April 20, 2012. Samuel Valero
High Potential Business
The offshore access industry is developing in a rapid pace. This is mainly due to the oil discoveries near Brazil and the move to more sustainable forms of energy generation of countries all over the world. Therefore, the industry might look attractive to start a firm in. However, in order to truly succeed in this industry, you will need to take into account some factors. This article will tell you what to do.
Conservative Market
The clients of this industry are relatively conservative. Especially the offshore oil & gas sector is hard to convince. This industry, for example, still sticks to the helicopter as offshore access method, although it has been proven that the differentiated offshore access system is much safer and cheaper. Therefore, you will need a well-functioning sales team and it is a good idea to try to build a network with common clients like Shell and Wintershall.
Offshore Safety
The biggest priority of clients in this industry is offshore safety. If accidents occur on sea, this can lead to injured personnel or even casualties. This will cause severe reputation damage for the company in question, so providing a reliable and stable offshore access solution is a crucial key to succeed in this business.
Skilled Personnel
The most advanced and safe offshore access method currently is the differentiated offshore access system (OAS). This system has six hydraulic legs that will compensate wave motions with the same technology used in flight simulators. Moreover, the system comprises of an extendable gangway that truly makes offshore access as easy as crossing the street.
However, in order to construct such systems, you will need skilled personnel with specialized knowledge. This is because one minor error could lead to a disaster offshore. Moreover, you will need experienced personnel when transferring the personnel of your client.
Investments
Providing offshore access is not cheap. The cheapest offshore access method, the helicopter, will cost you around 175,000 US Dollars. However, this is also the most outdated solution and it is expected that the helicopter will lose market share soon.
The differentiated offshore access system will cost you around one million euro’s solely for material expenses. However, these systems will last for years and they can be either sold or leased. The offshore access system is highly recommended, when you are just starting a firm in the offshore access industry, because it is expected that in the future, this will be the main way of offshore transport.
Updated April 20, 2012. Published October 19, 2011. Samuel Valero
