Offshore Wind Farm Vessel Motion Monitoring Trials

Strainstall Marine undertake vessel motion monitoring trial on an offshore wind farm transfer vessel off the UK East Coast.

The company's new Vessel Motion Monitoring System™ (VMMS™) provides accurate motion monitoring for wind turbine transfer vessels to improve safety during transfer operations, as well as impact load measurement combined with a data logging capability. An accurate motion monitoring system can increase the operational window considerably during critical personnel and equipment transfer manoeuvres by allowing the user to monitor all motion parameters, rather than relying on significant wave height as the main limiting factor.

The trial of the VMMS system is being conducted on board Tidal Transits 'Eden Rose', and is taking place during normal operations that involve Eden Rose facilitating offshore wind-farm personnel transfers off the UK's east coast.

The VMMS™ significantly improves safety levels during operations and can also be used as a dedicated health and safety tool, as it collects data for statistical purposes as well as accident investigations. When transporting personnel from shore to the work site (or between work sites) the motion trend displays can be used by the master to quantify vessel motions, enabling more effective changes in course and speed to be made.

During docking operations and the offloading of personnel, the displays can be used to monitor heave levels and provide warning to the master when pre-set danger limits are about to be reached. All transfers can then be halted until conditions improve in order to safeguard personnel and avoid damage to vessels or equipment.