umbilical system for Olowi field in
West Africa for CNR, analysing the impact forces of
risers on gutters of a mid-water arch and the clamp
designs for Devon Polvo development offshore
Brazil.
Ivan has a PhD in forced-response analysis of aero-
elastically coupled mistuned bladed discs. Ivan’s
PhD research was sponsored by Rolls-Royce and
involved CFD-FE-coupled analyses of the vibratory
response of aero engine fan and turbine blades. He
has authored three publications. Prior to his PhD,
Ivan also conducted research at the Rolls-Royce
UTC, creating a mesh of complex geometry for
CFD analysis using different finite element tools.
Craig started working
life designing interactive
substation control system
layouts and quickly
progressed into a Tendering
Engineer role. He has now
spent the last seven years in
various Oil & Gas Business
Craig Stratton Development roles, mainly
in Aberdeen, but he has also spent some time living
Sunil grew up in Kuala
Lumpur, Malaysia before
moving to the UK in
1999. After graduating
with a BEng in Mechanical
Engineering he returned to
KL, working for Malaysia’s
biggest independent power
Sunil Ratti producer, Malakoff Bhd.
Having worked at Malakoff for three years, he
then moved to Dresser and into the oil and gas
industry.
In 2005, Sunil gained an MBA at Cranfield, UK. He
then joined DeepSea, where he has been since
2006. Sunil has been heavily involved in the business
development side of DeepSea and is working on
market intelligence and project proposals.
Ramez has had five years
of experience working
in the Oil & Gas industry
and worked for various
other companies, including
Vetco Gray and Great
Lakes Dredge & Doc. He
has a Bachelor of Science
Ramez Sabet in Ocean Engineering from
Texas A&M University, where he won second
place for the construction of a human-powered
submarine for the international submarine race.
Ramez is the Business Manager for the UK.
He joined the Epsom team from Houston in
December.
Dave was born in Aberdeen,
Scotland and, after his
education in Aberdeen,
began his working career
with Cameron Iron
Works in their Aberdeen
aftermarket facility. This
involved working offshore
Dave Kennedy as a Service Engineer in the
installation, repair care and maintenance of the
products that they supplied. Cameron provides
high-quality products such as Blowout Preventers
and Drilling equipment, Surface Wellheads and
Christmas Trees as well as Subsea Systems
(wellheads, trees, controls, manifolds, etc.) and
he was involved in all of these products with
their customers. Dave has spent time in various
sales and management roles in London, Houston
and Norway, and his last position was the Vice
President of Sales and Marketing for Cameron’s
Subsea Systems group.
‘The opportunity with DeepSea arose and I was
impressed with the personnel and their vision of
where they need to be in several years’ time and was
happy to be part of that team going forward. I have
been impressed with the level of expertise as well as
the “nimble” approach that is lacking in many major
corporations. I have been welcomed into DeepSea
and I have really enjoyed working with this team.’

Going south for charity

and working in Dubai. The last three years of his
career have been spent within the Subsea Industry
with Technip and Nautronix, dealing directly with
the North Sea Operators, Installation Contractors Huge congratulations go out to Michael Smith, This year, DeepSea’s charity will be The Isabelle
and Drilling Contractors. who ran the 2007 Antarctica Marathon last year. Hopkins Infantile Refsum Trust. The trust aims to
Craig started working for DeepSea as Business With everyone’s help he managed to raise around raise money for two specific areas. In conjunction
Development Manager North Sea in December. £1,417 for the Shooting Star Children’s Hospice in with Chase, Isabelle’s Trust will establish a lending
‘My first few months with DeepSea have been Hampton, DeepSea’s Charity for 2007. service of specialist and sensory equipment for
very enjoyable and I already feel like part of the   families with severely disabled children. The trust
team.’ Much of Craig’s spare time is spent coaching Shooting Star House Children’s Hospice provides will also be used for medical research and Pre-
football as a qualified SFA youth coach. care and support to children and young people implementation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD). More
living with life-limiting conditions and their families. information is available at www.trustisabelle.com.
With 10 children’s bedrooms, six family rooms and
Lara joined DeepSea’s
facilities, including The Hydrotherapy Pool & Spa,
Business Development
the Sensory Room and wet and dry play areas, they
team in January as Business
offer a “home from home” environment to families
Manager and is based in
who find themselves in the most unimaginable
the Houston office. She
circumstances. With no current long-term statutory
has gained useful skills
government funding, the £2.5 million required
in marketing and sales,
each year to run the hospice comes from charitable
working in a range of
Lara Zsohar voluntary donations and fundraising.
companies including KBR.
 
Lara studied at Texas A&M University, where she
During a visit to the hospice last November, two
received a Bachelor’s Degree in civil engineering.
employees of DeepSea had a first-hand view
Following university she went to Brown & Root,
of the differences everyone’s contributions help
where she got an Engineer in Training (EIT). This
to make. The donations also fund the staff at the
gave her invaluable experience in the engineering
hospice, which does a great job of creating a warm
world, including engineering design, construction
and homely environment under such difficult
management, project controls and business
circumstances.
development.
  Michael Smith runs across freezing beaches
DOT, Houston, stand 332, 12-14th Feb • SSTB, Galveston, stand 4,
DIARY 3-5th Mar • MCE, Paris, stand 931, 8-10th Apr • OTC, Mark Dixon
in the Antartica Marathon
D AT E S presenting, 5-8th May • DOT, Perth, stand 300, 3-5th December

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