At the end of May, South Shields based Solar Solve Marine dispatched 60 of their SOLASAFE® anti-glare roller sunscreens to Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) in South Korea for installation at the wheelhouse windows of Subsea 7’s state-of-the-art, new heavy construction/Flexlay vessel, the Seven Arctic.
With a number of key capabilities, which include a 600 tonne vertical lay system (VLS), a unique 900 tonne knuckle boom rope-luffing crane, 2600 m² of deck space, two work-class Remotely Operated Vehicles and a 700 tonne underdeck basket for the storage of flexible pipe and umbilicals, the Seven Arctic will provide a step change in the management of ever more complex deepwater subsea field development projects.
Dr Stuart N Smith, Vice President Asset Development at Subsea 7 said, “This vessel offers our clients the opportunity to install larger, heavier infrastructure components more efficiently and effectively.”
Seven Arctic is designed for year-round global deployment in complex deep and ultra-deepwater offshore construction operations where highest levels of load-handling precision and reliability is required. After delivery in the second half of 2016, the vessel will assist with Subsea 7’s US$300 million contract to develop the Maria field in the Norwegian Sea by constructing and installing 95 km of rigid pipelines and associated structures at a depth of around 300 metres .
The 60 SOLASAFE® screens will be installed at the windows surrounding the central navigation bridge and control centres. They will be available as a safety aid to assist both the navigators and operators to perform their intricate tasks with minimal interference and distraction from solar heat and glare or cold and dazzle from ice, snow and fog, depending on external weather conditions.
John Lightfoot, Solar Solve’s chairman commented, “Since providing sunscreens for another vessel, Rockwater 1, in 1996, we have been supplying SOLASAFE® screens to Subsea 7 vessels for 20 years and we like to think that they are instrumental in creating a good working environment for the people who benefit from them. Their job must be potentially very stressful but it is my experience that Subsea 7 are thoughtful owners who do all they can to eliminate unnecessary stress for their on-board personnel.”
“At Solar Solve we are very proud of the good relationship we have with Subsea 7 and work very hard to ensure that we retain it.”
