Revised Guidance on Shared Use of Survey Sensors

Two documents on the shared use of sensors have been revised and merged to form one document recently published by the International Marine Contractors Association as IMCA S023 Guidelines on the shared use of sensors for survey and positioning purposes.

The document reaches the conclusion that provided an appropriate and adequate risk assessment is undertaken and procedures to mitigate risks are in place using the guidance given in the new document, the shared use of sensors for different applications should not present any operational issues. Nevertheless, it is vitally important that vessel owners, operators, survey teams and DP system manufacturers work closely together when sensors are to be shared between DP and survey.

Two Documents Merged

The Guidance on the shared use of vessel sensors for DP and survey purposes was originally prepared by IMCA in 2005 and 2007 respectively by a workgroup consisting of members of the IMCA Offshore Survey Division Management Committee. Two documents were published separately as IMCA S009 Guidelines for the shared use of DGPS for DP and survey operations and IMCA S010 Guidelines for the shared use of sensors for DP and survey operations. The purpose of the documents was to provide guidance in highlighting the risks associated with sharing vessel DP sensors for survey operations and to provide guidance on developing procedures to mitigate those risks.

In 2014, the IMCA Offshore Survey Division Management Committee started a revision of the two documents, and it was agreed at that time that they should be merged to form one common document. The new 26-page IMCA S023 is the result.

The new publication can be downloaded free of charge from the IMCA website by members and non-members.