The role and use of expert systems for offshore assets on the Norwegian continental shelf: status quo and value creating measures

Abstract

The ultimate goal of collaborative operating environments is value creation. All over the world, Expert Systems (ES) are being employed by various industrial sectors to foster this value creation process. Subsequently, what this project sought to do was to examine the current role and use of expert systems for value creation in the Norwegian offshore oil and gas industry through asset management, and more specifically maintenance. Through literature reviews and vendor surveys, we were able to establish that the Norwegian industry closely mimics the global O&G industry in its adoption and use of expert systems technology. This portion of the report also suggests that the lack of widespread adoption within maintenance is a contributory factor to the proliferation of preventive maintenance strategies on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. In the final analysis, we also highlight a possible relationship between the use of expert systems and value creation which we were able to observe through a questionnaire assessment of five maintenance support systems. With this report, we would like to initiate a process that would help solve the biggest challenge that hinders the adoption and use of expert systems, i.e. lack of knowledge and thorough understanding.