Geir Fillip Haseth is a brave man. Every day, come sun, high winds or driving rain, he sails his small boat from Fræna to work at the Nyhamna gas processing plant on the far side of the fjord.
The plant receives natural gas from the Ormen Lange deep-water field 120 kilometres (75 miles) offshore, removes impurities from it, then pipes it to the UK, where it meets around 20% of the country’s gas needs.
Haseth’s choice of transport might be traditional, but his job developing new technologies is anything but.
“We combine our knowledge of operations and technology with a natural curiosity to constantly explore more efficient ways of doing things,” he says.
The scale of the operation, which sends up to 70 million cubic metres of gas a day to the UK, demands in-depth planning to safely and efficiently manage hundreds of people working across the site. When the gas plant was being expanded to receive gas from more fields, Haseth came up with the idea of connecting teams around the site using iPads and a new app to manage the task better.
“The app provides an overview of everything happening on site and highlights any potential conflicts,” says Haseth. “Staff on site update progress in real time using their iPads, improving accuracy, efficiency and safety.”
