HIMA, independent provider of solutions for safety-critical applications, which is delivering safety systems for the Ichthys LNG project has said that global coordination and local collaboration are crucial for huge energy projects
The company said that the massive Australian LNG project operated by INPEX requires expertise to deliver safety systems as part of complex, multifaceted development.
“Our scope on Ichthys is much more than just safety systems,” said Dieter Specht, project director for HIMA. “We have worked for several years to synchronise all the steps necessary to ensure safe operations and a successful start-up. In the process, we’ve functioned on a tight time schedule with multiple companies across national borders and cultural differences.”
Scheduled for start-up in the third quarter of 2017, the joint venture megaproject is forecasted to produce 8.9mn tonnes of LNG yearly.
Projects of Ichthys’ size and complexity also call for partners and suppliers to work globally. To meet that demand, HIMA offices in Singapore, China (Shanghai), South Korea (Geoje), Dubai (UAE), Australia (Perth) and Germany (Bruehl) have collaborated closely. Project management is coordinated from Bruehl, while most day-to-day work with fellow project suppliers takes place in Singapore.
Functional safety expertise is an important factor in HIMA’s project approach. The company is applying the principles of IEC 61511 in designing and testing the systems. “We have the expertise and project coordination skills that are valued by operators of all sizes of energy projects,” said Specht.
Along with safety instrumented systems (SIS), fire and gas (F&G) systems and high-integrity pressure protection systems (HIPPS), HIMA is providing 430 control cabinets and related connections. A pre-FID project for developing standard applications, design and testing was supplied in advance to the main contract. Additionally, cyber security and network management for associated hardware and components such as smoke detectors in employee living accommodations are part of the scope.
Since the award of the project, Ichthys consortium partner Total awarded two additional FPSO projects to HIMA to provide safety applications.
