News Releases
REGISTER FOR UDT 2012 TODAY!
16/5/12.
Please see below SEA CON®‘s invitation for you to register for UDT from 29th to 31st May, 2012 in Elche, Spain. Just follow the links provided in the invitation and we look forward to seeing you there!
Please visit SEA CON®’s events page for more information and links to the show.
Precision Subsea AS, Company Up-date – April 2012
17/5/12.
After recently moving into new premises, SEACON® Precision Subsea AS has increased its capacity for handling jumper and harness systems.
Based in Notodden, Norway, this engineering and manufacturing facility allows SEA CON® to provide its customers with a quicker and more efficient product development capability for qualifying and factory acceptance testing of new products.
The new facility boasts 300 sqm of office space along with 700 sqm of workshop space. A fiber optic clean room and a pressure vessel with a 1 metre internal diameter and a 3 metre length and an operating pressure of 465 Bar are available on site, expanding the capabilities and products of SEACON® Precision Subsea AS.
As a result of this, all Precision’s datasheets have been up-dated to contain all the latest information and below shows a list of these newly revised datasheets with current rev statuses:
- PSAS-DS-0001 Company Overview Rev 2
- PSAS-DS-0002 Oil Filled Hose Rev 3
- PSAS-DS-0003 Subsea Jumper Assemblies Rev 2
- PSAS-DS-0004 SUTA Rev 2
- PSAS-DS-0005 Battery and Display Unit – BDU Rev 2
- PSAS-DS-0006 Moist Mate Connector Rev 2
- PSAS-DS-0007 8mm PBOF Hose Rev 2
For more information on SEACON® Precision Subsea AS new facility, please download this News Bulletin, alternatively please visit SEACON® Precision’s website www.precisionsubsea.no
SEACON Precision Subsea AS new contact details are as follows;
Precision Subsea AS,
Merdeveien 1,
Notodden 3676,
Norway
Tel: +47 350 19 811
Email: mail@precisionsubsea.no
International Ocean Systems Magazine, May/June 2012 Issue
15/5/12.
Download IOS Article – May/June, 2012 – Taking the Product to the Customer
Taking the product to the customer.
By Michael Mulcahy, president, Michael Mulcahy & Associates, Inc., Alexandria, Virginia, USA.
SEA CON®’s mobile connector display vehicle.
A supplier can provide information on its products to potential customers in many ways – including brochures, websites and catalogues – but many customers prefer to actually see and touch the product. This can be relatively easy to accomplish when the product range and/or samples are relatively small; however, when more than 40,000 different electrical connector configurations are involved, the challenge becomes daunting.
In March 1996, SEA CON® developed an innovative approach to reach its far-flung customer base. Rather than visiting customers with a few samples in a case, SEA CON® introduced its ‘connector display van’; the first of two consecutive vehicles operating over the last 16 years, each one a showroom on wheels with hundreds of different underwater connectors. The first van, which operated continuously from 1996-2005, showcased 15 SEA CON® connector product ranges, including the Metal Shell (MSS), Glass Reinforced Epoxy (GRE), MINI-CON and ALL-WET connector series.
The van concept offers a number of advantages over a static display, including the following:
Ability to connect with the 80-90% of engineers and other technical personnel who do not regularly attend trade shows, but who have input into OEM buying decisions.
- Mobility of the entire displayed product collection.
- Customer ability to see, touch and relate to connectors’ appearance and physical scale.
- Flexibility of interchanging displayed products on the fly.
- One-on-one discussion of alternative solutions to various customer applications and final configuration scenarios.
Display van at the Offshore Technology Conference
Operating out of its home base in Houston, Texas, in nine years of service the mobile showroom visited 35 US states, covering more than 160,000 miles (257,440 kilometres) and hosting more than 5000 visitors. Two stops in particular enabled reaching 50-80 visitors (four at a time) at a single location. In 2005, SEA CON®, after consuming three van engines, retired the original van and, in March 2006, introduced a new, updated mobile showroom, also operating out of Houston.
The new van could accommodate several hundred connectors in more than 20 SEA CON® product ranges. In five years of operation this second-generation van visited 42 states and British Columbia, Canada, traversed 140,000 miles (225,260 kilometres), and hosted thousands of visitors. Although the van executed its mission well, SEA CON®’s ever-expanding product range ultimately dictated that SEA CON® retrofit the van in 2011 to accommodate its latest products.
