Trolley System Speeds Up Offshore Wind Transition Piece Load Out

Heavy lift equipment specialist, Enerpac, has supplied GeoSea Geotechnical & Offshore Solutions with an integrated trolley system for loading transition pieces onto a jack-up vessel for the foundation installation of the HoheSee and Albatros wind farms, offshore Germany.

The Enerpac trolley system is mounted on two 90m steel tracks running across the deck of the jack-up installation vessel. Three 500 ton transition pieces are securely fastened by hydraulic cylinders in the frames. Each clamping frame is powered by four electrically-driven trolleys allowing higher speeds than traditional skidding systems. An integrated hydraulic clamping and levelling system was also included as part of the overall solution. The trolley system is controlled by a single Intellilift wireless control unit allowing fully integrated, synchronised operation.

During load out, the transition pieces are positioned in the clamping frames and moved along the track. As monopiles are installed, the transition pieces are advanced along the track to bring them within reach of the on-board crane.

“GeoSea asked us to provide them with a fast-performing solution that minimized the time in Port during load-out of foundations on board their offshore installation vessels,” says Mart Hinnen, general manager, Enerpac Heavy Lifting Technology.  “The Enerpac trolley system was our response to this demand and has been successfully implemented.”