K-Walk is intended to efficiency and safety of walk2work access for installation and maintenance of offshore windfarms. The sysyem will be integrated with the advanced Kongsberg Information Management System (K-IMS) and the existing K-Pos Dynamic Positioning system on board Olympic Orion, with installation and upgrade work due to take place in the second half of 2017.
Kongberg first launched the concept of full integration of its walk2work gangway with a vessel’s DP and automated manoeuvring system last autumn, and says it represents a “step change” in the safe and efficient transfer of people at sea.
The gangway can first swing into place as the vessel approaches a wind turbine before it automatically hooks up, with a lift incorporated to ease the transfer of people and goods, including electric trolleys (under design) for the movement of pallets.
Olympic Subsea coo Bjørn Kvalsund says the company is delighted to select Kongsberg’s “now fully integrated system” and is considering installing it system on other vessel types “in order to provide W2W services into an expanding and interesting market segment”.
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