MTL develops app for FPSO lightship weight management

Feb. 18, 2022
Marine Technical Limits is offering its PYXIS Lightship technology to help FPSO owners manage the lightship weight of their vessels.

Offshore staff

KINTORE, UKMarine Technical Limits (MTL) is offering its PYXIS Lightship technology to help FPSO owners manage the lightship weight of their vessels.

The new application (app) is said to facilitate this process in a structured and controlled manner.  

A vessel’s lightship weight of refers to the fixed, non-removable items adding to the weight of the asset, including steel, machinery, and outfitting.

Many FPSOs have been in operation for long periods of time, and the additional lightship weight can be substantial. It is therefore important to ensure the vessel’s stability, safety, and compliance with relevant regulations.  

Ian Stewart, Lead Naval Architect at MTL, said the application “helps organizations manage lightship weight in a smarter digital way. Currently throughout the industry the deadweight of a vessel (variable weights - oil, fuel, cargo, people) is managed closely on a continuous basis with onboard stability software.

“However, the lightship weight is regularly managed and maintained offline in a basic log, such as a spreadsheet or similar document. Often the spreadsheets used to capture the data for the lightship weight on an FPSOs are dated, have poor version control and are susceptible to human error.

“This can mean coordinates and weight specific information is misinterpreted or inaccurate leading to increased risk.”   

PYXIS Lightship manages, catalogues, maintains and records all appropriate information digitally within the app, MTL said, so that lightship information is always readily available.

02/18/2022