Rethinking Manufacturing for the Offshore Energy Industry

Traditional manufacturing methods are increasingly struggling to meet the demands of modern offshore energy operations. As costs rise, infrastructure ages, and environmental expectations intensify, the sector is under pressure to deliver critical assets faster, more efficiently, and with greater flexibility than legacy approaches allow.

In a feature for Offshore Magazine, published as part of OTC 2025, DEEP Manufacturing’s CEO, Peter Richards, argues that the offshore energy industry has reached a tipping point. Drawing on insights from industry roundtables held in Aberdeen and Abu Dhabi, the article explores why long lead times, material waste, and risk-averse procurement models are holding supply chains back and why emerging technologies such as Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM), sometimes called DED-Arc manufacturing, are now capable of addressing those challenges at industrial scale.

The piece examines the real barriers to adoption, from perceived financial risk to slow-moving standards and certification frameworks and explains why confidence - rather than technical capability - is now the missing ingredient. It also highlights how motivated operators, certification progress and proven large-scale deployments are accelerating change across offshore manufacturing.

Read the full article here (Offshore Magazine account required).