Jackup rig

A jack-up rig is a mobile platform in the water, which can stand on the seabed by means of retractable legs. She has, in contrast to the installer ships not have its own drive, but is drawn with the aid of tugs to new locations.

Operation

A jack-up rig is moved with lifted legs of tugs to the desired position, then where the legs are lowered. By taking on ballast water and by raising the platform above the sea surface pressure is exerted on the legs so that they anchor themselves firmly in the seabed. The result is a permanently connected to the seabed platform.

Jack-ups are used only in relatively shallow water, depending on the type maximum to 130 m water depth.

Use

Port construction

Used in port jack-up rigs are used especially in the sheet piling pile driving from the water (eg for quay walls ) are used. They serve here as a working level for the piling equipment and are primarily used in areas where a high Rammgenauigkeit is necessary despite rough seas and high tides.

Drilling platforms

For oil or gas drilling jack-ups are a very common means working as drilling platforms.

Construction of offshore wind farms

The jack-up platform Odin was built in 2004 and converted for use in the offshore sector in 2009. They received a 300-ton crane. After this conversion, the Odin was involved in the construction of six of the twelve wind turbines for the first offshore wind farm in the German EEZ "alpha ventus ".

The jack-up platform Thor is the first jack-up rig, which has been specifically designed for the erection of wind turbines. It is chartered for the construction of the wind park BARD Offshore 1 Each leg is 82 meters long and weighs 530 tons. There is a plate with about eight meters in diameter on each foot. When fully loaded the Thor can be up to 10,000 tons. Deeper than two meters will not sink into the sediment, the jack-up platform. Three hours it takes to extend the legs gradually.

In the area of ​​construction of offshore wind farms installation vessels ( jack-up platform with private drive, stronger crane and more space for the transport of components ) are being increasingly used. Due to the frequent reaction in the preparation of the individual wind turbines is a separate drive beneficial. In addition, specifically provided for installation vessels are designed to complete several wind turbines ( or portions thereof) to be transported to the wind farm project faces of shipment.

For the delivery and putting up transformer platforms and jack-up rigs are used.