2. Introduction

The PDEF project started in May 2019 under the lead sponsorship of Total. Nineteen other oil and gas industry leaders joined forces, ranging from operators, EPCI contractors, manufacturers, and service companies.

Together, the Partners and Participants developed the PDEF data interchange format.

2.1. Context

The common observation made by the partners was that all the engineering required for the design, construction and operation of a subsea pipeline requires a wide range of software. These includes design tools, construction specifications, fabrication and installation records, inspection database and more. Therefore, at some point all the parameters that describe a pipeline are stored and used as electronic data in the context of one or several activities. However, the input and output of those activities are generally exchanged under the form of electronic document, typically portable document format (pdf).

To exchange data between individuals or departments within a company, or between companies, the use of report with data that need to be manually copied and typed into computer programs was the only viable option at the time.

This included the transfer of data at the beginning and end of a project phase between clients and contractors, but also to and from manufacturers and subcontractors or other project stakeholders. This approach was identified as a significant improvement opportunity in terms of cost, time, and quality.

As the industry is inevitably stepping towards digital transformation of their work processes, structuring of the data is a requirement faced by all. In addition, diverging data structure will create the need to re-process the data to a mutually acceptable format at each interface point. To avoid this situation, to share the effort and accelerate digital transformation, the PDEF collaborative initiative was proposed, with the objective to agree on an industry-wide common interchange format that encompass all the data that defines and is used to design, build, and operate subsea pipelines.

2.2. Purpose

The initiative serves a dual purpose.

  • it simplifies the exchange of data between parties at different stages of the project.

  • it creates the condition required for the development of new tools and services using the PDEF data interchange format, for example in the area of design calculation or data hosting and collaborative platforms.

Both ultimately lead to the creation of new added value and to schedule and cost savings in projects.

2.3. Objective

The objective of PDEF is to collaboratively agree and define an industry-wide common format that describes all the data that defines and is issued in the design, construction, and operation of a subsea pipeline to efficiently exchange data between the different parties involved in a project.

PDEF shall initially cover subsea pipelines but will eventually be extended to the whole pipeline system, including risers, spools, and jumpers and in-line structures.

PDEF shall be multi-disciplinary, including business domain such as operating data, line pipe, routing, metocean, geotechnical, fabrication, installation, etc.

PDEF shall set a specification and documentation describing the data format and structure. It shall be possible to check that a given dataset is compliant with the PDEF specification and can thus be provided to a partner.

PDEF is not a common database solution but simply the specification of a format for data exchange.

PDEF is not intended to replace all documents or serve the purpose of all applications using such data. It is an interchange format to enable smooth transfer of information between systems.

As the main objective of the initiative is data sharing, the PDEF specification and related documentation are in the public domain and can be used free of rights by the users.

2.5. Partners and Participants

The companies who partnered into the PDEF project are listed in alphabetical order in the table below. The representatives of those companies involved in the PDEF project are referred to as the participants.

PDEF Partners

Phase 1

Phase 2

Phase 3

2H

x

AkerSolutions

x

Allseas

x

BureauVeritas

x

DNV-GL

x

Doris

x

x

Exxon Mobil

x

x

Intecsea

x

McDermott

x

Penspen

x

x

Petrobras

x

Saipem

x

x

x

Shawcor

x

x

Shell

x

Subsea 7

x

x

x

TechnipFMC

x

x

x

Tenaris

x

x

Total

x

x

x

Vallourec

x

x

Wood

x

Woodside

x

x

Xodus

x

x

x

2.6. Abbreviations

Abbreviation

Definition

PDEF

Pipeline Data Exchange Format

JSON

JavaScript Object Notation

IETF

Internet Engineering Task Force

ECMA

initially, European Computer Manufacturers Association, now a trademark

EPSG

European Petroleum Survey Group

2.7. Development Programme

So far, PDEF spans over 3 phases.

2.7.1. Phase I

Phase I started in November 2019 and finished in December 2020:

  • The PDEF objectives and functional requirements were set,

  • The JSON-schema technology was selected,

  • The variables were gathered from all partners, and an initial list of business objects was developed.

  • The schema was split according to business domains: engineering, environment, fabrication, inspection, installation, manufacturing, operations and project info.

  • A schema validation web-based application was developed and published,

  • A first test of the engineering schema was performed by some Partners and Participants, as a proof of concept.

2.7.2. Phase II

Phase II started in March 2021 and ran till July 2022:

  • the PDEF specification was written and reviewed,

  • a new flatten version of the schema was developed,

  • a comprehensive documentation was prepared and peer reviewed,

  • further tests were conducted by the Partners and Participants, to have PDEF reaching a minimum viable product,

  • the schema validation web-based application was updated and re-published,

2.7.3. Phase III

Phase III started in September 2022 and ran till December 2023:

  • Unitary objects created during phase II were reviewed;

  • Relationships between objects were validated and nested objects were avoided when juged unnecessary;

  • a reduced flatten version of the schema was globally peer reviewed and validated;

  • the associated documentation and the schema web based application was updated and re-published.

  • the pdef schema reached the milestone of being ready for extended testing.

2.7.4. Topics Parked for possible further phases.

The following topics are to be postponed to a possible further phase:

  • Coordinate Reference Systems based on geodesic parameters not registered by EPSG.

  • Cladded and lined pipes, plastic lined pipes.

  • Other subsea infrastructure items other than pipelines.