The 2012 version of SEA CON®’s display van contains nearly 1000 samples of the company’s connector products. Its wheels hit the road in March 2012, and an ambitious itinerary for this year has already begun.
More than 25 SEA CON® product ranges are now displayed in the van, including the following connector series:
- HUMMER
- MINI-CON (Optical and Electrical)
- WET-CON/Micro WET-CON
- OPTI-CON
- Metal Shell (MSS)
- 55 & 66 Series
- SEA MATE
- Glass-Sealed
- Glass-Reinforced Epoxy (GRE)
- HYDRALIGHT
- CM2000
SEA CON® Products
In addition, the van showcases some of the applications where SEA CON® products are used including:
- Blowout preventer (BOP) multiplex connectors and cables (electro-optical).
- Cable and connector series (underwater camera, light, sensor and inspection applications).
- MIL-SPEC systems.
- Downhole fibre optics.
- Proximity and limit switches.
- Towed array inserts and connectors.
One of SEA CON®‘s displays inside the vehicle
In each of its incarnations, the SEA CON® mobile product display vehicle has provided year-round coverage, with its itinerary set as much as possible to allow its physical presence at major offshore oil conferences in the US and Canada. The van annually visits all four quadrants of the US on a rotational basis, staffed by experienced SEA CON® personnel who conduct marketing presentations at each destination.
SEA CON®’s willingness to try a new, unconventional approach to the challenge of connecting with geographically dispersed current and prospective customers has paid off in terms of improved customer contact, communications and sales. The van’s configuration continues to reflect the latest developments in SEA CON®‘s product evolution.
Glen Pollock, SEA CON®‘s Gulf and Midwest sales manager
Glenn Pollock, SEA CON®‘s Gulf and Midwest sales manager and in-house expert on van operations and marketing, says that the ability to reach out to multiple influential visitors at each location and the inherent mobility of the vehicle have enabled the display van to pay for itself many times over.
Another Successful OTC for the SEA CON® Group
11/5/12.
SEA CON® would like to thank everyone who visited our stand during the recent OTC (Offshore Technology Conference) held at the Reliant Park in Houston, Texas, USA from 30th April to 3rd May, 2012.
The show was a great success with attendee numbers reaching 89,400, up 14% from last year. We would also like to thank all SEA CON® staff who attended the show and a special thank you goes to Glenn Pollock, SEA CON®’s Gulf & Midwest Sales Manager, for the impressive stand set-up and continued commitment to the show.
More photos of our booth will be available shortly.
SEA CON®’s HYDRALIGHT connector is now available as an APC (Angle-Polished Convex) connector.
2/5/12.
The HYDRALIGHT is a field proven, second generation underwater mateable, high integrity, fiber optic connector. It is an 8 channel device that facilitates underwater connection of optical fibers. The benefits of the HYDRALIGHT being available as an APC connector now means it has a higher return loss resulting in better performance.
APC (Angle Polished Convex) is also taken to mean Angled Physical Contact, but it still refers to the same method. The major physical difference between APC and UPC (Ultra Physical Contact) connectors is the endface geometry. The APC ferrule endface radius is polished at an 8° angle while UPC connectors are polished at a 0° angle. The significance of this 8° angle becomes apparent when addressing return loss issues. The more significant performance characteristic between APC and UPC connectors is their return loss. Return loss (RL) is a measurement of the light reflected back to the source at an optical interface. APC connectors are superior to UPC connectors in this performance category because of their angle-polished endface geometry. When light is reflected at the connector interface of a UPC connector, it is reflected straight back at the source, increasing the return loss value. However, when the same signal passes through the APC connector, the 8° angle causes the reflected light to be absorbed by the cladding material.
For more information the datasheet for this (SAPL-DS-0009 HYDRALIGHT – APC) can be found on the PRODUCT DATASHEETS page of SEA CON®’s website under the SEACON ADVANCED PRODUCTS heading.
SEA CON®’s Ultra Series was developed in response to the needs of both the offshore oil and renewable energy industries.
2/5/12.
It is a larger series than other SEA CON® connectors (the 30 is the smallest in the series) and suitable for high power. It has higher performance than our other connector ranges in terms of depth ratings, axial loading and is easier to produce in many varieties using just a few standard parts.
