About Abyss
Abyss provides asset integrity management software in the energy sector. Internal users (certified asset integrity engineers) virtually detect external corrosion on oil platform equipment. They do this using a 3D scanned representation of the oil platform with Image recognition and narrow AI aiding corrosion location. They report their findings to Mechanical integrity engineers (clients) via documentation and presentations who use this to prioritize equipment inspections with the goal to prevent failures.
Project Overview
I joined as their first Product designer with the task of designing version two of their program, Fabric. The focus was on ensuring the integrity of the insight service provided by internal users while isolating and incorporating the necessary features from the first version. I collaborated with a Product Manager, Product Owner, Tech lead, Machine Learning Lead, and 4 Developers. Key success metric: Improvement in the integrity of the findings coming from internal users.
Scope and Constraints
Time and cost weren’t an issue on this project, I had access to five internal users and enough time for research and design alongside ongoing usability testing. I planned the scope at the beginning and didn’t need to pivot from it as the key problem was validated early.
User Problem
Internal users (Asset integrity engineers) faced a significant challenge in data entry accuracy. Recent entries suffered from missing and duplicated data. They reported difficulties with manual input and tracking completed work.
Results
User outcome: Validated the improved integrity of corrosion findings
Business outcome: Improved the efficiency of internal users by 4x
Evaluation
- Incorporated engineers’ review and finalization steps into the analysis process.
- Validated a 3D point cloud view for smoother navigation.
- Introduced ongoing usability testing of the beta version of the app.
- Informed product strategy, taking it from initiative feature-based planning using a roadmap to outcome-focused planning using now/next/later.
UI Design
❝ This will give me a better perspective of what to look for and it will help me a lot ❞ Asset Integrity Engineer, Abyss Solutions
Learnings
I know for future projects a task can stop providing new insights if you haven’t moved to an interactive model of the task, I know to prepare for this earlier. Building the glossary helped me navigate the common industry abbreviations and terminology. I felt confident through research and ideation and I built a deeper understanding of interaction design and visual design.
Next Steps
Oil platforms are susceptible to additional issues that can lead them to failure. These include internal corrosion, corrosion under pipe supports, on bolts, flanges, and under insulation. The next project aimed to improve the detection of these various “damage mechanisms” on oil platforms, with the potential of assisting MI engineers directly so they can prioritize their inspection areas themselves, with the company’s belief in this leading to an increase in client usage.