WIND FARM ASSEMBLY Off The Coast Of Sylt - Millimeter Work In All Weathers | Full Documentary

A gigantic six-legged special ship with

wind

turbines almost 150 meters high in the North Sea, off the silt

coast

, one of the largest

wind

farm

s in the German North Sea is being built here. 80 wind turbines are being installed here. on an area of ​​about 70 square kilometers in record time and at dizzying heights it will once again be a dream job thanks to precise planning and high-tech equipment it takes only one day to install a wind turbine on the most modern installation vessel in the world It is in operation requires accuracy and precision to

work

in all weather conditions 24 hours a day, seven days a week on the key wall the wind turbine towers wait to be loaded the 66 meter high giants stand in the port from the Danish city of espjarc the gondolas are pre-assembled and precisely aligned everything that is transported and loaded here is large and weighs tons the equipment and means of transport are just as large strange looking vehicles designed especially for this task help transport these monsters the special crane moves slowly towards the next gondola the platform is also on the way its driver maneuvers the remote controlled vehicle towards the gondola the vehicle is extremely mobile each of the 12 axles with 8 wheels can now be steered the crane lifts the gondola to a good meter from the ground then the platform drives below with all their strength the loading

work

ers place the weighing cell in its position so that it can be fixed precisely and safely the nacelles are completely finished later at sea they will be placed in the towers and then gearboxes will be connected cables connections everything necessary for the production of electricity has already been installed and checked a 10 minute trip takes the gondola to the edge key port workers work 24 hours a day the time of day does not matter to them Neither they nor the ship's crew care about the load of the gondolas also known as gondolas.

Throughout the night and part of the next day there is room for 10 gondolas aboard the Pacific Osprey. The process must be completed within two hours, otherwise the schedule slips. The gondolas are mounted on platforms which are then fixed on board to ensure nothing slips. During transportation, Danish dockworkers are responsible for the cargo. Only dockworkers approved by the union can load and unload ships in Danish ports. They work in practiced and well-rehearsed teams. They will load the ship a total of nine times until the wind

farm

is ready. On deck, installation technicians supervise the work because it is extremely important that every part of the boat is placed correctly.

A specific sequence is used for loading that ensures that everything can be removed from the ship in the correct order and, of course, that the ship is not We become unbalanced as we gradually remove the pieces and sail to the next mill, including loading the imposing components of the plant is a matter of centimeters. With a length of 161 meters, the Pacific Osprey is the largest installation vessel in the world so far. You have to use a centimeter of cover precisely so that everything fits. The towers have already been assembled in three parts on land. Now the crane lifts them on board in one piece.

They weigh between 230 and 273 tons and have everything necessary to produce green electricity. in the North Sea, such as dehumidification systems that protect against rust, hundreds of meters of electrical cables and an elevator with them, installers and service technicians can quickly and easily reach the top, loading the working bolts

millimeter

s must be inserted exactly into the tower receptacles. Then the technicians inside the tower tighten the bolts one by one. Each one is made of special steel and weighs 7.5 kilograms including the nuts. Later, when the tower is installed in the sea, these screws fix it to its foundation.

The stevedores take a while. good time to secure them a tower on board, then it's time for the rotors the blade frame was built specifically for them the ship's auxiliary crane and a mobile crane on land work together to lift the rotors to the large frame also here everything it is a matter of precision the coordination of the two crane operators. In particular, maximum concentration is required from all sides if the weather is good and, more importantly, if the wind is good, all components will be on board within two days. Charging takes place 24 hours a day.

Time costs money, since the installation boat is rented for construction. of the wind farm, each hour that the boat has to be rented entails costs of thousands of euros. Once the loading is finished, the main crane of the boat is placed in the cruising position. Loosening the mooring lines is now the motto. Now the bridge of the boat takes command. The eagle. Pescara del Pacific belongs to a shipping company that rents special ships around the world for the construction and supply of offshore projects. Both the captain and the crew are experienced professionals in this field. After setting sail, the ship leaves the port through the narrow channel.

