Projects

Optimized Fire Safety of Offshore Structures (OFSOS)

Duration: 01.08.1992-30.11.1995 (40 months)

Coordination: Registro Italiano Navale

Partners: Instituto Superior Técnico, Germanischer Lloyd, Tecnomare S.p.A., Snamprogetti S.p.A., WS Atkins Engineering Sciences, Computational Safety and Reliability, ,AEA Petroleum Services, AGIP S.p.A.

Funding Entity: EU - Programa BRITE/EURAM

The main aim of the project has been the application of probabilistic principles in all aspects of fire safety assessment and design. This is reflected in the main results of the project which include a unified methodology for fire safety assessment combining Quantitative Risk Analysis and Structural Reliability Analysis techniques; a comprehensive methodology for reliability based design optimisation of passive fire protection; a suite of software modules assembled into the OFSOS software system; a comprehensive case studies on four existing offshore platforms and guidelines for use of the developed methodology in the fire safety assessment of offshore topsides. The results obtained are expected to be beneficial to designers, operators and certification authorities alike, as they provide a comprehensive capability for fire safety management in terms of identification and classification of dominant hazard sources and evaluation of their consequences for different platform types, so that actions can be taken to reduce these hazards or mitigate their consequences. From a technological point of view, the results of the OFSOS project can be applied to the topsides of various types of offshore structures such as jackets, semi-submersibles and Tension Leg Platforms. The methodology and the software can be used for the fire safety assessment and optimisation during the conceptual phase and the detailed design phase of a new platform or for an existing platform. Although significant benefits could be gained by the use of the OFSOS methodology form the conceptual stage itself, it is anticipated that immediate applications will be used in the reassessment and refurbishment of existing platforms as a result of the recent changes in fire safety regulations in the North Sea and elsewhere with the introduction of the Safety Case legislation by the HSE.

Project Team

Associated Publications