Diving Equipment Systems Inspection Guidance Note (DESIGN) for Hyperbaric Rescue Unit Life Support Packages

Version history

March 2024 Rev. 0.1 – Update of Page 2, bookmarking, reference links and layout; no change to content

2021 – Initial publication

Section 16 of IMCA D024 Rev. 2 was used as the basis for the preparation of IMCA D063

Summary

In the early 1980s, in order to give some guidance to the offshore industry, IMCA’s predecessor the Association of Offshore Diving Contractors (AODC) started to produce a number of reference documents, standards and guidance notes. This process continued through the 1980s. It was clear, however, that there was still considerable confusion with some diving systems being ‘audited’ several times a year by different clients, each of whose representatives had slightly different interpretations as to what was required.

AODC published document reference AODC 052 – Diving Equipment Systems Inspection Guidance Note (DESIGN) – in February 1989 that sought to clarify any interpretations necessary and to identify a common standard that could be applied by all parties during an inspection. It was intended for use offshore in the UK sector of the North Sea but in the absence of other guidance it became a standard reference in many parts of the world, particularly where there were no specific national regulations.

Subsequently AODC expanded and revised the document which was re-issued as Rev. 1 in February 1995. This more comprehensive document covered both air and saturation diving systems. It was still based on the requirements of the UK sector of the North Sea but was adopted by many clients and diving contractors world-wide. Some users, however, found it to be complex and difficult to use.

With the increasingly international nature of the offshore diving industry, IMCA revised AODC 052 Rev. 1 in order to simplify it, clarify any anomalies which had shown up and adapt it for international use, rather than restrict it to North Sea use. It was also decided to split it into separate documents, one for surface diving IMCA D023 DESIGN for surface orientated (air) diving systems, published 2000, and the other for saturation diving IMCA D024 DESIGN for saturation (bell) diving systems, published 2001. Subsequently documents were issued in 2006 for surface supplied mixed gas diving IMCA D037 DESIGN for surface supplied mixed gas diving systems and for mobile/portable surface supplied diving IMCA D040 DESIGN for mobile/portable surface supplied systems.

In 2014 a further DESIGN document for hyperbaric rescue facilities – IMCA D053 DESIGN for the hyperbaric reception facility (HRF) forming part of a hyperbaric evacuation system (HES) – was published.

IMCA D024 for saturation diving systems was revised and updated in March 2013. At that time, it was recognised that it was no longer adequate to simply have a small section in this document to cover hyperbaric evacuation.

IMCA D024 was revised again in 2014. That revision included sections for the hyperbaric rescue unit (HRU), its launch system and its interfaces with the saturation diving system as well as the life support package (LSP). However, it was recognised that any hyperbaric reception facility (HRF) forming part of the hyperbaric evacuation system (HES) would be likely to be in a different physical location to the equipment covered by IMCA D024 and would thus need a separate DESIGN document. This led to the publication of IMCA D053 in 2014.

It has now also been recognised that the HRU LSP will be in a different physical location to the equipment covered by IMCA D024. Therefore, the relevant section of IMCA D024 has been removed and used as the basis for the preparation of this new separate document DESIGN for Hyperbaric Rescue Unit Life Support Packages (IMCA D063).

IMCA DESIGN documents are periodically updated to clarify any anomalies and bring the guidance into alignment with the latest industry good practice.

Contents

• Part 1 – Guidance
  • Introduction
  • List of Acronyms
  • The Competent Person
  • Responsibilities
  • Planned Maintenance Systems (PMS)
  • Key Features of this Document
  • Completing the Document
  • References

• Part 2 – Detail Sheets