Towards the open sea on the bridge, the captain and officers are very focused on their work. The crew of the Pacific Ospreys has around 30 people. officers engineers technical kitchen team work two 12-hour shifts the crew is on board for 28 days at a time away from their families without a mobile phone network and then follows 28 days of leave at home for captain henning anderson shift work long has clear advantages when I'm at home I'm at home like a switch when I go down the walkway I'm at home no I don't have to think about what's going on here, we have to do this tomorrow and we have to order this and uh, I was a forecast of time, but when I'm here I don't have to think about that, okay, I have to pick up. the children in kindergarten I have to go shopping I have to prepare food I have to clean I have to wash the clothes and everything is taken care of the only thing I have to do is work the wind farm is located in the North Sea approximately A 70 kilometers west of silt its name dantusk is derived from dunn for denmark and tusk for danish for germany we have a very good soil structure for our foundations and moderate water depths between 21 and 32 meters even though we are very far from the

coast

We have constant southwesterly winds that cause very little shading effects in the park design, so we can actually operate the park very efficiently.

After approximately six hours of sailing, the installation ship arrives at the construction site in the North Sea. You can see the wind turbines already installed. from afar, among the waves, the osprey's goal is the yellow masts emerging from the water, the next turbines will be installed on them, the helmsman and the captain hand over the helm to the computer, the so-called dynamic positioning system for the The last meters on mom's wheel, the dp system is being set up, it figures out the environmental forces, the wind and the sea, and it takes some time to build it like a model, it's called, uh, give it 10 minutes and that's how it should be and then we start to move In the final position, the position of the boat has to be precise to the meter, it is not an easy task with the wind and waves, so from two to zero meters there are two mounting positions, the captain decides which one to go to the computer depending on the boat's climate. you need a precisely measured distance to the so-called transition piece so that the ship's crane can function optimally yes, it's okay, we don't need to be so real, it's okay to be a little east of the yes, as we are now, it's good, extensive Soil analyzes were carried out in advance.

The owner of the park and archive, in this case, hires some companies to do the different studies that they examine for old bombs and, for example, there could be something from World War II, so they check the Pacific Osprey is the largest installation vessel in the world and here it is in action for the first time, but the ship has to be able to do more than just float in order to carry out complicated construction work safely and precisely on the high seas to install turbines so large, we need a lifting container that allows a stable work platform.

A jack up will mean that the boat poles are raised out of the water at a certain height and as you can see the legs here will go down to the bottom of the sea and support the entire boat when raised, yes legs down the ship has six legs, each of which weighs 800 tons, when the Pacific Osprey reached its final position, they were moved to the seabed in individual test phases, the six legs are each loaded with different weights a specialist in The bridge monitors and controls the tests. This can last up to 10 hours if necessary.

It can also pull the huge ship into place because a firm foundation is crucial. During the subsequent installation of the wind turbines, large weight changes occur when, for example, A tower is raised from one side of the ship to the foundation, but first the six legs have to lift 26,000 tons out of the water and then support this weight safely, weather permitting. World records can be set on the last trip we take. Do we install 10 turbines in 10 days? OK, lifting technology has been around for a while, but the Pacific Osprey's operating frequency sets new standards. This is because the boat goes up and down every day.

The legs are made of special steel to ensure that they can resist wear over a long period this technology also requires completely new lubricants a boat with countless possibilities there was a storm in December where we saw waves up to 15 meters high but we were 20 meters away very above So if you have any tendency to get seasick then it is a good boat to sail because we will never sail in bad weather and if bad weather is coming, only once the boat has reached its final height will the installation of the equipment begin. The turbines consist of several underwater elements.

The base, the so-called monopile, sinks up to 30 meters deep into the seabed. Above is the transition piece with a ladder to climb the turbine and a small crane to lift the equipment. above the transition The piece is the tower with the elevator in operation for the technicians and service personnel. The gondola is mounted at a height of 88 meters. The three rotor blades are attached to its hub. Its total diameter is 120 meters, giving the entire turbine an impressive height of 148 meters. At the beginning of each installation, technicians meet with the team to discuss the details of the respective installation because each base has its own special characteristics.

