physics

OREDA

OREDA is a physics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand OREDA rather than just read about it. In short: The Offshore and Onshore Reliability Data (OREDA) project was established in 1981 in cooperation with the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (now Petroleum Safety Authority Norway). It is "one of the main reliability data sources for the oil and gas industry" and considered "a unique data source on failure rates, failure mode distribution and repair times for equipment used in the offshore and onshore industry.

Key takeaways

OREDA belongs to physics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect OREDA to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of OREDA from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Offshore and Onshore Reliability Data (OREDA) project was established in 1981 in cooperation with the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (now Petroleum Safety Authority Norway). It is "one of the main reliability data sources for the oil and gas industry" and considered "a unique data source on failure rates, failure mode distribution and repair times for equipment used in the offshore and onshore industry. OREDA's original objective was the collection of petroleum industry safety equipment reliability data. The current organization, as a cooperating group of several energy companies, was established in 1983, and at the same time the scope of OREDA was extended to cover reliability data from a wide range of equipment used in oil and gas exploration and production (E&P). OREDA primarily covers offshore topside and subsea equipment, but does also include some onshore E&P, and some downstream equipment as well. The main objective of the OREDA project is to contribute to an improved safety and cost-effectiveness in design and operation of oil and gas E&P facilities, through collection and analysis of maintenance and operational data, establishment of a high quality reliability database, and exchange of reliability, availability, maintenance and safety (RAMS) technology among the participating companies.

History Work on the OREDA project proceeds in phases spanning 2–3 years. Handbooks summarizing the data collected and other work completed were issued regularly.

Phase I (1983–1985)The primary activity during this phase was the collection and compilation of offshore drilling installations, and the publication of these data in the first OREDA Handbook. This demonstrated the ability of the eight petroleum industry companies involved in the project to cooperate on safety issues. While data in this initial phase included a wide range of equipment types, the level of detail was not as complete as in later phases of the project. Data collected in this phase are published in the OREDA Handbook (1984 edition); Phase I data are not, however, included in the OREDA database. Phase II (1987–1990)To improve data quality, the project's scope was altered to include collection of production-critical equipment data only. Data began to be stored in a Windows OS database. The development of a tailor-made data collection and analysis program, the OREDA software, was begun. Data collected in this phase are published in the OREDA Handbook (1992 edition), which also contains re-published data collected in phase I. Phase III (1990–1992)The number of equipment categories included was increased, and more data on maintenance programs were collected. Data quality was improved following established "Guidelines for Data Collection" and via improved quality control. The user interface of the OREDA software was improved, and programming changes allowed it to be used as a broader-purpose tool for data collection. Data collected in this phase are published in the OREDA Handbook (1997 edition). Phase IV (1993–1996)New software for data collection and analysis was developed, plus specific software and procedures for automatic data import and conversion. Data collected were mainly for the same equipment classes as in phase III, and the data collection was — to a greater extent than previously — carried out by the companies themselves. Data on planned maintenance were also included. Data collected in this phase are published in the OREDA Handbook (2002 edition). Phase V (1997–2000)New classes of equipment were added to the project, coinciding with a greater emphasis on the collection of subsea data. Development of a new ISO standard, "Petroleum and natural gas industries — Collection and exchange of reliability and maintenance data for equipment" was begun; ISO standard 14224 was issued in July 1999. Data collected in this phase are published in the OREDA Handbook (2002 edition). Phase VI (2000–2001)Data collection on subsea equipment and new equipment classes were prioritised. A forum for co-operation between major subsea equipment manufacturers was formed. Data collected in this phase are published in the OREDA Handbook (2009 edition).

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with OREDA

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what OREDA claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In physics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to OREDA before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about OREDA ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of OREDA

In research: OREDA appears in physics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses OREDA in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: OREDA is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Energy economics, International energy organizations, Organizations established in 1981, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for OREDA outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study OREDA in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what OREDA means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain OREDA out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is OREDA in simple terms?

Why does OREDA matter?

Because it connects several physics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study OREDA?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on OREDA.