Q&A

Steven Thrasher, joined Ashtead Technology in 2017 as Regional Director for the Americas so has experienced much of the company’s evolution over recent years. In this article, Steven discusses Ashtead Technology’s growth in the Americas region and how through an enhanced service capability across our three service lines and continual investment in our people and equipment, we now serve as a fully integrated technology and services provider for our customers’ subsea technology requirements.

Discuss Ashtead Technology’s evolution in the Americas region

Traditionally recognised as a subsea equipment rental business, our capabilities and offering have evolved significantly over the years. Through organic growth and acquisition, we have bolstered our expertise to enable us to deliver a broader range of technologies and solutions to support our customers’ IMR and decommissioning requirements across the offshore energy sector.

For our survey & robotics service line, we have invested significantly in our fleet so continue to hold a dominant market position for the provision of subsea equipment rental solutions and packaged services. Our mechanical solutions service line has experienced the greatest growth particularly in the provision of ROV tooling, dredging and cutting work scopes as well as the delivery of bespoke engineering solutions leveraging our in-house design, engineering, machining and fabrication capability. Throughout our growth however, we have remained agile and responsive and pride ourselves on our quality-first approach and commitment to operational excellence. This is what continues to set us apart from the competition and ensures we remain at the forefront of what we do.

Share some of the recent projects delivered by the Americas team

A really interesting project involved the recent delivery of a subsea remediation scope for a global energy operator which saw us modify some of our existing cutting equipment to remove some faulty subsea connector pieces on subsea trees that were experiencing some technical difficulty. Using our in-house capability, under critical path, we were able to quickly modify the gripper arms, some of the hydraulic controls and drive motor to run a special blade, making it capable to fit in a particularly tight space and cut an extremely hard material. Ashtead Technology was a clear front-runner for this project based on our speed of response and ability to quickly and effectively engineer a new solution to solve this unique operational requirement.

Another project, delivered by our asset integrity team this time, involved the creation of an accurate 3D model of certain members of a jacket to determine the amount of marine growth. Using three different technologies we were able to capture data to enable the creation of a digital 3D model of the fixed platform using our ROV3Di camera system for the mudline, a NORBIT iWBMS multibeam sonar for the water surface, and a NORBIT Lidar laser for the above the water data capture.

Discuss the biggest opportunities for growth in your region

Shifting the perception about our offering is a definite opportunity through making customers aware of the depth and breadth of capability within our portfolio including our in-house engineering, machining and fabrication capability as well as on-site calibration services as part of our asset management offering.

The offshore renewables sector also presents a huge opportunity for our business. Offshore wind is America’s next major energy source, representing a generational opportunity to create jobs and bolster the economy.

Offshore renewable energy has become an important part of Ashtead Technology’s business now accounting for a significant proportion of our Group revenue. We have a growing track record in the delivery of offshore wind projects utilising our skilled people and their wealth of subsea operations expertise together with our equipment and facilities to deliver best in class, cost effective offshore wind farm installation and operations solutions.

What’s next for Ashtead Technology in the Americas?

Doing more of what we do well is key to our growth so we remain the first point of contact when a customer is faced with an operational challenge. We are also committed to ongoing investment in our facilities, people and equipment in support of the above and to meet the demand for our technologies and services across the offshore energy sector. As a progressive, technology-driven business, innovation is at the heart of what we do and integral to our growth strategy. We are continuing to work with industry partners and the supply chain to support the development of new technologies and methodologies, playing our part in the global drive to improve efficiency, reduce cost and safety risk and minimise carbon impact.