Each tower is a little different, so each position requires a slightly different approach. Installation teams also take turns working around the clock. Why the shift change usually occurs right in the middle of the installation process is for this reason that the precise arrangements made between the teams are very important first the tower is erected for this now the wind deflectors are removed and the screws are loosened the Pacific Osprey's crane plays a key role in the installation and with it the crane operator, 60 meters above the deck, handles his enormous colossus that can lift up to 500 tons in 12 hours alone in the pulpit, always very concentrated, without matter if it is the tower. the nacelle or rotor blades a separate tool is used for each component to attach the individual parts to the crane hook Before each installation the technicians attach the corresponding tool to the crane hook the special 18 ton device for the tower is called a clamp with its four oversized clamps, the tool grabs the tower and holds it securely, there is no margin for error with dimensions like these, the worst thing I can think of would be a clamp failure, now lose the load, The worst case scenario, the worst case scenario, would be a disaster.

If you were to do what you call shock loading the crane, then you can't just lose 200 tonnes as the crane would roll back, which is why you should never do it. The crane operator depends on the orders of the technicians at the bottom of the tower and they maintain constant contact. These guys are very good at what they do, they push more than 100 percent when it rains there, he is in the middle of the tower in the middle of the grid and he is watching it well, but I can only do what these guys, tell me, you know what slowly surrendered, it's my, it's my eyes, down there, after unscrewing the 136 bolts, the huge tower is lifted from its anchorage very care

full

y, it must not start to sway, otherwise it could damage the superstructures or even other towers with a calm but constant speed the 66 meter high tower floats over the North Sea to the transition piece the lifting takes about 20 minutes slowly and exactly 270 tons are lowered onto the transition piece inside the Technicians are already waiting for the tower to be secured with thebolts

millimeter

work on the high seas 12 hours alone in the cabin 28 days in a row uninterrupted with total concentration time flies in a day very quickly you never find a day it takes a long time there are always tight hours it seems that they disappear before you realize it the day ends Once the tower is bolted, work begins inside.

The technicians connect it to the electrical grid. They put the elevator into operation and turn on the dehumidification system. This prevents the tower technology from rusting quickly due to the salty sea air. While the technicians prepare the tower for operation and take the elevator to the top, things continue on board and the crew prepares for the next lift. Nobody really cares that night has fallen again, but hunger is felt all the time. physical work in all weather conditions demanding a decent meal the Pacific Ospreys galley is a modern industrial kitchen, food must be available at all times after all everyone on board works 24 hours a day for the cook which It means you always have to offer breakfast and dinner at the same time. hour as the shift changes at 6 a.m. m. and at 6 p.m. m. because while the day shift works the night shift sleeps michael rattenburg is the master of the pots danish by birth he also speaks german english and french and that's how he cooks because the ship the cook has to deal with different tastes on board the boys like different food we are english dutch danish german so what do people like to eat ribs?

For example, I cooked them today with a bunch of spices and then I made my own barbecue sauce, yeah. that's what the Vikings like, of course, the menu also has to be varied, meals are small highlights of the daily routine, we have a hot meal four times a day and today, for example, we have three different dishes for lunch, for example, I have pasta with homemade pesto, then I have ribs, then I have an English dish, beef stew with puff pastry on top and then we have Danish pork meatballs with rice and then French fries with fried parsley inside, that's the hot section, then we have different types of salads. on the buffet there are also ready-made salads such as shrimp salad, believe it or not, North Germans love it, 24 hours a day, luxury seeds, catering and therefore cooking, are of particular importance , the crew spends almost a month on the ship.

Currently, without interruption, the chef provides food to about 70 people 24 hours a day and in Michael's case, not only food but also with good humor, yes, enjoy your food guys, it's pork, beef Minced pork with different types of spices and a little garlic. onion inside in a mild curry sauce one piece you should eat it with rice you can eat it with everything you decide greetings two large groups on board the boat crew and the installation technicians always get together at meal time at the time of getting to know each other On the other hand, the Danish-English crew stays on board for 28 days and then has a month off.

