An additive manufacturing center for the oil and gas sector in Nigeria

Providing an essential Source Of energy for many industries, from transportation to heating, the oil and gas sector continues to play a major role in the National incomes of many producing countries. Among these nations is Nigeria. Africa’s largest economy, it is home to one of the continent’s most important energy sectors, with the presence of several oil and gas supermajors.

Despite record profits, they are nevertheless faced with the challenge of maintaining and repairing aging equipment, which is sometimes difficult to maintain due to the scarcity of spare parts. The difficulty lies in replacing obsolete parts that sometimes are no longer even manufactured, which can cause significant disruption to operations. And even when the parts are available, their production is often very time-consuming and expensive.

Through its freedom of design and its great agility, additive manufacturing therefore appears to be one of the most relevant solutions to resolve this problem. Of Chevron has Total, several big names in oil & gas have demonstrated the ability of 3D printing to solve maintenance problems. In this sector where speed of delivery is essential and the cost of parts is high, 3D printing indeed has a very good card to play.

As an example, let us cite the case of Vallourec, the French specialist in oil tubes. In 2022, to respond to an urgent request from an oil company called Weatherford relating to the realization lifting plugs, the French group had used 3D printing. Not only was the delivery on time, but well before operations began. Printed with a Vallourec WAAM robot located in Singapore, just a 6-hour flight from the end customer, the two parts reached their customer in less than 2 months instead of the usual 3 to 4 months.

This is where it was born RussellSmith, an industrial AM solutions provider based in West Africa. Headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria, this oilfield service company can boast of being the only organization qualified by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) to deploy industrial non-metallic additive manufacturing solutions in the petroleum industry and Nigerian gas company.

A few days ago, the company revealed a partnership with 3YOURMIND aiming to develop an additive manufacturing platform. Of German origin, this company, if you don’t know it, has become known for its automation software dedicated to additive manufacturing. This makes it easier to identify 3D printable parts and optimize the 3D printing workflow.

“There is significant potential to improve operational efficiencies in the oil and gas industry through additive manufacturing of existing parts”

RussellSmith says he will leverage this tool to identify viable additive manufacturing applications for the oil and gas industry. Once the parts have been identified for their technical compatibility and economic feasibility, it will use its expertise in design for additive manufacturing (DfAM) to optimize and produce them using additive technology. The optimized parts will then be added to the digital inventory interface powered by 3YOURMIND, allowing RusselSmith to streamline pricing, delivery and ordering operations for its customers.

As we know that 3YOURMIND recently joined Roboze 3D Parts, an additive manufacturing service created by Roboze, which an Italian manufacturer specializing in industrial 3D printers capable of processing high-performance polymers, this suggests that some of the parts produced with it could allow the replacement of metal parts. In addition, Roboze benefits from solid experience in this sector. In addition to leading the API 20T standardization committee, he successfully qualified several valve, pump or turbine components for large international operators, service companies and OEMS.

“ There is significant potential to improve operational efficiencies in the oil and gas industry through additive manufacturing of existing parts, and it all starts with the ability to identify viable parts across the industry and to determine the most efficient ways to manufacture these parts additively. » says Kayode Adeleke, CEO of RusselSmith. “ We are happy to partner with 3YOURMIND to improve our solutions, and we look forward to making a positive impact in the region together. »

Among the best-known clients to have already trusted 3YOURMIND, we can cite the SNCF. In 2021, the French National Railway Company formalized the use of its software to digitize its stocks. A solution which already at the time had enabled it to identify 10.3% of 3D printable parts out of more than 30,000 spare parts, but also to reduce its delivery times by 85%.

Passionate about 3D printing, I spread the word to democratize and open this technology to as many people as possible. News, applications, interviews… I work to demonstrate to individuals and professionals the full potential of this revolutionary tool. Companies, fablabs, distributors, associations, designers, I also want to create, through this site, emulation between the different players in this field.

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