Bernie Wolford joins Diamond Offshore as President/CEO

Bernie G. Wolford Jr. has been named President and CEO at Diamond Offshore Drilling; he will also serve on the Board of Directors. Mr Wolford succeeds Marc Edwards, who retired in April after the company and its debtor affiliates emerged from their chapter 11 financial restructuring.

Mr Wolford brings 40 years of industry and related experience to his leadership role at Diamond. He served as the CEO of Pacific Drilling from November 2018 to April 2021. From 2010 to 2018, he served in senior operational roles at Noble Corp,  including five years as the company’s Senior VP – Operations. He began his career with Transworld Drilling Company in 1981 and has worked in numerous locations across the globe.

Lundin, Neodrill sign multi-year deal to use CAN-ductor

Neodrill has signed a frame agreement with Lundin Energy for the deployment of the CAN-ductor technology. The initial four-year agreement with two further two-year extensions covers unlimited units over a potential eight-year time frame.

CAN-ductor, assembled onshore and installed using a vessel, has demonstrated cost efficiency and minimized environmental impact. It features a suction anchor with one joint of conductor integrated and delivers top-hole support for exploration and production wells. Neodrill has installed 28 CANs since 2006. 

Siemens to provide turnkey package for Bacalhau project

Siemens Energy was recently selected by OneSubsea to provide a turnkey package for the Bacalhau field development project in the pre-salt region of the Santos Basin offshore Brazil. The scope of supply includes pressure and temperature sensors for the subsea production system, electrical distribution equipment, including flying leads, umbilical terminations, connectors for subsea modules and multi-leg harness assemblies. Manufacturing will jointly take place in the Siemens Energy Boemlo factory in Norway and the subsea connector factory in Ulverston, UK. Siemens Energy will also supply a variable frequency drive for the FPSO vessel. 

Installation and commissioning of the equipment are slated for 2022 and 2024.

Stena Drilling buys stake in digital lifting company   

Stena Drilling has acquired a 30% stake in Intebloc, a provider of digital lifting technology solutions. With Stena’s backing, Intebloc will accelerate its product development strategy. The investment will also enable Intebloc’s diversification into construction, renewables and the marine sector globally. Stena was an early adopter of Intebloc’s Rig-Ware solution, used for managing and tracking lifting equipment. The system was trialed on several Stena assets and is now being used by the entire fleet.

AFG Holdings expands with acquisition of Maass Flange

AFG Holdings has acquired Maass Flange Corp, the North American assets of Maass Global Group, including its businesses in Mexico and Canada. Maass Flange is the largest domestic manufacturing supplier of stainless and nickel alloy flanges in North America. The entity will be called Ameriforge. The acquisition includes all facilities in the Houston area, Canada and Mexico. Ameriforge can now offer products and capabilities across the spectrum of all forged products.

Robin Macmillan joins Data Gumbo’s executive team   

Data Gumbo recently expanded its executive team with the addition of Robin Macmillan as Chief Corporate Development Officer. Mr Macmillan has more than 40 years of experience in energy, with the last 12 years as VP and Senior VP for Business Development at NOV. He currently also serves as Division VP – Drilling Services for IADC.

Derrick upgrades shale shaker on Equinor platform 

Archer Ltd has again awarded Derrick and its distributor, Rotor Offshore, a shale shaker upgrade for an Equinor platform rig. The contract is for Dual Pool 626 Vapor Extraction shale shakers for the Visund platform in Norwegian North Sea. Derrick’s engineering team was able to adapt its standard design and accommodate space restrictions on the rig. This is the seventh shaker upgrade with Dual Pool 626 shaker on Equinor platform rigs.

Daemar becomes authorized distributor for Trelleborg 

Trelleborg Sealing Solutions has signed Daemar as an authorized Trelleborg distributor in the Northeast United States and Canada. This partnership combines Trelleborg products with Daemar’s sales and service expertise.

