Live Round Table:
Cable Route Clearance
So Simple, What Could Possibly Go Wrong?
Route clearance is increasingly demanding as debris and disused out-of-service cables have to be removed to allow new ones to be installed.
Today, we have invited some industry experts around our table to openly discuss what can go wrong, and how to avoid some costly mistakes.
In this round table, you will discover valuable insights and practical solutions to apply to your role so you can navigate route clearance challenges with more preparation and ensure efficient clearance of a cable route.
What We Will Discuss with the Panel Experts
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How clearing a route for a new subsea cable has changed
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What could go wrong with route clearance and how can we mitigate the risk
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What are the main issues caused if buried cables remain in place
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Does pre-lay grapnel (PLGR) provide sufficient route clearance, or do we need to consider alternative methods
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Bonus: 15 minute Q&A at the end
You Will Also Discover
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How have seabed cables grown, and why do we need to remove those that are no longer in-service
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What part does seabed geology have to play in cable route clearance
Date & Time
Please reference the time below for your corresponding local time zone.
DATE: 19 January, 2024 (Friday)
TIME: 10:00-11:00 UK Time (GMT)
LOCATION: Join In Virtually Via Zoom
London, UK
10:00-11:00 (GMT)
19 January, 2024
(Friday)
Copenhagen, Denmark
11:00-12:00 (CET)
19 January, 2024
(Friday)
Taipei, Taiwan
18:00-19:00 (CST)
19 January, 2024
(Friday)
LIVE Q&A
Submit your questions before 17 Jan, 2024
There will be a 15 minute Q&A session towards the end. Please submit your questions in the registration form before 17 Jan, 2024.
Please note: We CANNOT guarantee that all questions will be answered, however submitting prior to the round table will help us prioritize them based on relevancy.
About the Route Clearance Specialist Course
Hear from RECOA's alumni
Gordon Foot, Offshore Client Representative
"Never take for granted what many perceive to be a ‘simple operation!’"
Ngọc Tú Nguyễn
"Highly recommended for engineers and managers in the industry who want to minimize risks, schedule and costs for their projects."
Your Host & Panel Experts
Over 100 years of combined experience
Chris Weaver
Senior Instructor, RECOA
Chris Weaver has more than 40 years of seagoing experience, since starting as a marine science student aboard a research vessel in the mid-1970s. His early career took him through the British Royal Navy as a seaman officer, later specializing as a hydrographic surveyor. He then worked on subsea projects for Shell, BP, Total, ENI, and other smaller oil & gas operators, before becoming a shipboard project manager for Alcatel Submarine Networks.
Between 2006 and 2016 Chris was employed in various West African oil field projects, managing offshore construction and maintenance work in Cote d’Ivoire, Gabon, and Ghana during the winter, and power cable installation at various European offshore wind farms during the summer months.
Chris became involved in training in 2014 when he designed the Renewables Offshore Client Representative course and presented it as classroom training in the UK over the following four years.
Dr. Jerry Brown
Director, Ocean Cables Ltd.
Dr. Jerry Brown is a chartered mechanical engineer, who enjoys working on the technical challenges encountered in the design, production and construction of submerged plant in subsea umbilical, telecom and power cable systems. He has more than 7 years experience in submerged plant specification, design, qualification testing and transfer to production, followed by 17 years experience of all aspects of marine operations, involving both office and international field work.
Dr. Jerry Brown has also published technical papers for Sub Optic Conferences. The last 6 years have been focused on the Oil & Gas Sector specialising in the manufacture of subsea umbilical cables, power cables, DNV approved offshore installation reels, subsea termination components & UTA's.
Lawrence Smith
Director, 6SConsult ICT Ltd.
Lawrence Smith is a seasoned expert in submarine cable systems with over 20 years of experience. In 2005, he founded the consultancy firm, 6SConsult ICT Limited and has exclusively worked on planning, construction and repair of submarine power cables associated with Offshore Wind Farms since 2010. Lawrence's background encompasses both a Bachelor's in Mechanical Engineering and an MBA, further strengthened by his membership in the Society of Underwater Technology and The Institute of Engineering and Technology. He has worked on failed array submarine power Cable systems interfacing with Cable Protection Systems (CPS) for the London Array and Dan Tysk OWF.
From tackling complex disputes involving export cables in the Irish Sea & English Channel to overseeing the construction of export cables for the LINCS, Humber Gateway, and Rampion OWF, Lawrence brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to the table, especially in navigating the current evolution towards larger-scale HVDC links and deeper waters.
Stuart Wilson
Cable Route Engineering and Survey Manager,
OceanIQ (part of the Global Marine Group)
Stuart joined Global Marine Group, a leading worldwide submarine cable installation and maintenance provider, almost 25 years ago. Following other roles across the business including managing the Group’s Atlantic Cable Maintenance Agreement contract, since 2009 he has led the Route Engineering and Survey team at OceanIQ, the Group’s subsea cable data, survey, route engineering, permitting and consultancy business.
Stuart is a specialist in the submarine cable industry with experience and qualifications in associated hydrographic survey, GIS and marine cable operations. Stuart has been involved in both telecoms and power cable projects worldwide with some recent projects of note being the R100 project with BT for 16 cables around Scotland, The NO-UK cable from Newcastle, UK to Stavanger, Norway, The Danish Kriegers Flak OWF in the Baltic, numerous short HVAC power interconnectors for SSEN and the Kincardine FOWF in Scotland.
About RECOA's Round Table
RECOA's Round Table events serve as an industry forum where industry experts with a minimum of 15 years' experience delve into specific industry topics relevant to today's landscape.
The format involves a 40-minute round table discussion featuring three key questions. Each question is addressed by three industry experts, who share their insight and opinions.
Following the round table, there will be a 15-minute live Q&A session where RECOA's host will present three questions from the audience. If there's a desire to delve deeper into the discussion or pose additional questions, participants can do so on RECOA's Professional Student Community. Here, the panelists will directly respond to queries and continue the conversation.