Dutch offshore service provider Bluestream used a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) to install monitoring systems inside foundation piles at the 332MW Nordsee 1 offshore wind farm in the German North Sea.
Bluestream said the ROV included a specially-designed remotely operated underwater installation tool to carry out the work, which it said was too hazardous for divers.
The tool allowed the ROV to fit the sensors, as well as elaborating a modification to the original attachment mechanism with bolts that was initially considered only suitable for manual installation by divers, the company said.
It added that impressed current cathodic protection systems were also installed, as well as the condition monitoring equipment.
Bluestream business development manager Adriaen Winckers said: “Thanks to the innovative combination of existing techniques, Bluestream succeeded in a very short period of time in creating a solution for the remote installation of bolts in a monopile with limited working space.”
Nordsee 1 offshore works package manager Daniel Waugh said: “All systems were installed in a timely manner, as per our installation requirements, with no issues to report and without a single incident.
“The innovative solution they developed and the technical solutions they proposed all proved highly successful.”
Nordsee 1, which will comprise 54 Senvion 6.2M-126 turbines, delivered first power in March.
It is being developed by Innogy and Northland Power and will be fully operational later this year.
Image: Bluestream at work on Nordsee 1 (Bluestream)
