Top 5 Engineering and Construction Project Considerations for Oil and Gas Facilities

The dependence on the Oil & Gas industry is increasing because global economies rely heavily on petroleum-based products. And, to provide maximum assistance, the Oil & Gas facilities need to operate at the highest productivity and safety levels.

However, such a facility comprises a complex structure of piping, equipment, buildings, and more. Therefore, the civil infrastructure is built according to the construction standards for such plants.

Civil Construction Considerations for the Oil & Gas Sector

A successful civil construction needs a proactive, detail-diligent approach from dedicated teams. Let’s look at the key considerations to build a safe and expandable infrastructure for Oil & Gas facilities with minimum disruption.

1. Location:

The location of the Oil & Gas facility can affect the construction as different geographic regions have different challenges. For instance, a dry, rocky soil needs a different foundation work than wet, soft ground.

Moreover, the environment and seismic activities are different across regions, which can halt the work during severe conditions. Therefore, the plant location must offer reduction in production costs with the considerations of regional situations.

2. Facility Size and Complexity:

Larger plants require more human resources, heavy materials, process units, equipment, and more compared to smaller facilities. Also, the production capacity of the plant and future expansion possibilities play a crucial role in designing and fabricating the Oil & Gas facility.

Therefore, you must analyze and define your project size, production requirements, and future growth plans before opting the plant design engineering.

3. Site Layout and Preparation:

Plant designers and contractors should blueprint the process units and ancillary structures by considering future expansion. They must locate the hazardous units at safe distances from the other facilities. Toward this, tools like CAD helps to create 3D models of physical facilities to study and modify the design and layouts.

A few additional consideration while planning Oil & Gas facilities:

• Transportation models such as pipelines, roads, and more
• Residential buildings for workers
• Warehouses, fire stations, and other emergency services
• Canteens and other amenity buildings

Besides, before the construction phase, unwanted trees, bushes, rocks, or any other objects that can create obstruction should be removed.
Engineers should perform the excavation and erosion control measures to handle the problems from rain, wind, and other situations during the construction.

4. Subgrade Stabilization:

Engineers must perform subgrade stabilization on the soil where the Oil & Gas facility will get erected. Also, the local knowledge about the soil type is vital to select the right subgrade stabilization approach. It makes sure that the ground will not shift or sink, which can create dangerous situations, including a risk to human lives and irreparable damage to the infrastructure.

5. Deep Foundations:

It is vital to create a healthy, dependable deep foundation for the industrial structure of an Oil & Gas plant. A deep foundation provides strong resistance against natural disasters like earthquakes, and more. Besides, it ensures safe working conditions for the workforce. It minimizes the decline in workflow and halts due to structural problems. As a result, overall plant productivity increases.

For this, contractors must consider the soil type, load-bearing needs, and other factors to select piling. They should choose the right components such as pier shafts, driven piles, and more to provide added support to the foundation. Also, they should select the materials like steel, wood, and concrete as per the standards to ensure safety and reliability.

Apart from this, the budget and timeline for project completion are also crucial. Therefore, a well-planned approach helps with faster project completion by increasing workforce support, obtaining expensive advanced equipment and materials, and bringing field experts to make essential decisions during construction.

Conclusion

Megaprojects have become a new norm in the Oil & Gas sector. It is because the industry today is witnessing the demand for petroleum products more than twice the amount needed during the last decade. And, to meet this requirement, companies in this sphere need large engineering and construction projects for their facilities.

Toward this, civil and structural engineering design services from an experienced partner play a vital role in the development and implementation of Oil & Gas facilities. They shift the approach from old-fashioned physical drawings to effective use of advanced technologies. Thus, they provide you a competitive advantage while delivering a successful project to keep the facility safe and robust for years to come.