Maritime operations benefit from accurate weather forecasts. Advance knowledge of the wind and wave conditions leads to safer, more efficient offshore operations, and potentially enormous cost savings.

Weather Forecasting Services

Fugro provides a complete marine weather forecasting service. Ranging from initial consultation for project planning to real-time forecast information and on-site forecasters for exploration drilling rigs, FPSOs, seismic and survey vessels, pipe-lay and construction barges, cable installation and repair vessels.

Services include:

• Highly accurate forecasts for the world's oceans.
• 3 or 5 day-ahead, site-specific offshore weather forecasts.
• 7 day-ahead weather trends for planning purposes.
• Forecasts delivered by telephone, facsimile, Inmarsat, e-mail, or via our password-protected web pages (www.marineforecast.net).
• A typical forecast would include a general synopsis and any warnings (gale, hurricane, etc); a summary of the wind, seas, swell, existing weather and forecast weather; and an outlook for the appropriate period for wind, sea and swell. These are supported by graphics that can include wave, swell and wind speed time series and meteorological maps for the forecast area.

• Additional parameters and graphics can be provided to suit the specific requirements of any operation.
• Other specialised forecast services for offshore operations include:
  • Squall Warning Forecasts
  • Spectral Swell Energy Predictions
  • Offshore Safety Forecasts
• Consultation with experienced forecasters 24-hours a day to answer forecast queries or to provide greater interpretation of site-specific weather patterns and subsequent sea conditions.
• On-site meteorologists dedicated to preparing the forecasts, monitoring the associated weather conditions and providing on-site consultation for operation planning (development of Typhoon Evacuation Procedures, attendance at pre-spud and pre-tow meetings, and providing specialised advice during cyclone approach or sensitive offshore operations).
• Detailed desk studies for clients requiring meteorological and oceanographic hindcast data: expert analysis and supply of historical wind and wave data for operational planning, weather downtime statistics, rig selection, mooring analysis, and weather-sensitive offshore installation operations.
• Offices operational 24-hours a day, 365 days per year.

The Weather Forecasting Team

The experienced forecasting team consists of over twenty staff in four offices (Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Abu Dhabi and Wallingford). Together, they have vast and wide-ranging practical experience of marine projects in the Atlantic Region, North, Caspian and Mediterranean Seas; the Arabian Gulf, Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal region; and South East Asia. This detailed regional knowledge is essential for the high levels of accuracy required offshore.

The experience is backed up by the latest rapid data acquisition and assimilation techniques that use regional sub-models to provide accurate wind, wave and swell predictions. These make use of data from a variety of sources:

• Data buoys, terrestrial radar, satellite wind/wave and recorded observations.
• High-resolution global atmospheric and wave model data from both US Navy and NOAA global modelling suites.
• Real-time high-resolution geostationary and polar-orbiting satellite imagery from high resolution MTSAT, Meteosat 8 digital satellite, and NOAA weather satellites.
• All available synoptic and upper-level actual and GTS (Global Telecommunications System) bulletins, using the latest high-speed communication methods.