Vol. 226 No. 12

Rig Floor Equipment

New system offers simpler, safer approach to running tubulars

BJ Tubular Services introduced the Top-Drive Casing Alignment Tool (T-CAT) this year, a new system that offers a simpler, safer approach to running tubulars. The tool allows a technician to run tubulars without stabbing board operations.

The T-CAT does away with the need to carry out hazardous stabbing board operations.

Tubulars are made-up directly on the rig floor. From there, a technician can use the T-CAT to pick up the tubular from the catwalk. The operator then positions the string and makes it up in the rotary. No stabber is needed, and the operation occurs from the rig floor. The tool can handle casing of any size and most casing can be run directly from the drillfloor, minimizing manual casing handling. The tool is easily rigged up and down.

BJ used the tool to run tubulars for Talisman Energy (UK) Ltd from the floor of the Sedco 714 semisubmersible in the North Sea. “The system proved to be reliable when running 13-3/8-in. buttress casing in marginal weather conditions. A casing-running technician ran the operation remotely. This eliminated the need for a stabber making for a less hazardous operation. “Running rates were good, especially given the type of connection and weather conditions,” said Fraser Tavendale, drilling superintendent of Sedco 714 for Talisman Energy.

The system offers a number of benefits. “In addition to the fact that the T-CAT does away with the need to carry out hazardous stabbing board operations, just one technician is required to operate the T-CAT remotely from the rig floor. This means that personnel are always well out of harm’s way, which improves safety standards,” said Les Mason, sales and operations manager for BJ Tubular Services. “We designed the T-CAT to keep tubular handling to a minimum, and to manipulate the tubular with great care. As a result, the tubular is much less likely to be damaged, preventing costly repairs down the road.”