VCE Vienna Consulting Engineers ZT has been awarded a contract to install Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) systems on twelve TenneT’s HVDC platforms in Germany.
On nine platforms, which are in operation, the installation of the SHM systems will be carried out offshore during operation, while for the three platforms which are under construction or in the planning phase the installation will take place in the respective shipyard during the construction phase.
The transmission system operator’s tender notice, issued in September 2021, lists the places where work will be carried out as German Bight in the North Sea for offshore installation and a shipyard in Cadiz in Spain for onshore installation of SHM systems, with another shipyard yet to be determined.
In connection with the installation of the SHM system, a platform-specific monitoring concept has to be developed that is based on periodic data determination, TenneT said.Therefore, periodic reporting should be implemented. In addition to the immediate detection of beyond-design-basis events and changes in the foundation structure, this should also enable the total service life of the structures to be recorded mathematically.
According to information published earlier, the five-year contract is worth EUR 3.25 million.
In Germany, TenneT’s platforms that are in operation are the main part of the following grid connections: BorWin1, BorWin2, BorWin3, DolWin1, DolWin2, DolWin3, HelWin1, HelWin2, and SylWin1. Currently under construction are platforms for BorWin5, DolWin5, and DolWin6 that will go online by 2025, and for BorWin6 which is planned to be up and running in 2027.