Latest News, YEP
The Young Engineer Programme once again displayed its adaptability as for its June meeting it adopted a new format for the online presentation, and welcomed the host Trevor Osborne for a discussion on cathodic protection.
The former President of ICorr and Managing Director of Deepwater Corrosion Services, with over 40 years of experience in oil and gas, shared his knowledge and specialised understanding in the new look presentation.
The adapted format saw the usual three-hour presentation replaced with it being sent a week in advance to the delegates. Trevor talked about corrosion, and the importance of the Galvanic Series, types of CP, standards and their importance, testing and inspection, failures and Field Joint Coatings.
Among other talking points, Trevor highlighted how electrical isolation in cathodic protection offers three main benefits, as it restricts the required protective current to the surface of the primary structure to produce a uniform polarised level of protection. It also minimises stray DC current interference and prevents galvanic current between metallic structures.
It was the decision to send the presentation to delegates in advance that proved to be the biggest revelation of the evening though, as it allowed questions to be prepared for the following Q&A session, with answers fielded by Trevor and collated by Principal Engineer at INTECSEA, Anthony Setiadi.
The knowledge displayed in the questions showcased the level of understanding within the industry with many of the questions prompting detailed answers from Trevor that caused him to draw from much of his considerable experience in the industry.
“I was extremely encouraged by the response from all of our delegates,” said Trevor Osborne when reflecting on the evening’s presentation. “and it shows the incredible level of interest and knowledge that the young people have within the industry. The future is certainly bright.”
Latest News, YEP
ICorr’s Young Engineer Programme once again broke new ground as it held its first ever meeting online in May, for the reveal of its 2020 case study.
The grand surroundings of the Royal Over-Seas League might have been replaced with the homespun comforts of participants’ living rooms, but the content of the meeting remained as topical as ever with Steve Paterson from Arbeadie Consultants Ltd presenting the 2020 case study for the seven participating groups.
Focusing on an onshore titanium pipe corrosion failure, Steve described a scenario where several leaks were experienced in the piping at an onshore glycol desalination plant that required further investigation, giving the participants plenty to think about ahead of presenting their findings in November.
As an experienced technical expert with a deep knowledge of subsea engineering and corrosion management systems, Steve’s puzzling scenario ensured that the 32 participating young engineers – representing 19 companies, each with a wide and interesting variety of specialist backgrounds – had plenty to discuss on the evening.
The young engineer’s broad set of specialities include mechanical and materials engineering, welding, materials and more. These were all put to the test when discussing the desalination plant, which is used to periodically remove the salts from mono-ethylene glycol, used for hydration and corrosion control in gas pipelines from three offshore fields.
With the help of a mentor assigned to assist each group, the young engineers were posed with problems at the end of the presentation. These included proposing root causes for the defect, how to perform a corrosion risk assessment to determine if the plant is safe to operate, suggesting alternative materials, and identifying what mitigation options could be applied to prolong the service life of this section of the desalination plant, among others.
The YEP has been running for a number of years and delivers a technical competency framework that’s consistent with the Institute of Corrosion’s professional standards, to help prepare graduates for entry into the industry with a broad range of knowledge. As well as providing an opportunity to network with likeminded professionals, the programme also offers participants a stepping stone into the industry, and is the first stage in achieving MICorr and CEng status.
In what might be the first of many online meetings, the evening ran according to schedule, although participants and guests had to make their own tea and coffee during the scheduled break. Prior to that though they were entertained by Tim Evans, Caroline Allanach and Danny Burkle who offered a reflection on their 2018 winning case study.
Caroline and Danny discussed how they approached the case study and the fantastic resulting prize of a trip to the 2019 NACE Conference in Nashville, while Tim provided a critical assessment of their reaction and solution to the failure that occurred.
The case study was concluded by a series of questions and answers, before Trevor Osborne from Deepwater Corrosion Services brought the first ever online YEP meeting to a close with a message of thanks. The participants will attend four more lectures before reconvening in November to present their case study.
