Offshore wind feeder vessel design

Offshore wind vessel design revealed

Ampelmann and C-Job Naval Architects have joined forces to develop a one-of-a-kind offshore wind feeder vessel concept with motion-compensation technology.

AMPELMANN AND C-JOB NAVAL ARCHITECTS HAVE JOINED FORCES TO DEVELOP A ONE-OF-A-KIND OFFSHORE WIND FEEDER VESSEL concept with moton compensaton technology, specifcally suited for the rigorous demands of operatng of the east coast of the United States of America.

ALL PHOTOS COURTESY OF C-JOB NAVAL ARCHITECTS. The concept design combines the knowledge of Ampelmann, the Dutch ofshore access provider, and independent ship design company C-Job Naval Architects. Together, they have created a viable soluton in response to the need to support the constructon and logistcs of ofshore wind farms in the United States under the Jones Act.

Innovative ship design

Todd Allen, VP Business Development at C-Job Naval Architects, says, “The United States is ambitous in its plans to grow the installed ofshore wind power. The only viable way to realise this goal while complying with the Jones Act is utlising ofshore wind feeder vessels. Together with our strategic partner Ampelmann, the experts in moton compensaton, we have created an innovatve ship design ready to support constructon of US wind farms today and into the future.”

Todd Allen, VP Business Development at C-Job Naval Architects

The state-of-the-art ofshore wind feeder vessel has an L-shaped superstructure. This enables the transport of all wind turbine components, including the blades, while >>

Gus DeOliveira, Ampelmann’s Business Development Area Manager for the Americas.

keeping the ship itself relatvely compact minimising constructon and operatonal costs. To maximise workability and allow for safe lifing of the components, the feeder vessel features a specially designed moton compensaton system by Ampelmann.

Ample potential

The system uses Ampelmann’s core technology to stabilise the components of the wind turbine generator (WTG) in six degrees of freedom and is designed for safe lifing operatons in sea states up to 2.5m signifcant wave height. The compensator is positoned close to the vessel’s centre, where it can compensate all vessel motons and allows for contnued operatons – even in adverse weather conditons – throughout the year.  Gus DeOliveira, Ampelmann’s Business Development Area Manager for the Americas, shares, “We see a lot of potental for the ofshore wind market in the US and believe that we can add some unique value based on our decades long experience in the ofshore wind market. Our partnership with C-Job is crucial if we are to design and deliver just the right soluton for this growing market.”

Maximum effciency

The wind turbine components are arranged on the ship with a quick connect grip and glide system. Cargo pallets are placed on

The motion-compensated wind feeder vessel is designed to provide maximum effciency and workability during the construction of an offshore wind park.

The motion compensator compensates, even in adverse weather conditions, throughout the year.

The compensator is positioned close to the vessel’s centre, where it can compensate all vessel motions and allows for continued operations.

deck quickly thanks to the quick connect system. Once the feeder vessel is at its destnaton, the system slides the components into place to connect to the moton compensator. The Ampelmann system then compensates all vessel motons, so the crane operator can lif turbine components in a similar fashion to an onshore lif. The moton-compensated wind feeder vessel is designed to provide maximum efciency and workability during the constructon of an ofshore wind park. The conventonal way of working is that the installaton vessel would transport the components and then do the installaton of the turbines. However, this is an inefcient use of the WTIV and in the case of foreign vessels not allowed by the Jones Act. With this feeder concept – which is envisioned to be a series – the turbine components are brought to the installaton site by the feeder vessel. With two or more vessels per project, this allows the WTIV to focus on the installaton of the turbines and ensures operatons can contnue at all tmes.

i. c-job.com i. ampelmann.nl

Wind feeder vessel side.

SPECS

Length overall (approx.)

103.5m

Breadth (moulded) Depth main deck

23.8m 9.2m

Draught (design) Sailing speed

5.5m 13kn Complement 20 crew + 12 passengers Workability of Ampelmann system up to 2.5 m Hs Additional features DP2