SOVs reduce costs and increase efficiency

ESVAGT’s unique SOV concept provides efficient and productive operations in offshore wind farms and eliminates many costs.

ESVAGT raised the bar when it introduced the SOV concept in 2010 with service vessels permanently placed in offshore wind farms as well as the use of ESVAGT Safe Transfer Boats (STB) for vessel transfer of service technicians and trips back to port.

Since then, the SOV concept has been further developed and perfected into the offshore wind energy industry's most innovative and efficient servicing concept.

The gains are plenty – regardless of whether you look at economy, efficiency, safety or the environment:

• Constant presence
• With the SOV solution, the mother vessel is practically constantly at work right where it creates value – in the offshore wind farm. The vessel's unique STB12 is a flexible daughter craft that can be tasked with everything from crew change in the farm to transporting spare parts, crew and supplies to and from land. This releases the mother ship to perform duties in the farm.
• High uptime
• The SOV solution makes it possible to transfer technicians safely from vessel to turbine regardless of the weather. The combination of the STB12 and the gangway system ensures highly efficient and safe operations that also make for fast transfers.
• In the offshore wind farms Butendiek and Baltic II, the ’Esvagt Froude’ and ’Esvagt Faraday’ have succeeded in transferring technicians in 92 out of 100 days, ensuring a higher uptime in those farms than in any other farm with the same type of wind turbine. The overall effect has improved the economy in the farms.
• CTV superfluous
• An element of the SOV concept is the flexible crew transfers. Choosing an STB12 makes expensive CTV solutions for crew changes superfluous. The STB12 can safely and comfortably come alongside a quay and change crews of up to eight technicians at a time – along with a ton of cargo. That reduces expenditure on CTVs to a minimum.
• Economical operations
• The SOV concept saves the mothership from performing cost-intensive activities. The STB12 frees the mothership from fuel demanding visits to the shore with the significant costs that are associated with it. In the wind farm, the STB provides safe and fuel efficient transfer of technicians to the wind turbines. Reducing fuel consumption is also a clear environmental gain.
• Onshore base superfluous
• The SOV serves as base for the entire operation in the farm. A SOV means that office facilities, storage, spare parts and workshops are right where they are needed – in the middle of the offshore farm. Onshore base operations are not needed.

You can meet ESVAGT and hear more about the company at WindEnergy Hamburg from September 25th to 28th. ESVAGT will be present in Hall B4, booth 401.