atmosphere pressure, temperature and humidity. The data buoy also records current direction and speed, wave height, significant wave height, wave period, wave direction and tells the position of the buoy.
From receiving the order to the buoys being deployed, the project took approximately three to four months and Hydrosphere will continue to work with Moray East over the next three years to ensure the ongoing success of the buoys deployed there.
Advanced Weather Forecasting
Using iridium satellite communication, the buoys’ sensors report back through Port-Log, a web interface that displays environmental data from a range of different monitoring systems. Far more specific than the type seen in television forecasts, this data is then forwarded to commercial organisations looking to offer their specialist weather forecasting services to the offshore wind industry or oil
and gas companies working offshore.
At present, the data is being used by StormGeo, one of the largest and fastest-growing global providers of weather intelligence – and a trusted partner for companies requiring decision support for weather-sensitive operations. Weatherquest, a private weather forecasting and weather analysis company, is also currently using the data provided by the buoys.
The Future of Offshore Renewables
Hydrosphere had previously supplied similar buoys to other ports and harbours, meaning the product had already been thoroughly tried and tested: a key reason Moray East chose to work with the supplier. However, every buoy is different, and it was important to customise these new buoys to suit the environment.
By combining the navigation and data buoy, Hydrosphere’s solution means fewer buoys are
First Subsea Secures Floating Offshore Wind Dynamic Bend Stiffener Connectors for
Kincardine Project First Subsea has secured a second contract with Spanish developer and construction company, Cobra Group, to provide Dynamic Bend Stiffener Connectors for the Kincardine Floating Offshore Windfarm.
Following the initial supply to the pilot turbine last year, a further eleven connectors will be supplied to the 50 MW Kindcardine floating offshore windfarm project, 15km offshore Aberdeen.
The Floating Offshore Wind Dynamic Bend Stiffener Connector is based upon a joint development between First Subsea and Trelleborg, utilizing established knowledge and expertise
from First Subsea on offshore mechanical connection systems and from Trelleborg on dynamic bend protection of flexible pipelines, umbilicals and cables for life of field.
Comprising primarily of a diverless subsea connector and a conical polymer bend stiffener, the connector system attaches around the power cable and is pulled into a female receptacle on the floating wind turbine platform. The connection is secured quickly and safely in a single pull-in operation, locking in for immediate service.
During the normal operational lifespan of a windfarm, Trelleborg’s Njord DBS (Dynamic Bend Stiffener) provides
continuous over-bending and fatigue protection of the cable at the critical foundation entry point whilst the cable and the foundation move in the dynamic offshore sea conditions.
Greg Campbell-Smith, Sales and Business Development Director, First Subsea, advises, “The Diverless Bend Stiffener Connector’s unique feature is that it can be easily disconnected and reconnected if the turbine is recovered and towed back to the quayside for service.”
Under the same collaboration, First Subsea and Trelleborg have previously supplied Diverless Bend Stiffener Connectors on the Japanese Floating Offshore Wind project, Fukushima.
December 2019
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needed – helping to reduce the time and cost of maintenance and presenting an exciting new opportunity for the use of buoys in monitoring offshore renewables.
As the renewable energy industry continues to grow and more offshore resources are developed, significant investment in data buoys will be crucial to help reduce costs and improve operational efficiency. These environmental data monitoring tools will play a key role in making offshore renewables, such as wind farms, a success in the years to come as data buoys help to keep the renewable energy industry turning.
q +44 (0)1420 520374 E
sales@hydrosphere.co.uk H
www.hydrosphere.co.uk
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