In October 2009 four semi trailers left Hisøy, Norway heading for Russia. On board; 250 surveillance cameras, 36 racks with high tech gear and 55 kilometres of cable. The date for the transport was not picked at random; the semi-trailers were entering an area where any transportation must be done while permafrost is guaranteed, but before the cold and snow will render driving impossible. - The area has no roads so without the permafrost the ground is a muddy affair. In December in turn the average temperature is minus 58,3 °C and usually snow lays deep, so there was no incentive to wait either. Thus the vehicles containing the lion’s share of the delivery left at the turn of the month October. Project Manager Mr. Erlend Eidem travelled to St. Petersburg to receive the goods.
HERNIS' largest contract to date!
Managing Director Mr. Egil Norman Olsen elaborates: «The delivery to the Siberian tundra has resulted in a growth for HERNIS, in a year in which economic turbulence would otherwise have meant a flat year by year for the company. The order makes a great contribution to the company’s annual turnover of approximately 300 million in 2009. In the offshore sector the demand has been stable. For contracts in the marine sector 2009 has been a modest year as few ships have been contracted, but we have been able to compensate by our increased activity onshore as laid down in our strategy».
Unique technical solutions
The Vankor field was opened this fall by the Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. The 550 kilometre long pipeline going from North to South will carry the oil from the field to the Russian East-West pipeline. The technical solutions are unique; A huge number of cameras will be in operation. Moreover the communication to the operations terminal will partly go via Satellite and land based radio links. The main purpose of the CCTV system will be to reveal leakages, frost damages and shutdowns. Thermal cameras enable detection of sudden changes in temperature in the targeted installations. Remote monitoring via Satellite involves a comprehensive software package. The project has been a challenge for our Information and Communication development engineers, says Mr. Olsen.
In addition to the CCTV system supplied by HERNIS, the Russians will be making weekly inspections of the installations by helicopter, to make sure everything is in good order. These areas are vulnerable to human interference and the environment is a key concern. For the Russians, as for HERNIS this is a matter of prestige.
The sub supplier IMS in Risør, Norway, has helped HERNIS produce the central rack for the surveillance systems destined for Russia. Extra storage capacity is required to store 30 days of recording which was a criterion in the project.
HERNIS has previously delivered CCTV systems to an offshore, landing and LNG terminal at the Sakhalin peninsula in Russia 6-7 years ago and also to Lukoil’s first arctic offshore terminal. HERNIS has also supplied CCTV equipment in the Caspian Sea.
Awarded the Order of Merit from St. Petersburg Maritime Assembly
On September 23. 2009 HERNIS Area Sales Manager for Russia, Mr. Gaute Mørland received the Order of Merit from St. Petersburg Maritime Assembly. Presenting the award was the Honorary Consulate General of Monaco in St. Petersburg and Chairmen of St. Petersburg Maritime Assembly Mr. Nicolay Vladimirovich Orlov. The award is a recognition of Mr. Mørland’s continuous work to promote cooperation between Russian and international industry as well as encouraging Russian domestic alliances. Gaute has been responsible for the Russian market for almost 15 years. In 2009 his perseverance and hard work was rewarded when we negotiated the contract with Russia’s government-owned oil company for HERNIS’ largest contract to date; the CCTV surveillance of the Vankor terminals, refineries, pump stations, maintenance stations and 550km pipeline. Mr. Mørland is himself from Arendal, but his wife Jelena is Estonian with Russian as first foreign language and this has stimulated Mr. Mørland’s interest in the Russian language, culture and ways, qualities that have been very useful in his latest achievements.