KEY FEATURES
- The number of the connector indicates its overall diameter (in tenths of inches) of the base connector pair. The Ultra 30 has a 3” overall diameter, the Ultra 45 has a 4.5” overall diameter and the Ultra 50 has a 5” overall diameter.
- “Moist Mate” self-wiping contacts.
- Simplified female contacts, 1 simple piece versus three piece high tolerance pieces as in current designs. Easy cleaning, no more hoods or multi-lams to hide grit or debris. Can be readily cleaned without worry of causing damage to the internals of the female contact.
- Male contact designed for multiple line contact when mated to female increasing current carrying capacity when compared to current designs of a similar diameter.
- Contact insertion and retention forces are controlled by the male contact, not the female contact.
- Contact insertion and retention forces can be restored if required in the field with adjustments to the male contact.
- All inserts are boot ready.
- 5 basic metal pieces make following connector configurations: BCR, FCR, Reverse mount FCR, CCR, CCP, and BCP.
- With the addition of a PBOF shell, all the previous become PBOF with the exception of the BCP.
- Using the same interface configuration, a stress core termination can be added to any of the above with the exception of the BCP.
- Torque ratings for mounting and engaging nut are engraved on the connectors (no need to hunt down a manual or data sheet).
- Simplified machining: only 2 internal o-ring groves, no snap ring grooves. All internal keys broached in a single operation.
- All customer serviceable o-rings are easily inspected and/or replaced with NO special tools.
- Fiber optic ready (tolerances for the connector interface were calculated for use as a fiber optic connector.
- No more special “V” versions to get the male contacts into the plug connector. The inserts are swappable between plug and receptacle.
DESIGN RATINGS
- 30,000ft depth (15,000 psi pressure rating mated).
- 10,000 psi open face pressure, forward or reverse, plug or receptacle.
- 100 amp current rating per contact.
- 4.4kVDC voltage rating.
MATERIALS
- 17-4 H1100 Stainless Steel.
For more information please download the
SEA CON® are exhibiting at the OTC (Offshore Technology Conference)
26/4/12.
SEA CON® are exhibiting at OTC (Offshore Technology Conference) being held at Houston, Texas, USA from the 30th April to the 3rd May, 2012 on Booth #5255. For more details about the show please follow the link via SEA CON®‘s event page.
Oceanology International 2012 a great success!
28/3/12.
SEACON (europe) Ltd recently exhibited at Oceanology International 2012 which was held at Excel, London Docklands, UK on 13th, 14th & 15th March.
The exhibition was a great success for the SEA CON® Group with visitor numbers to our booth up on 2010’s event. Due to the success of the show, plans are already in place for SEA CON® to exhibit at the 2014 event.
SUBSEA TIEBACK 2012
22/3/12.
SEA CON® would like to thank all customers old and new who visited our stand at the recent Subsea Tieback Forum held in Galveston, Texas, USA from 6th to 8th March, 2012. SEA CON® would also like to thank Pennwell, the organizers of this event, for a very successful show with attendance figures up on the previous two years with 2,770 people attending compared to 2,300 in 2011 and 2,600 in 2010.
Due to the nature of the show, much interest was shown in SEA CON®’s wet-mate electrical and fiber optic connectors. In particular SEA CON®’s new 24 channel HYDRALIGHT, which has been growing in popularity, was one of the main interests at the show as well as our standard 8 channel HYDRALIGHT in addition to our drilling MUX connectors.
For more pictures from the show please visit SEA CON®‘s Facebook page
www.facebook.com/seaconworldwide
MINI-CON Dummy Connector Enhancement
20/3/12.
As part of our continuous improvement process, the SEA CON® Group consistently reviews its product ranges through both customer feedback and internal improvements. It is via these processes that SEA CON® identified a design enhancement to the MINI-CON dry-mate connector range.
The design change is associated with the dummy connectors. With more and more customers requiring a lanyard attached to the dummy connectors to prevent loss, the DSP/DSR/PSP & PSR have been lengthened slightly and a groove added so that a lanyard can be wrapped around the groove and secured with a crimp fitting. Customers will be provided with a simple crimp fitting for use when attaching the other end of the wire to the cable or whatever equipment the customer chooses to use.
The up-graded design will become standard and available once existing stock of previous parts has been depleted. Dummies do not automatically come with lanyards, please specify at order placement.
For more information please download the MINI-CON Dummy Connector Flyer.