IK Group, specialist in products and services for pipes and pipeline, has announced the 100th installation of its innovative AOGV (Add On Gate Valve) mechanical isolation tool.
Four years after its first deployment, the milestone comes after the Stavanger-headquartered company experienced an exponential rise in demand for the AOGV during the past 12 months, with a client list comprising several oil and gas supermajors and multinational NOCs.
“It’s about time this was invented!”: IK Group celebrates 100th AOGV installation
The only product of its kind, the AOGV creates a zero-energy zone, allowing inspection and maintenance work to be performed safely and efficiently whilst production is maintained. The gate valve can be assembled in pieces over any live flange pair, upstream or downstream.
Designed to ensure facility downtime is kept to a minimum and asset integrity is maintained, the obvious cost and time benefits inherent in the AOGV are further enhanced by the reduction in risk of emissions spillages, mitigating that risk as low as reasonably practicable.
Rune Sele, VP AOGV comments: “Having taken three years to reach 50 installations, the subsequent 50 have taken place in less than a year, across a range of international offshore and onshore locations. A robust order book is reflected by the fact that we have increased the AOGV team threefold since May 2021, and now operate an additional Polish workshop dedicated to the design and engineering of this transformative product.”
The AOGV was invented in 2016 by IK Group Principal Engineer, Kjetil Aamodt. Close customer relationships allowed him to benchmark the principle, before testing and refining the product.
He adds: “The AOGV concept is simple; so much so that one client told us: “it’s about time this was invented!” However, the development was far from straightforward and drew upon many existing IK Group capabilities, as well as feedback from several of the world’s largest production companies, in order to bring this product to the right level.
“Having been told that the time, cost and HSE benefits of AOGV deployment are addictive, I’m proud that we have reached the 100th installation, particularly as we know that the recent increase in its adoption is set to continue.”
In order to facilitate further international growth, IK Group is actively seeking partners to deliver AOGV’s unique services.
Issued on behalf of IK Group Worldwide by Creegan Communications. For further information, please contact rachel@creegancomms.com.