Seadrill names Grant Creed as CFO, Leif Nelson as COO

Seadrill has appointed Grant Creed as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Leif Nelson as Chief Operating Officer (COO), both effective immediately. Mr Creed was previously Chief Restructuring Officer, leading Seadrill’s capital restructuring. Mr Nelson, Seadrill’s current Chief Technology Officer, will now also serve as COO, a role he held previously. 

PRODUCTS

Wireless sensor network improves red zone management

Salunda Ltd is providing reliable and secure connectivity of critical systems, such as red zone management and real-time location applications, with its new Crew Hawk wireless sensor network. It can accommodate more than 5,000 ultra-low power sensors as part of a fully integrated wide area network, providing real-time location and monitoring of people and equipment operating in hazardous environments. 

It uses a patented wireless network, with wearable locators attached to crew PPE and compact mag-mounted equipment sensors to trigger personalized warnings and, ultimately, pause equipment to prevent a collision if a worker gets too close.

The system is ATEX and IECEx certified, and the technology can be upgraded with digital ranging cameras to provide an additional level of authorized work area access.  Crew Hawk may be integrated with machine vision to discriminate between authorized and unauthorized personnel and detect those workers that do not have wearable sensors.

The system is already operational on multiple rigs in the Gulf of Mexico and being rolled out across the global offshore oilfield drilling sector, including South America, Australia and Southeast Asia.

Cummins offers new Tier 4 final drilling module ratings

Cummins has announced four new EPA Tier 4 ratings for the QSK50 drilling power module (DPM). The company is now offering a new Tier 4 final QSK50 Drilling Power Module with two ratings at 1,200 rpm and two additional ratings at 1,800 rpm. The 1,200 rpm ratings are conservatively estimated to deliver the same life-to-overhaul as the K50 and QSK50-T2 engines. DPMs rated at 1,800 rpm provide greater flexibility for customers replacing a similar unit, or those needing higher output to drill through harder rock formations.

The QSK50 Tier 4 final engine uses the Cummins Modern Common Rail Fuel System (MCRS) technology to deliver four ratings from 1,500 bhp (1,119 kWm) at 1,200 rpm and 1,900 bhp (1417 kWm) at 1,800 rpm, while meeting US EPA Tier 4 final emissions standards. These engines are coupled with a form-wound alternator sized for drilling rig service, with electrical ratings from 1,000 kWe to 1,300 kWe at 60Hz.

Emerson launches compact UPS with wide temp range

Emerson has launched the SolaHD SDU AC-B Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS), combining a compact footprint (4.87 x11.1×4.81 in) with a wide operation temperature range (rated from 32° to 122°F). It also offers optional network communications supporting all major industrial protocols. The UPS bridges power failures during outages to allow for safe shutdowns of machinery and mitigates power quality issues that can affect critical loads.

Semi-automation of control line clamp installation

Ace Oil Tools has launched its new Ace Control Line Clamp (ACLC), which enables semi-automation during the installation of control line clamps. The need for workers in the red zone is reduced by 50%, and time spent in the red zone is reduced by 30%. It delivers a high axial and radial holding force of more than 40 tonnes and is partly pre-installed on the tubing. When running in hole, the retention lid is placed in the installation tool to catch the control line when the tool moves toward the tubing. The pre-installed parts can be fitted onshore or on the pipe deck and is based on the Ace Ratchet Collar.

New modules launched for Lloyd’s Register software

Lloyd’s Register has launched a suite of new modules and updates to its subsurface software packages IC and IP.  One of the new modules is Casing Inspection. It was introduced to IP, Lloyd’s Register’s subsurface interpretations software, and will seamlessly integrate mature well monitoring and abandonment into the platform, strengthen IP’s existing collection of cased-hole tools, improving insights across a well’s lifecycle. Two further modules will provide automated workflow benefits for users. IC, Lloyd’s Register’s well integration and visualization software, will benefit from an addition to produce more detailed correlations of the subsurface characteristics between wells and to make it easier to apply interactive interpretations. DC