Norwegian industrial technology outfit Nekkar and BMS Heavy Cranes have entered into an innovation agreement for the development and testing of a new wind turbine installation tool.
As part of the agreement, BMS Heavy Cranes will contribute to the verification and benchmarking of Nekkar’s SkyWalker installation tool and provide its know-how and technical information regarding logistics and handling.
BMS Heavy Cranes will also assess the cost of the SkyWalker solution versus other technologies and will participate, as Nekkar’s lifting and installation partner, in testing the full-scale prototype and when rolling out the technology to the market.
The SkyWalker wind turbine installation tool aims to “significantly reduce” the time, cost and environmental footprint associated with wind turbine installations.
SkyWalker uses active heave compensation derived from offshore lifting systems combined with digital solutions that allow for remote-controlled and automated solutions.
This enables a controlled lift that can operate heavier loads and reach larger heights than current crane solutions, and the ability to operate in stronger winds.
“Several of the large international wind turbine manufacturers utilise BMS Heavy Cranes as their preferred wind turbine lifting service partner.
“To bring such a highly regarded heavy lifting service provider on board as a development partner for SkyWalker is very valuable to us.
“BMS Heavy Cranes possesses substantial know-how about the strengths and limitations of current heavy lifting and installation methods and the various OEMs’ wind turbine technologies.
“This knowledge will be used to optimise the SkyWalker design to meet the market needs,” said Ole Falk Hansen, CEO of Nekkar.
For more than a decade, BMS Heavy Cranes has worked closely with wind turbine manufacturers, erecting and servicing a number of onshore and offshore wind turbines.
BMS Heavy Cranes offering includes on- and offloading of turbine components, transport of turbine elements to storage, up-end of towers and assembly of towers on tower stands, lifting and erecting full towers to quay side or operation site and transport of nacelles and blades to quay side as well as operation site.