Offshore engineering projects exist in some of the most extreme environments in the world. Their success is a testament to the innovation of offshore structural engineers. Specialized and advanced software is critical to delivering the most reliable and accurate designs. While conventional structural design software serves admirably on land, offshore projects required a more tailored approach. Here are the top three reasons why offshore-specific structural design and analysis software is vital for the success of each offshore project.
Unique Challenges of Offshore Structures
Offshore structures face numerous challenges that distinguish them from their onshore counterparts. Engineers must consider material corrosion due to salt water, hydrostatic pressure from the ocean depths, extreme weather events, and shifting soil when designing fixed platforms, piles, and FPSOs. Depending on geography, the remote locations of offshore structures add additional logistical challenges for installation and maintenance. Offshore-specific software, such as SACS, is equipped to address these unique challenges, offering specialized features that conventional structural software may lack.
Complexity of Environmental Factors
Offshore structures are subjected to harsh environmental forces that threaten the structural integrity and lifespan of each floating or fixed platform. Wind, waves, and currents produce large lateral forces on an offshore structure which can control many aspects of the structural design. However, these forces can be incredibly complex with both linear and non-linear wave kinematics, integrated current and wave hydrodynamic models, and velocity-dependent drag coefficients. As a solution to these forces, SACS automatically generates environmental loading from simple user input like wave height, period, and wave theory or wind variation profiles and reference wind speed. These simplified input methods ensure that engineers can spend less time defining loads and more time analyzing and designing their platform.
Regulatory Compliance and Standards
Offshore projects are subject to stringent international standards and regulations to ensure the safety and reliability of structures. SACS is designed by and for structural engineers and is updated regularly to comply with industry-specific codes and standards. It can accurately predict the behavior of an offshore structure with comprehensive analyses and fully compliant offshore-specific design codes, ensure the validity of the design, and enable engineers to design structures that meet or exceed the required safety criteria, reducing the risk of structural failure.
Learn more about how SACS can provide the capabilities that you need to quickly model, analyze, and design offshore structures for reduced engineering time and material costs.
