An Aberdeenshire offshore environmental monitoring company has become the first in the world to bag a leading industry accreditation.
Blackburn-headquartered Nevis Technology has received the seal of approval from the Civil Aviation Authority for its Elements Helideck Monitoring System (Elements HMS).
The certification supports the company’s ambition to become the UK’s “leading provider” of offshore aviation weather systems.
Founded in December 2018, Nevis aims to combine software, technical and operational expertise, with its four directors boasting combined industry experience of more than 60 years.
It is currently pursuing “ambitious growth plans”, with goals to expand its current customer base, which includes the UK, Australia, Brazil, Dubai and West Africa.
Elements HMS is a cornerstone of its expansion strategy.
The system is targeted at moving offshore helidecks, of which there are more than 100 in the North Sea alone.
Fully developed in house, it displays information which is critical in helping pilots decide on whether it is safe to land.
Based on Nevis’ system for fixed helidecks, which is in use across the globe, Elements HMS is compliant with the latest CAP437 requirements – the rules came into force earlier this year.
Its features include helideck motion monitoring, on-deck relative wind monitoring and an output to drive helideck-mounted status lights.
Elements HMS is already up-and-running on several North Sea FPSOs, including Dana Petroleum’s Triton and Western Isles vessels.
And there are plans for further global deployments, scheduled throughout the year.
© Supplied by Prospect 13Phil Bellamy, Nevis’ software director, said: “The team has worked incredibly hard on the development of Elements HMS and I’m extremely proud of what we have achieved.
“Our system offers significant improvements aimed at improving safety across the offshore aviation sector and it feels great to directly contribute in this endeavour.”
Dr Athena Scaperdas, director of Air Ops Safety, which acted as an independent expert to oversee the system approval, added: “I have been impressed with the work of the team at Nevis.
“It was evident a lot of thought went into the design and testing of the Elements HMS system, and the team was committed to finding the best solution to fulfil the requirements of the new HMS standards.”
George Lolic, who oversaw the deployment of Elements HMS on Dana Petroleum’s Triton and Western Isles vessels earlier in the year, said: “The installation and commissioning of the new HMS system was carried out in a professional manner without interruption to helideck operations and the offshore and onshore training provided by Nevis allowed for a seamless transfer from the old to new systems.”