DESIGN for mobile/portable surface supplied systems

Revision history

June 2024 Rev. 1.1 – Page 2, bookmarking and references updated; no change to content

July 2015 – Initial publication

Summary

In the early 1980s, in order to give some guidance to the offshore industry, IMCA’s predecessor the Association of Offshore Diving Contractors (AODC) started to produce a number of reference documents, standards and guidance notes. This process continued through the 1980s. It was clear, however, that there was still considerable confusion with some diving systems being ‘audited’ several times a year by different clients, each of whose representatives had slightly different interpretations as to what was required.

AODC published document reference AODC 052 – Diving Equipment Systems Inspection Guidance Note (DESIGN) in February 1989 that sought to clarify any interpretations necessary and to identify a common standard that could be applied by all parties during an inspection. It was intended for use offshore in the UK sector of the North Sea but in the absence of other guidance it became a standard reference in many parts of the world, particularly where there were no specific national regulations.

Subsequently AODC expanded and revised the document which was re-issued as Rev. 1 in February 1995. This more comprehensive document covered both air and saturation diving systems. It was still based on the requirements of the UK sector of the North Sea but was adopted by many clients and diving contractors world-wide. Some users, however, found it to be complex and difficult to use.

With the increasingly international nature of the offshore diving industry, IMCA revised AODC 052 Rev. 1 in order to simplify it, clarify any anomalies which had shown up and adapt it for international use, rather than restrict it to North Sea use. It was also decided to split it into separate documents, one for surface diving (IMCA D023 published 2000) and the other for saturation diving (IMCA D024 published 2001). Subsequently documents were issued in 2006 for surface supplied mixed gas diving (IMCA D037) and mobile/portable surface supplied diving (IMCA D040) and in 2014 for hyperbaric reception facilities (IMCA D053).

IMCA D024 for saturation diving systems was revised and updated to Rev. 1 in 2013 and to Rev. 2 in 2014. IMCA D023 was revised and updated to Rev. 1 in 2014.
This document is an adaptation of IMCA D023 modified to specifically cover mobile/portable surface supplied diving equipment.

Contents

Part 1 – Guidance

• Introduction
• List of Acronyms
• The Competent Person
• Responsibilities
• Planned Maintenance Systems (PMS)
• Key Features of this Document
• Completing the Document
• References

Part 2 – Detail Sheets

• Section 1 – General Safety
• Section 2 – Small Vessel
• Section 3 – Control Position
• Section 4 – Divers’ Umbilicals
• Section 5 – Divers’ Personal Equipment
• Section 6 – High Pressure Air and Gas Storage