Is rust the real Never-ending Story? Ask Anne Britt. We can tell you that she is fearless in tackling some of the most acute factors that affect the failure of subsea installations and pipelines.
Always gifted in math and science, she did her Bachelor’s in Material’s Technology. After writing her thesis on corrosion for her Master’s in Offshore Technology from the University of Stavanger, Anne Britt joined the Operations Technology unit at DNV in 2009. She is already involved in several projects where corrosion poses high risks to safety and the environment, including a pipeline lifetime extension project.
Anne Britt is also working on other projects such as analysing the structural integrity of free-fall lifeboats. Much of the work she is doing now will help DNV customers maximise the return on their investment as well as safeguard lives more effectively.
"About 27% of the failures in the offshore gas and oil industries in the North Sea are caused by corrosion. It’s hard to imagine, but the total direct and indirect costs of corrosion worldwide are estimated at $552 billion dollars a year." Now that’s a battle worth fighting. Where did this avid interest in resisting corrosion come from?
"Well, I think that growing up near Ålesund in northwest Norway and being a lover of the outdoors from
an early age, and more recently an interest in rock climbing, gave me an appreciation for what it takes to withstand the elements."
Hearing stories about equipment failing also impressed on her the importance of choosing the right materials for the job, rigorous maintenance programmes, and factoring in human error. Besides the opportunity to work collaboratively with industry leaders on new alloys and detection technologies, she was attracted to DNV because of the non-profit organisational structure.
Because DNV has no shareholders, they can commit more resources to research. "We focus on developing new technologies to protect lives and the environment, and that’s important to me. We don’t have to compromise ethical standards for profits – which means we can make a real difference – and that’s exciting."