SSE has engaged its practiced emergency responses and adapted working arrangements to ensure the safety of staff working on the 588MW Beatrice offshore wind farm off the coast of Scotland during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Beatrice operations manager Martin Sutherland (pictured) said the wind farm’s operations and maintenance base in Wick, where he is usually based, normally has about 50 people working out of it.
However, the site is currently running with only essential control room employees, two members of staff at a time, because of the coronavirus, he said.
Wick is also a meeting place for technicians before they head offshore, but the teams are observing guidelines and maintaining an acceptable distance from one another, Sutherland added.
The rest of the O&M base’s staff are working from home, keeping in contact and checking in via regular Skype meetings.
But, Sutherland said, all staff remain on call if required to head, safely, to the project site.
“For those working in the control room, they have their own dedicated access and egress areas and separate welfare facilities,” he said.
“There are also strict hygiene controls in place for shared areas such as the control room desk,” he added.
Under normal circumstances, the servicing window of spring and summer would see up to four crew transfer vessels (CTVs) leaving each day to go to the site to carry out maintenance at the turbines, with crews of up to 12 on each vessel.
However, at the moment, the team is focussing on work essential to keeping the turbines spinning so only one CTV is leaving daily, SSE said.
“CTVs are relatively small vessels, so to ensure we can maximise social distancing, crews of 12 have been reduced to crews of six to allow a safe distance between individuals,” said Sutherland.
Technicians wait to transfer onto the turbines by forming a queue with spaces of at least two metres between them.
Sutherland said: “To ensure the safety of our workers still going offshore, we have introduced health screening measures, and PPE is available on the boat if needed.”
On days when the weather turns out to be too bad to sail, the teams are stood down and head back home.
“It’s a very strange time, but it’s one we’re all helping one another through,” the operations manager said.
“Whether it’s sharing photos of a good day out at site for those of us working indoors or just checking in to ensure people are taking time away from their screen. We’re all very proud to be playing our part in keeping Beatrice turning.”