JFD wins HSE Innovation Award at the Offshore Achievement Awards

JFD, the world leading underwater capability provider serving the commercial and defence diving markets and part of James Fisher and Sons plc, is pleased to announce that its Compact Bailout Rebreathing Apparatus (COBRA) has won the Health, Safety and Environmental (HSE) Innovation category at the Offshore Achievement Awards 2020. The award celebrates an outstanding HSE technology, process or system, developed for the offshore oil and gas or renewables industry, and underlines JFD’s commitment to providing safe and effective capabilities for divers working in the world’s most challenging underwater environments.

The Offshore Achievement Awards, held virtually for the first time on Friday 14th August 2020, encourages innovation and collaboration in the oil and gas and renewables industry in the North Sea. COBRA was judged on several factors, including its contribution to individual, plant and operational safety.

Previously the industry standard for the provision of emergency breathing gas had been limited to just a few minutes, depending on the method employed and the diver’s operating conditions. This poses a significant risk, particularly when working in extreme conditions. Indeed, there have been incidents which have resulted in near-misses and could easily have become a fatality purely as a consequence of inadequate emergency breathing gas supply. It is a critical industry challenge that cannot go unanswered.

In line with this, and as a direct response to the urgent need to drive significant improvements in safety standards, JFD developed the COBRA rebreather set which provides an advanced emergency bailout provision that greatly extends the supply of emergency breathing gas, providing a supply of up to 33 minutes at a depth of 120 metres. COBRA is entirely mechanical with no complex electronic systems that could potentially compromise its safety and reliability. Compared to conventional bailout methods such as the 7 litre 300 bar twin scuba set, which at 120 metres provides seven and half minutes of breathing gas (based on a consumption rate of 40 litres per minute), the development of the advanced technology of COBRA is a significant step forward in improving subsea safety.

Danny Gray, Managing Director, JFD, said:

“We are extremely proud to win the HSE Innovation Award as part of the Offshore Achievement Awards 2020. The development of COBRA required an enormous team effort from design concept to production and we would like to thank the entire team for their hard work, passion and commitment. Winning this award is a testament to the dedication and expertise of our team in designing the COBRA set with the capability to ensure the highest levels of safety and subsequently give divers confidence that they can conduct their operations in the safest conditions possible.

“We remain unrelenting in our pursuit to drive up safety standards across the offshore industry, even in the face of significant economic pressure resulting from the drop in oil price and onset of COVID-19. With the 100th COBRA set delivered this month, and the recent news that COBRA’s Buoyancy Jacket has received CE Certification, we continue to push the boundaries of subsea diving innovation, aspiring to drive efficiencies as well as potentially saving lives in emergency situations.”

JFD operates at the forefront of innovation in subsea operations and, with its pedigree, market knowledge and understanding. JFD invests in the development of comprehensive technologies and services that continually break new ground in ensuring the highest standards in safety and quality in protecting life at sea.