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Lightning Eliminators & Consultants (LEC) offers lightning-protection systems for offshore plantforms and rigs, with a unique 'no-strike' guarantee. Lightning protection for the offshore industry Offshore rigs and platforms are thought of as 'grounded' in the ocean. However, the environment, and even the design of the facility itself, may lead to a compromise in bonding, with rust and oil deposits that impede the energy's path to ground. This leaves the advanced electrical and electronic systems and personnel susceptible to severe damage, not only from direct strikes but also from dangerous secondary surge effects of lightning. When it comes to threatening the offshore community, thermodynamic processes typically start near shore and can evolve into open water events. As a result of continuing changes to our climate, lightning events are becoming more frequent, more severe and stronger. Many upstream companies, such as Transocean, Chevron, Texaco, ExxonMobil and BP, are trying to tackle the issue of how to stay online and not compromise productivity or safety during increased instances of bad weather, and are beginning to implement comprehensive lightning-protection systems in line with risk mitigation best practices. Preventing offshore structures from lightning strikes Lightning protection best practices for the offshore sector include: Assess vulnerability to determine proper solutions Improve level of safety for the workforce Protect vessels against direct strikes and secondary surges Reduce downtime and associated costs Extend facility life through preventative measures During 2012, solutions for nearly a dozen companies' offshore platforms and rigs were produced in the waters off the coasts of Africa, the Middle East and parts of Europe, Asia and Latin America, following vulnerability studies based on IEC and NFPA guidelines and standards. Many included dissipation array systems (DAS) to halt and prevent costly effects of a lightning strike. The DAS prevents lightning strikes in an 'area of protection' by discouraging the attachment process of lightning, rather than attracting it to the area as in older lightning rod systems designed to collect the strike. LEC's market-leading experience and knowledge has guided the evolution of the system, which retains a 99.87% reliability rate, leading the company to provide a unique no-strike guarantee. Surge-protection devices for offshore platforms and oil rigs It's not just about direct strikes. Protecting sophisticated equipment and significant investments from secondary surges that wreak havoc on electrical instrumentation and equipment after the event is becoming a bigger topic in the energy production industry. With every upgrade in technology, sensitive systems are becoming more vulnerable, including dynamic positioning (DP), drilling instrumentation and control, and other rig management systems essential to staying online. Determining the mean-time-between-failure (MTBF) for sensitive systems is a challenging task, much more difficult than simply calculating the raw dollars lost through obvious damage and downtime. As systems become smarter and more efficient, they are also more intricate and vulnerable. The voltage required to run the instrumentation controls decreases and the risk of a high-energy secondary surge damaging equipment and affecting the operations on a rig or platform increases. In the end, it could cost $20,000-$60,000 per hour or more when a system is down, and that does not include the replacement costs of the equipment affected. Protecting a vessel from lightning strikes also protects the systems that would otherwise have lost a considerable part of their lifespans. With the uncertainty of the world economy, many companies look to LEC for its cost-effective protection as a way to extend the lives of older vessels and become more risk averse with new construction. Risk assessments for offshore lightning strikes Not every case is the same, so LEC starts with a risk assessment to determine the level of vulnerability the rig or platform faces based on IEC and NFPA guidelines and standards. LEC engineers interview key rig / platform technical personnel, review schematics and wiring diagrams for crucial components, and inspect in-situ grounding practices. LEC's site surveys provide sound reasoning for the proposal offered, as each one is tailored to the needs of the rig or platform in question. Some rigs may only need surge-protection devices (SPD), which have become critical to protecting power distribution and low-voltage instrumentation and control. Other rigs and platforms may need a no-strike system to provide security against lightning strikes on the helipad, drill derrick or jack-up legs. Consulting services and surge-protection devices LEC's consulting services include: Site surveys, risk assessment and design LEC's lightning-protection systems include: DAS Spline ball ionizer (SBI) Spline ball terminal (SBT) LEC's SPDs include: Facility guard (FG200 and FG400): panel-mounted surge-protection capacity up to 400,000A per phase Power DIN PD-65: transient voltage surge-suppression device for DIN rail applications DLP DIN 8: hybrid surge protector in a low-cost, compact, eight-circuit enclosure Data line protector (DLP): for all types of data lines, instrument lines, phone lines, current loops and DC circuits