The world’s largest pile-driving vessel delivered by ZPMCThe world’s largest pile-driving vessel delivered by ZPMC

The delivery of the world’s largest pile driving vessel is seen as marking a milestone for China’s marine engineering equipment manufacturing industry.

The vessel Erhang Changqing features the world's highest derrick at the stern, with the largest piling capacity and strongest resistance to wind and waves, which is also designed to be more environmentally friendly and intelligent comparing with the traditional piling vessels.

The vessel, built by Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries (ZPMC), measures 130.5 metres in length, 40.8 metres beam, and 8.4 metres in depth, equipped with a 150-meter-high derrick, capable of handling massive pile foundations weighing up to 700 tonnes with a diameter of seven meters.

According to ZPMC a technological breakthrough on board the vessel is the critical component of an oil cylinder, which is fully self-developed and weighs 385 tonnes, with a nearly two-meter diameter and a world record-breaking length of 28 metres. The oil cylinder is the heaviest and tallest in the world, as tall as a 10-story building.

The vessel's advanced position system can also ensures incredible precision during the operation.