To meet client requirements, Decom designed and manufactured in-house the TRACS-16 (Twin Recovery & Cutting System), which can cut and recover pipelines up to 20 m in length and up to 16” diameter.
The cutting specialist is currently engaged on a £1.5 million 120-day campaign offshore Western Australia and has deployed TRACS-16 on a work scope involving the cutting of up to 15km of subsea flowline.
Already, the new tool is proving its worth with the initial performance recording cycle times of less than 9 minutes, individual cuts averaging as fast as 4 minutes 30 seconds, and achieving 38 cuts per blade.
The TRACS-16 is an advanced combined lifting beam and cutting tool, which is crane deployable and capable of recovering pipe sections and returning them to a vessel deck or relocating them to a subsea basket.
It has a Safe Working Load of 16Te and is equipped with a one-pipe grab at each end of the lifting beam, which can be relocated on the beam to accommodate different lengths. The tool also includes ROV grab bars at both ends and near the hot stab panel, ensuring easy positioning and stabilization by the ROV.
The quick-connect system allows for seamless attachment and detachment of Decom’s C1-16 Chopsaw, which comes with a 1,040 mm blade capable of making precise cuts through pipes up to 16” in diameter. This system also allows for quick and safe blade changes to be carried out in under five minutes on deck.
Decom Engineering managing director, Nick McNally, said: “We devised TRACS-16 for an existing client which is a global marine and subsea services provider, and based on the successful outcome of this campaign we plan to roll out the technology to other international clients.
“As the main cutting contractor on the successful Phase 1 of this project in early 2025, we worked rigorously with our end client to take the lessons learnt and come back with this improved method to save vessel time and ultimately on project costs.
“The initial results on TRACS-16’s inaugural outing offshore Australia are very encouraging, and this level of efficiency is exactly how we help operators minimize vessel time and keep complex decommissioning projects on track.
“This all-in-one modular system combines cutting, lifting, and recovery of pipelines and flowlines, and replaces the need for two or three separate tools on the seabed. It is fully customizable and delivers maximum efficiency and significant time and cost savings in offshore operations.”
Reduced vessel time and operational costs and improved operational safety were major drivers in designing TRACS-16, which can be operated by ROV or a topside power control package, said Decom.
The tool is suitable for rigid and flexible pipelines and risers and single and bundled pipelines.
Nick McNally added: “TRACS-16 means clients engaged in subsea infrastructure decommissioning can cut and recover with confidence. It strengthens our portfolio of versatile cutting tools and adds a new lifting option to our service offering—maintaining our tradition of responding to clients’ needs with innovative and cost-effective solutions.”
Australia and the Asia Pacific regions are important markets for UK-based Decom, which has previously completed decommissioning projects in the Bass Strait and the Northwest Shelf in Australia.
