L-3 SAM Electronics supplied and installed the extensive drive equipment, as well as automation, navigation and positioning systems, on board the Heavy-Lift Jack-Up Vessel (HLJV) Vidar, which is operated by HOCHTIEF Infrastructure GmbH for construction and service support of offshore wind farms.
The Vidar is the latest in a series of recently completed offshore turnkey projects undertaken by L-3 SAM Electronics on behalf of leading operators in the world’s offshore industry.
“Along with thruster manufacturer SCHOTTEL, L-3 SAM Electronics participated in the tripartite consortium headed by Caterpillar Marine/Caterpillar Motoren, which provides 6x MaK 8 M 32 C CCR engines – each rated at 4,000 kW. This consortium already successfully collaborated on drive technology for the earlier Innovation jack-up vessel,” said Reinhard Swoboda, senior vice president at L-3 SAM Electronics. “We are extremely proud to complete this major undertaking, which demonstrates our growing involvement with alternative offshore energy markets.”
Facilities supplied and installed by L-3 SAM Electronics, in addition to all cable engineering work, comprise eco-friendly diesel-electric propulsion systems with four 2,600 kW azimuth thrusters and three 2,500 kW bow thrusters, each driven by asynchronous motors and speed-controlled, low-voltage PWM converters, and powered by propulsion transformers via 6,6 kV switchboards. Six 4,810 kVA diesel generators were installed for onboard power generation.
Bridge equipment consists of a NACOS Platinum vessel control system, including integrated navigation, automation and control assemblies, as well as a Class 2 dynamic positioning facility from L-3 Dynamic Positioning & Control Systems, which provides precise vessel location information. Supplementary support facilities include a full range of internal communications systems, including the Public Address (PA) system, automatic telephone system, talk-back system, central aerial system and cold provision store alarm system, as well as a comprehensive range of GMDSS equipment.
Built by CRIST shipyard in Gdansk, Poland, and equipped with a 1200-ton crane, the 140-metre-long Vidar is capable of installing latest-generation wind turbines of all dimensions at depths down to 50 metres. It is currently being used to place 60-metre blades at the €1.3 billion, 400 MW North Sea wind farm, Global Tech 1.