Technicians, on the other hand, work every 14 days according to German labor law during dinner. Therefore, some issues can be discussed and resolved outside of official meetings abroad as soon as possible. the tower is completely anchored in the gondola installation also starts here first a special lifting tool is connected to the main crane inside the power supply is switched then the crane starts lifting the gondola the gondola weighs almost 200 tons the men turn care

full

y To be oriented again in the correct direction using cables, it is necessary to reach exact agreements between the main crane operator and the operator of the lifting tool that is attached to the crane hook.

Now the huge gondola must be maneuvered safely upwards, beyond the other gondolas and between the ship's superstructures. The technicians are extremely concentrated, their gaze is fixed on the floating colossus at the top of the tower at a height of 88 meters. The technicians are already waiting for the arrival of the gondola. The gondola already contains all the technical components necessary for the production of electricity. of changes generator and also the automatic control system the latter always places the rotor at the correct angle towards the wind 116 special bolts connect the nacelle to the tower each bolt measures 22 centimeters long and three centimeters wide at dizzying heights the technicians now they connect all the necessary aggregates to the tower there is a red platform attached to the gondola later here the service technicians can be tied from the helicopter to the wind turbine andre hankensievkin is the installation manager during his lunch break he shows us the inside From the ship we have a beautiful view of our workplace of the rotor blade nacelles but we are in the gym although the technician's job is physically demanding for many that does not seem enough here is the first common room that is also used after the I work to play pool or chess with my friends reading books now let's go see the movies there are two state-of-the-art cinemas on board this is where the kids spend their time while we go from one place to another it's not the same as being in a cruise ship but it has almost everything the leisure facilities also include a sauna which is used late at night unfortunately we do not have a swimming pool we are on the fifth floor at the moment where the night shift is over these are the days of the seafarers and the technicians are very crowded in this is my kingdom, we no longer have double cabins, which is a great advantage of course, because you have privacy after 12 hours of work, you can retire and relax, read a book or watch TV, However, there is one thing. a mobile network is not available that far away the ship's wi-fi is what connects the ship to the outside world on deck the technicians are preparing to install the rotor blades the men come from different countries the common language is english friendly atmosphere many have known each other for a while even though the offshore industry is relatively young the most demanding task for the technicians begins with lifting the rotor blades into their huge frame the blades are now waiting to be assembled the blade it weighs almost 19 metric tons and we only have 15 to 20 centimeters of space at the top to lift the blade on each side and that requires accuracy and precision in addition to the crane operator at the top of the tower, the tool operator Lifting also has an important task, it is responsible for precise control of the rotor blade, since we only have this space, of course, it may happen that you touch the other blade or some metal strut or something on the blade support, then You can easily damage part of the blade, which of course means immense repair costs later.

The greatest adversary of the technician determines the pace of work and demands full attention we have a maximum wind speed of up to 12 meters per second where we can rise and you can feel it sometimes it works well at 12 meters if the wind comes from the right side if it comes from the wrong side you can see quite well that you are on the limit the tower also moves accordingly it swings slightly the blade moves the base and then works against each other which makes it difficult for the guys to connect on the top of the blade the lifting tool operator controls the intricate movements of the rotor blades with so-called tag lines the main crane operator lifts the rotor blades up and towards the nacelle both have to be closely coordinated can be within millimeters With This, especially for this type of work, when it comes to placing blades and things like that, they need it, very, very precise, very slowly, the rotor blade approaches the contact point on the nacelle hub, okay, yes, stop. which were just here 72 bolts must be placed exactly at the top there is a long pin at the bottom there is a long pin these are called guide pins that have to go into two very specific holes so that the wing is in the correct position to produce enough electricity modular work of a special kind a great set of legos legos for big kids everything is a little bigger and a little heavier but in the end it's just lego which sounds so simple however it requires a highly competent team constantly focused on Every mistake made during installation could cost hundreds of thousands of euros later, so technicians are always aware of their responsibility.

Many people already came, stayed here for a few days and went home. It was too tall, too insecure, not what people assumed a normal job was anyway. Sometimes when you're standing here in the rain or the snow, it's not much fun, but you know the sun will come back and it'll be warm again, so it's your dream job again, but putting up the wind turbines is just part of it, although important. In a wind farm a lot happens in the water around it, so in addition to the installation boat where we are now, which is responsible for assembling the components, there is also a safety boat to secure the construction site, a boat crew transfer to move personnel and materials. between the sites there is a residential ship where the technicians stay during the week, where they also proceed with planning and many other types of ships that are simply essential and responsible for the construction, ten transport ships, the so-called crew transfer ships or ctv, are constantly in operation.

