Baker Hughes Co. has successfully launched engageSubsea remote, a new service for remote HSE inspections, the Houston-based energy technology company said Dec. 17.

An extension of the engageSubsea platform, engageSubsea remote serves as an equipment inspection tool, technical support and operational management platform, and is designed to drive operational excellence and increase capital productivity for offshore oil and gas operators.

As operators are under increasing pressure to cut costs, reduce rig time and downtime, while improving efficiency and ensuring the continued safety of their operations, Baker Hughes said engageSubsea enables users to manage equipment portfolio more effectively and efficiently to help address these issues.

For example, the company said first deployment of the engageSubsea remote service saw time to first-time fix improve by 80%, while resolution time improved by 69%, with an overage cost savings of 50%. Further, as a result of reduced travel and site visits, carbon emissions were also reduced by 22%.

“We understand our customers’ challenges,” Ben Linke, vice president of services and offshore, oilfield equipment at Baker Hughes, said in a statement. “This sector is under constant pressure to improve performance and reduce costs, but of course safety must always remain the top priority.”

The Baker Hughes release also noted that COVID-19 has significantly magnified this pressure by tightening operator budgets further while limiting travel and site visits during lockdown.

“That’s why we developed engageSubsea remote, which is especially valuable in the current environment where travel and site visits are restricted, but inspection work remains critical, engageSubsea can help to bridge that gap while also improving operator efficiency and lowering their carbon footprint,” Linke continued.

engageSubsea remote joins the Subsea Connect suite of technologies. The platform can be utilized in any location, both onshore and offshore, even with a low bandwidth connection. From the live status of offshore activity planning, to remote management of asset maintenance and sustainability management, engageSubsea remote has been designed to improve all aspects of an operator’s inspection process. It is further used to support offshore operations and allows remote support and technical support when required.

“Ultimately, this solution is about optimizing offshore operations and reducing unnecessary exposure to risk—whether the pre-existing hazards of offshore work or the current pandemic,” Linke added.

engageSubsea remote has already been proven in live deployments, including customer sites in the Norwegian Continental Shelf, offshore operations and Baker Hughes services facilities around the globe. In its company release, Baker Hughes said it is expanding its use of engageSubsea in additional locations and for further use cases.

Offshore