A new publicly available design of recommended boat landing geometry has been released for use by offshore wind developers and Crew Transfer Vessel (CTV) owners and operators. The design offers a consistent fender geometry for use on CTVs across different wind farms, reducing the time and cost of changing fenders.
It was developed by the Offshore Wind Accelerator (OWA), a collaborative research, development and deployment programme between the Carbon Trust and nine offshore wind developers.
The new design follows analysis of the interaction and impact of CTVs on boat landings during push-on transfers to offshore structures and other vessels, and incorporates better-defined CTV loads, as well as industry feedback and recommendations. It also adheres to the G+’s health and safety guidelines.
The G+ brings together renewable energy developers to form a group that places health and safety at the forefront of all offshore wind activity and developments. It is run in partnership with the Energy Institute, which provides the secretariat and supports its work. The G+ Good Practice Guideline, Working at Height in The Offshore Wind Industry - Second Edition stipulates a safe minimum clearance between a landing ladder and boat fender of 500mm, with a maximum safe step-over distance of 650mm.
