Bosch Rexroth BV

Taming rough water

Who do you turn to if you need a drive solution to land your valuable equipment under rough sea conditions in a fully controlled way?

Who is able to skid a platform module out, place it by floating over on the jacket and decommission the whole platform at the end of its lifetime?

This kind of service is available from the Bosch Rexroth Systems & Engineering division. As a system integrator and hydraulics manufacturer Bosch Rexroth already has over 50 years of experience in the elimination of the adverse effects of wave movements. Based on its longterm experience with hydraulic, mechanical, electrical and pneumatic technologies the company can also provide all the necessary support in 15 different industry segments.

In fact, no matter the challenge, Bosch Rexroth BV has the answer to offshore drive and control questions. Whether high in the derrick or deep down under water, its system solutions are accurate, reliable and cost effective, and specially designed for the environment in which they are to be used.

Part of the worldwide Bosch Group, this division is considered one of the most important international specialists in the area of motion control applications. The separate line of business Offshore & Dredging is particularly engaged in the development of solutions for the oil and natural gas industry (offshore), the dredging industry and the maritime sector.

Dredging is one of the specialties of this Boxtel, Netherlands-based division. The Netherlands has a long dredging tradition, which is why Bosch Rexroth’s Systems & Engineering Centre of Competence for the dredge industry is located in this country.

The dredge industry depends on reliable, specialised drive and control technology. If essential systems such as the hydraulics on board a dredger failed it would mean that the ship couldn’t perform its duty, and ports, rivers or canals could not be deepened or maintained and land reclamation processes would stop. Without the many and almost non-stop dredging operations worldwide, much of the world’s commerce would be impaired, often within a few months, since much of world’s goods travel by ship, and need to access harbours or seas via channels. The majority and especially the world’s largest and complex installations and vessels of the dredging fleet are equipped with Rexroth drive and controls. The dredge technology available covers hopper dredgers, cutter dredgers and split barges and includes bottom doors, predumping doors, front and ladder winches, spudhandling, hydraulic cylinders and interconnecting piping.

In addition to the dredging vessels, Bosch Rexroth Systems & Engineering is experienced with the drive and control installations of a wide range of offshore applications and special vessels, particularly heave compensation, skidding, jacking and deck mating.

In the area of deck mating, Bosch Rexroth has recently completed a significant contract in Nigeria. This involved the placement of a topside of 2500 mT on its foundation. The topside, produced in Korea by Hyundai Heavy Industry for the Escravos Gas Project EGP-3A, was brought in position by means of a float over procedure.

Bosch Rexroth was responsible for the concept design, manufacturing, assembly and testing of the deck-mating system, as well as for the correct execution of placing the topside on the piles. Later in 2007 a larger Bosch Rexroth system will come in action for the float over of 12,000 mT topside for the EPC-1B project in the East Area Gas field.

The active heave compensators and deckmating and removal systems developed by Bosch Rexroth are characterised by sophisticated combinations of measuring and control technology and reliable hydraulics and are successfully applied on a worldwide level.

The Bosch Rexroth deck-mating concept is modular – this means systems can quickly and economically be built in any desired capacity and configuration. The system, applied for the EGP- 3A, consists of four stand alone 1500 mT Deck mating Modules (DMMs), controlled by the central control system. Each DMM comprises a HPU, two 750 mT cylinders with an integrated measuring system and first-rate ceramic rod coating (Ceramax), a local control panel, a fast retract N2-system and interfacing piping.

Both in the drive system and the control system, strict attention is paid to increased safety through over capacity, redundancy, synchrony of the cylinders, extra sensors and transmitters and advanced control loops with periodic system checks. Even in case of cylinder failure the operation can be completed safely and accurately.

The modular deck-mating systems developed by Bosch Rexroth mean that the season during which, in the offshore world, topsides can be securely and economically placed or removed on the open seas can be drastically extended. In case of heavy seas the company’s sophisticated hydraulic technology makes it possible to place topsides on the piles of offshore platforms with great precision. This knowledge of the procedures and experience with often hostile maritime conditions is crucial for clients.

Like no one else, Bosch Rexroth is capable of engineering state-of-the-art technology for elevating, transporting, positioning and installing extreme heavy loads. Float-over barges, floating cranes and special vessels have been equipped with Bosch Rexroth systems, all over the world.

Bosch Rexroth BV

Industry: Drive and control solutions