N E W S   A R T I C L E   article reproduced by kind permission of Engineering Magazine www.engineeringnet.co.uk

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May 2005
Furmanite International is calling for ‘joined up thinking’ to build in long-term operational cost savings at an earlier stage in the plant or platform lifecycle, by recognising what are traditionally seen as remedial maintenance services in preventative measure terms.

At a time of expanding activity in the offshore oil and gas sector around the world, new build activity - be it platforms, pipelines, or processing facilities - is rife. But how high a priority are long term maintenance considerations at construction stage? The answer is not high enough, according to Mike Tucker, business development manager for Furmanite, worldwide experts in the field of on-site and on-line plant and pipeline maintenance. “Asset maintenance and management costs can be significantly affected by decisions taken at design and construction stage, yet because plant construction or expansion is a capital expenditure, whereas n-going maintenance is an operating cost, there is insufficient joined-up thinking by many operators or asset managers to maximise on the considerable benefits and cost-savings available,” Tucker claims.