An Open Letter to the Offshore Oil and Gas Companies

From One Old Diver:

John Carl Roat

 

 

Well here we after two hurricanes plowing through the GOM and you can’t get a Dive Boat, let alone a Dive Crew.  And how the hell did the Coast Guard take that vessel you had a long term contract on and give it to your competition?  All the sudden you are using contractors that in NO WAY fit your safety standards.  You better ask yourself if the guy they call a Dive Supervisor can read tables. While you’re at it maybe you should check a few dive logs. What experience do your divers have?

 

My friends your short sightedness, dare I say cheapness, built the Commercial Diving part of this industry.  You never took the time or money to make sure what you might need underwater would be there when you needed it.  Take a deep breath; this is not going to be easy or cheap. If you’re smart, you will at least come out the back side of this with a few healthy Commercial Diving Companies that can service all your needs. What follows is a short list of what I would recommend.

 

First: Do not allow people to die on your job. We are all short handed and trying to do too much with too little: Make sure no one is hurt or killed!  DO NOT PRESSURE YOUR CONTRACTORS.

 

Second: Start following your own rules before you try to foist silly rules on your Diving contractors.

 

Third: Take a look at what Devon Energy did in just one area, Training. They actually pay the diving company that can qualify people to their Burning Standard.  Oh my God an Oil Company paying for practical training.

 

Fourth: Make sure some NEW Dive Vessels, Four Point, DP and Lay and Bury Barges are built and put in service over the next few years.  All you have right now is a lot of old boats and barges that you have been riding hard and putting away wet for to many years.

 

Fifth: If you are a member of IMCA explain to them:

A) That you can not take a written test that proves you can work underwater.

 

B) That Diver Training should cover such things as Burning, Jet Sled Setting, Rigging, Live Boating, Hand Jetting and not floodable volumes of a container.

 

C) Contrary to what IMCA may want, there are no machines that can do what needs doing now.

 

D) Quit writing stupid rules that none of their members follow.

 

Sixth: If you or your contractors are ADC members tell them to get effective or get out of the way. While IMCA never saw a stupid regulation they didn’t like, the ADC never saw a good one they do.

 

In short what is needed is long term LEADERSHIP, not short term profit.

 

Responses:

John as I am in Trinidad and unable to use my outlook express I will attempt to address your latest comments regarding ADC and IMCA. I agree with all you said. Its time all contractors and ADC along with IMCA look to taking care of the guy on the end of the hose. Good safety has 1% rules and 99% common sense. Its time the engineers and oil companies learned that. I really do applaud Devon Energy and Dean Whitacker for doing the right thing and getting divers trained. If more energy companies paid divers and tenders to get the training for their projects there would be less problems with the in-experienced hands out there. Also the so-called ADC qualification cards would be more accepted. Because the training would be there.
Keep up the good work and you be sure and be safe
From another old diver
Fred A. (Andy) Hartley
 

 

What do you think? click here to email Roat I will do my best to answer any response to the things I say. That is, if you put your name and e-mail address with it. If there is no name and e-mail address, I won’t post your e-mail and I won’t respond.  If you just want to let everyone know how you fell about what I say, without putting your name on it, post it on the discussion board. Dive Safe and Profitable John Carl Roat