Liebherr-MCCtec Rostock GmbH marked the production start of the HLC, Liebherr’s biggest offshore crane, which will be mounted on DEME Group’s Orion, a next-generation offshore installation vessel.
The start of the production was marked by a “flange laying ceremony” in early April, Liebherr said. A flange with a diameter of more than 15 metres was set by representatives from DEME, GeoSea, and COSCO shipyard from China, the builders of the vessel.
In the following months, several thousand tonnes of steel will be formed, welded and assembled to produce the giant crane. The crane’s boom is 160 metres long and the crane itself has a height of 90 metres.
Assembled on a huge pedestal, the crane has a lifting height of up to 180 metres – almost twice as high as the Statue of Liberty in New York. With a lifting capacity of 5,000 tonnes at more than 30 metres outreach, the HLC 295000 could lift nine fully loaded A380 planes in one go, Liebherr said.
GeoSea, a subsidiary of DEME, will use the 216.5 metre Orion to handle the heaviest monopiles, jackets, wind turbine components and structures in a single shipment, and install the next generation of giant multi-megawatt wind turbines.