American Bureau of Shipping and Akselos Advance Structural Digital Twin Technology for FPSO Units

The American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) and Akselos have successfully completed a technical assessment for structural digital twin technology, marking a significant advancement in its application for Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) units.

Akselos’ SPM software offers a high-fidelity, near real-time digital twin of the entire FPSO, integrating inspection records, metocean conditions, and cargo operations into a dynamic model. This provides operators with a continuous view of structural performance, enabling real-time monitoring, identification of stress concentrations, and on-demand fatigue analysis to support data-driven maintenance and risk-based inspections.

When combined with ABS’ Condition Manager and Eagle Twin inspection data management and condition tracking tools, the integrated suite can monitor real-time load and condition information within a digital twin framework, offering comprehensive life cycle support for offshore assets.

This collaborative effort builds on the longstanding partnership between Akselos and ABS, with joint digital twin deployments in Brazil’s Cessão Onerosa oil field. Akselos’ SPM software also seamlessly integrates with ABS’s Eagle Unified suite, providing operators with a unified platform for asset performance management and class compliance.

Enhancing Operational Efficiency and Safety

FPSOs are complex and capital-intensive assets, often required to operate well beyond their original design life. With increasing pressure to improve safety, extend asset life, and reduce costs, operators need advanced tools to understand and manage structural health in real time.

The data-driven approach facilitated by this technology can significantly improve operational cash flow by reducing inspection and maintenance costs by up to 33%, minimizing both planned and unplanned downtime, and enhancing safety by limiting human exposure in hazardous operational areas.

Ultimately, this approach unlocks substantial value by extending the life of FPSOs and avoiding production losses, amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars.

Industry Endorsement

Matt Tremblay, Senior Vice President, Global Offshore at ABS, emphasized the crucial role of high-fidelity digital twin technology in offshore structural integrity management. He stated, “By combining real-time operational data with advanced simulation, Akselos is enabling a more predictive and performance-based approach to asset management – fully aligned with the industry’s drive toward safer, more efficient operations.”

Claus Reimers, Chief Product and Technology Officer at Akselos, highlighted the robustness of their software and the growing momentum for digital transformation in offshore oil and gas. He added, “We enable operators to simulate the structural integrity of the entire FPSO in real time and at full fidelity – supporting smarter, safer decisions across the asset lifecycle.”

This collaboration between ABS and Akselos represents a significant step forward in leveraging digital twin technology for FPSO units, paving the way for enhanced operational efficiency, safety, and asset longevity in the offshore oil and gas industry.