Sharing knowhow in offshore wind construction

Success is: Being in the right spot at the right time

By Klaus Holm Nissen, Project Manager, A2SEA

SEA INSTALLER and her crew have just installed the eighteenth of 32 MHI Vestas V164-8.0 MW turbines at Burbo Bank Extension. So far, we’ve made excellent progress, despite having to work with a lot of new, specialised lifting equipment for these large components. With the learning curves behind us, and if the weather continues to cooperate as nicely as it has to date, we expect to be finished mid to late December.

This is the first time we’ve installed a MHI Vestas V164-8.0 MW turbine. Yet the task presents relatively few challenges for us. Perhaps the most difficult part of the project, seen from A2SEA’s point of view, is the sea bed in the area. With a lot of clay and sand, as well as some silt, it’s a tricky task to jack up securely. That kind of surface composition can be very sticky, which initially had us thinking we might have problems retracting the legs. But it didn’t turn out to be much of a problem. There were, of course, some extended pre-load periods in order for us to compress the soil sufficiently and make sure it was able to support the vessel – even in a storm.

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Turbine installation and the levelised cost of energy: Bigger vessel payloads

By Hans Peter Johannsen, Vice President, Projects.

This is the third article in our series about reducing the LCoE in the offshore wind industry through optimising turbine loading, transport and installation.

A2SEA’s internal data supports wider industry observations that the cost of turbine installation per installed MW is, in fact, coming down. From our perspective (and remembering that turbine installation is a minor part of an wind farm’s overall development), there are gains to be made whenever we can load more megawatts at a time onto our vessels. This ability is strongly assisted by the increasing amount of power generated by larger turbines such as the MHI Vestas 8 MW. But that’s far from the full story.

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Work wise, think twice: Keeping our bodies safe

By Kirsten Bank Christensen, Vice President, HSEQ at A2SEA A/S

Musculoskeletal injuries are an ever-present hazard in the offshore wind installation business. They’re defined as injuries that affect the human body’s movement or musculoskeletal system (muscles, tendons, ligaments, nerves, discs, blood vessels and so on). And, while many have an obvious and immediate cause, such as a back injury caused by lifting a heavy object on an awkward angle, others may be ‘occupational illnesses’ – damages that creep up on a worker over many years. In any case, this is a serious issue that can have permanent and devastating consequences at both professional and personal levels.

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Tightening up the tendering process

By Tony Millward, Vice President, Tender & Contracts, A2SEA

Tendering has been part of the offshore wind industry since its inception – and it’s crucial for arriving at an efficient and safe turbine installation plan. Yet still today, there are elements of the tender process that can be improved. So what makes for a good process?

For me, one of the most important aspects to tendering is simply this: Who’s at the table? At A2SEA, we always front with a full team comprising commercial, technical and legal advisors in all phases. This hasn’t been the norm on the other side of the table – but it may well be where things are headed in the future.

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ENSURING SUPPLIER SAFETY VIA BEST PRACTICES (PART 2)

By Kirsten Bank Christensen, Vice President, HSEQ, A2SEA

Mobilisation projects are a valuable opportunity for cooperatively improving site safety together with many suppliers. This is the second of two posts describing how A2SEA’s ZERO HARM Mobilisation can lift supplier safety performance, and focusing on induction, HAZID/HAZOP workshops as well as results and learnings.

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Turbine Installation and the Levelised Cost of Energy: Taller and heavier

By Hans Peter Johannsen, Vice President, Projects.

This is the second article in our series about reducing the LCoE in the offshore wind industry through optimising turbine loading, transport and installation.

These days, A2SEA is as busy as ever, working through a pipeline of turbine installation projects that shows no sign of slowing down. Such healthy demand is a blessing, of course, but we’re equally lucky in that the purpose-built vessels SEA CHALLENGER and SEA INSTALLER were initially designed to handle not just the installation of turbines, but foundations as well. Why is that so lucky? It’s all about how much they can handle.

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Turbine Installation and Cost Reduction: Handling Risk

Turbine installation and cost reduction - handling risk

By Hans Peter Johannsen, Vice President, Projects. 

This is the first post in a series about reducing the LCoE in the offshore wind industry through optimising turbine loading, transport and installation.

In offshore wind, few things dominate industry conversations as much as reducing the levelised cost of energy (LCoE). And certainly, with many years spent working to optimise equipment, procedures and safety, turbine installation contractors such as A2SEA have been able to become highly efficient, bringing the costs of installation down within the installer’s scope of control. In a series of articles, we’ll be discussing the steps we’re taking to achieve even greater efficiencies.  Continue reading

Ensuring Supplier Safety via Best Practices – Part 1

Ensuring supplier safety via best practise

By Kirsten Bank Christensen, Vice President, HSEQ, A2SEA

Mobilisation projects are a valuable opportunity for cooperatively improving site safety with many suppliers. A2SEA’s ZERO HARM Mobilisation initiative benefits more than 30 suppliers annually. It calls for projects to achieve zero Lost Time Injuries with Life Changing Effects, despite many challenges. Continue reading

Making the most of local content

By Jens Nielsen, Director, Procurement, A2SEA A/S

For foreign-based companies, doing business in the UK offshore wind industry requires a convincing demonstration of commitment to using local skills and infrastructure. And it’s probably fair to say that, for many, hiring locally based workers and setting up supply contracts with the local business community is viewed as a necessary, but not strictly desirable, activity. In reality, they would rather do the job with as many of their own, tried-and-proven resources as possible.

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The O&M vessel revolution: Service operation vessels

THE O&M VESSEL REVOLUTION

There’s lots of development underway in O&M service vessels. And with good reason: An 8 MW turbine that stops generating power costs its owner or operator some EUR 20,000 per day. ‘Service operation vessels’ (SOVs) are being permanently stationed at major wind farms – and their form and function are undergoing revolutionary change.

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