Breathing space

Jamie Elliot, manager of Stork Technical Services’ breathing apparatus department, calls them “exotic environments” — storage tanks, platform legs and other spaces where maintenance or remediation requires workers, often laden with heavy gear, to negotiate tight passages or compete for space with piping and other utilities, often covered in oil residue or rust.

“It’s not a nice, clean room or an empty space,” Elliot says of the interior of a North Sea platform leg, where the company has been carrying out maintenance work.

Much of Stork’s maintenance work takes place in spaces like this, which often require long treks and vertical climbs using ropes and ladders to reach the work site. Safety precautions call for a back-up air delivery system in the event of a main air supply system failure.

Hc Technology

Breathing space