Offshore staff

DUNDEE, UK – Iron Ocean, the Oil & Gas Innovation Centre (OGIC), and Heriot-Watt University in Scotland have developed a prototype of a new offshore survival system.

Centurion 3 comprises a three-layer upper body garment that generates heat when immersed in cold water. It is designed to be worn under the traditional offshore survival suit.

The three-layers are said to be tear-resistant, fire-retardant and compression-fit, making the garment less bulky and restrictive than traditional suits and giving the wearer greater mobility and protection.

Current garments worn under the survival suit do not provide active heating, and immersion into the cold waters of the North Sea, for instance, is said to lead the wearer’s body temperature to decrease rapidly, with an estimated life expectancy of 10-12 minutes.

However, the newly developed material in the Centurion 3 immediately activates when in contact with water, producing a heat output above the average body temperature for more than 20 minutes.

Iron Ocean has collaborated with Heriot-Watt University’s schools of Engineering and Physical Sciences and Textiles and Design, with the latter developing smart materials for incorporation into Centurion 3.

Simon Lamont, Iron Ocean’s founder, devised the initial concept of the new garment in 2009 following the 2009 Super Puma helicopter crash transporting personnel from BP’s Miller platform in the UK central North Sea. Sixteen people were killed.

The development involved two phases of research co-funded by OGIC. The first focused on the water-triggered heat-generating materials and the second on the heat-storage material was further developed for use within the prototype Centurion 3 garments.

Matt Abraham, Oil & Gas UK’s supply chain and HSE director, said: “We are encouraged by the development of this cutting-edge technology for industry which has the potential to save lives in an emergency scenario.”

01/18/2019