MacGregor, part of Cargotec, has won davit orders for two 81-metre service operation vessels (SOVs) designed to act as ‘mother-ships’ for wind turbine technicians which will service DONG Energy’s Race Bank and Hornsea Project One offshore wind farms in the UK part of the North Sea.
The contracts have been placed by Spanish shipyard Astilleros Gondan, responsible for the construction of the SOVs.
The SOVs have been ordered by Norwegian operator Østensjø Rederi. Each vessel will be fitted with a MacGregor HMD G110 davit designed for launching and recovery of personnel-carrying ‘daughter’ craft and a MacGregor HMD A34 davit designed for launching and recovery of rescue boats.
“Even though the offshore market is experiencing low investment levels, there is a need for this kind of equipment, and customers trust us by ordering MacGregor davit systems,” said Esko Karvonen, Head of Smart Ocean Technology division, MacGregor. “This is mainly because our systems are at the high end of the quality scale with a strong focus on performance and reliability.”
The MacGregor G110 davit has an 11-tonne lifting capacity. The delivery includes a high-speed winch system, anti-pendulum docking head and an automatic parking cradle for the craft. The anti-pendulum docking head, together with a painter line boom, ensure the safe launch and recovery of the craft even in rough sea conditions, MacGregor said.
The MacGregor A34 Davit has a 3.4-tonne lifting capacity. It includes a high-speed winch system, constant tension mode and a shock-dampening system.
Davit systems for the first vessel (Gondan C470) will be delivered in June 2017, while davit systems for the second vessel (Gondan C471) will be delivered in December 2017. The vessels are scheduled for delivery in 2018.