DNV’s technology qualification differs from typical third-party services such as classification, certification, and verification, which basically confirm that the technology is in compliance with specified codes and procedures. Qualification, however, is defined as the process of providing the evidence that the technology will function within specific limits with an acceptable level of confidence.

Usually, a new or improved technology can either enable a project to be realized or it can enhance its value. Either way the developer has to build the operator’s confidence in the technology. Further, the operator needs to ensure that the other stakeholders in the project also are confident before a decision to implement the technology can be taken. This requires a systematic risk-based qualification process that clearly documents the performance of the technology.

Unfortunately, qualification of new technology developments is often done as an afterthought and does not provide the evidence that the technology will function as intended. Failure modes and mechanisms may not have been systematically identified by multi-disciplinary teams and appropriately risk ranked. Large expensive tests are performed without a clear understanding of what failure modes the technology simulates and how close it is to the failure envelope. Neither is the simulated operating condition representative of the actual operating condition. The use of analytical models is rarely used to predict many of the failure mechanisms. These are some of the issues that prevent the end user from gaining the required confidence in a technology.