DEME Offshore successfully completed the inter-array cable laying works at the SeaMade offshore wind farm with its cable installation vessel ‘Living Stone’ operating at peak production levels.
DEME Offshore was responsible for the Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Installation (EPCI) of the 64 inter-array cables. With a total length of 71.2 km, the cables were successfully loaded out on ‘Living Stone’ and cable laying works were completed in record time.
Due to several innovative features on board especially developed for inter-array cable load-out and installation, ‘Living Stone’ operated at peak production levels, laying up to three cables per day.
This unique cable installation vessel features a double firing line, unrivalled quadrant track length, a quadrant upending frame, an inboard cable buffering system and the newly installed Cable Protection System (CPS) storage system which was deployed for the first time at the SeaMade project. These innovations prove to greatly enhance installation efficiency and will enable record cable installation production levels on future projects.
Bart De Poorter, General Manager DEME Offshore emphasises: “This peak performance level could only be achieved thanks to our crew on board of ‘Living Stone’ and the dedicated project team and partners involved. Everyone on board and on shore made exceptional efforts to ensure the project remained firmly on track, maintaining safe operations at all times during the COVID-19 pandemic. This achievement highlights once more the state-of-the art technical capabilities of ‘Living Stone’. The large cable storage capacity, with two turntables below deck, combined with a very high workability, enables DEME to perform the installation works of entire wind farms within a single campaign and with minimum delay due to port calls or harsh weather conditions.”