Mammoet is deploying its 3,200-tonne capacity PTC210-DS ring crane to lift a huge A-frame for Van Oord’s installation vessel Svanen in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
As offshore wind turbines grow to achieve greater efficiency, so too are their components and the upgrade to the larger A-frame will enable Svanen to install new generation monopile foundations.
The frame, which will increase the total height of Svanen to 125 m, is made up of three main components. These were fabricated by Holland Shipyards and were moved, lifted and transported by Mammoet to its quayside headquarters in Schiedam.
There, the different components of the A-frame will be assembled and then driven 66 m along the waterfront using 64 axle lines of Mammoet SPMTs, ready for the PTC to perform the lift.
The 210,000 tonne-metre crane was selected as it was one of the few cranes in the world capable of performing the lift and was available locally. The configuration of the PTC to perform the lift will be 105 m of main boom and 66 m of luffing jib, with more than 4,000 tonnes of counterweight in use.
Installation of the frame will take just one week during April and May – which was made possible by the crane’s availability in Rotterdam and the fact that the A-frame can be lifting as a single unit.
Julian Alkemade, project manager at Mammoet, said: “These two unique pieces of equipment are in the same place at the same time. The lift capabilities and location of the PTC will greatly mitigate downtime for the vessel.
“Normally, such a project could take a year or so to plan, but here it has only taken a few months due to the crane’s availability and its unique capabilities as one of the world’s largest”.
