Vestdavit has reinforced its claim to be the davit supplier of choice for higher sea states after securing orders to equip three state-of-the-art Esvagt Service Operations Vessels(SOVs) destined to support windfarm maintenance in challenging North Sea conditions.
Developed by Havyard Design & Solution and built by Havyard Ship Technology, the Esvagt trio will be delivered in 2020-2021. The construction project continues a run of eight Havyard designed vessels built for Esvagt but the davit contract has brought Vestdavit particular satisfaction, after earlier projects went to the competition.
“These are repeat orders, demonstrating that Esvagt has been very happy with the quality and competitiveness of vessels delivered from the Leirvik yard,” says Rolf Andreas Wigand, Managing Director, Vestdavit. “We are therefore especially delighted that Hayvard has switched its boat launching and recovery system preference for these latest high performance SOVs. This will also bring the number of Esvagt vessels equipped with davits from Vestdavit over a three year period to six.”
Each of the SOVs will be equipped with one PAP-16000 Workboat davit with emergency launch capabilities, one PLRH-5000 SOLAS davit, two L-3500 Life raft davits and one Telescopic painter boom, with all equipment to be delivered by 2020.
“More and more, windfarm development is taking place further from shore, increasing the need for specialised vessels to transport personnel to the turbine in demanding conditions. Boat launch and recovery requires special attention to match expectations for the SOV and ensure that crews are comfortable and safe when sea states are high.” In the configurations delivered to Esvagt, both the PAP-16000 and PLRH-5000 davits will be able to perform in sea states up to 6.
With SWL of 16,000KG, the PAP-16000 is Vestdavit’s largest single point davit and uses a docking head to fix the boat into position during the lifting and lowering process. It is designed to handle Esvagt`s large STB12 workboat fully equipped. To do this in challenging seas the davit will offer lifting speeds of 45m/min and is equipped with shock absorbers and a constant tension system. It will also be supported by a long-outreach telescopic painter boom with winch to provide adjustable tension on the painter line.
The PLRH-5000 davit is a fully SOLAS-approved davit designed for customers with high performance needs which Esvagt will use to launch and recover its own STB7 boat. The unit achieves lifting speeds as high as 60m/min and is equipped with shock absorbers, a constant tension system and hydraulic guiding arms.