The transfer in the 70 square kilometer construction field sails between the wind turbines the hotel ship and the other larger ships in the construction field most of the time the small, fast boats stay in the middle of the wind farm during the night and do not return to On the mainland, the crews spend the night aboard their CTVs. Water taxis are special vessels, many of them with engines of more than 3,000 horsepower. They bring service crews to the turbines during wind farm construction. The technicians follow the installation boat they are transporting. carry out more work to connect the turbines and prepare them for final commissioning the captains of the ctv push their boats against the towers with all their strength this allows the technicians to climb the installation in conditions of higher waves this is not a job safe crews CTVs are usually made up of six people who spend day and night on their small boat for an entire month working in 12-hour shifts, a common practice in the construction field.

Technicians do two-week rotations, which means they are actually at sea for two weeks. a schedule they pick them up from the hotel boat in the morning they drop them off at the site and they spend the whole day 12 hour shifts at the site you have to be a special kind of person to enjoy that at the edge of the wind farm there is another bigger boat , the Wind Ambition, the former ferry has been converted into a hotel ship. It houses people who also work on the wind farm, but who are not directly involved in the construction of the wind turbines, the planning engineers and service technicians at the end of changing the ctvs pick up the team from the facilities and take them back to the ship From the hotel, loaded with their tools and special equipment, the workers board the hotel's boat and end the day in the old ferry hull.

Instead of cars, there are now rows of containers in which the equipment and material for the technicians, engineers and planners work in specially equipped offices, monitoring from here the construction progress on site and dealing with work in progress for some, this is a welcome change in working life, this is uh Apart from my current office in Hamburg, This is my second office here, where I spend a lot of time during the summer. I don't really care because it's fascinating to be so close to everything that happens when you look out the window and when you see the wind farm, it's completely different to looking at photos on the screen at home, it's a completely different impression and you're much closer.

Of this now that the engineers and logistics experts are still staying on the hotel ship, they will then live in a residential home. platform on the edge of the wind farm by then more than 100 people will live off the wind ambition most of them work on the wind turbines of the wind farm during the day they return in the evening and of course look for a change of pace and entertainment afterwards After a busy day, we are now in the Buda hall, the central hall of the ship, as you can see, not much happens during the day, but there are more than 100 people living on the ship and when you pass by at night, you can see that people use the soccer and poker tables, table tennis or, like on the Pacific Osprey, catering also plays an important role here, but not 24 hours a day, here we are in the restaurant, we have three hot meals a day. day with a selection of different menus, there is something for all tastes and you can serve yourself almost like on a cruiseon special occasions when the weather is good there is also a barbecue on the roof many works in the wind farm are coordinated and controlled from the ambition of the wind spatial proximity has many advantages such as direct contact with the transformer station the transformer station is something like The heart of Dantisk is the interface for transporting electricity via the submarine cable to the mainland.

The substation is 75 meters high and is well protected from inclement weather. North Sea. More than 100 kilometers of submarine cables within the wind farm are composed By laying the cables, a robot buries them at 1 .5 meters deep at the bottom of the sea. This is how electricity will reach the coast safely when the installation work is completed. Dismantling of the Pacific Osprey begins. All supports, fuses and superstructures are custom made for the Duntisk build. The huge frame for the rotor blades is dismantled and everything that is welded is removed. After dismantling, the deck is free for the new superstructure of the next job and perhaps there will be men on board again who already know the ship, men whose dream job is to build a wind farm when completed it will generate 1.4 billion kilowatt hours of electricity per year energy without CO2 pollution enough for one hundred thousand German homes one wind turbine per day thanks to the Pacific Osprey the construction of wind farms is possible in record time A second wind farm is already being built nearby and the construction is planned construction of another wind farm a little further down the road, perhaps a return to the world's largest installation vessel.