Steel Structures News

Underwater welding is one of the most demanding and hazardous tasks in the maritime and offshore world, relying heavily on a small, highly specialized pool of industrial divers. As port infrastructure ages and offshore structures expand, demand for underwater repair continues to outpace available manpower. A new research project out of Germany aims to fundamentally change that equation.Led by the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence, the MARIOW (Maritime AI-Guided…

Wind propulsion company bound4blue has expanded its industrial footprint in Asia with the establishment of new production capabilities in China, alongside the signing of strategic regional partnerships to accelerate adoption of its proven eSAIL® suction sail technology.This allows bound4blue to manufacture near the yards where their systems will be integrated, both for newbuildings and for vessels calling in Asia for retrofit.Production in China will be handled through a network of outsourced industrial partners with strong naval and offshore manufacturing capabilities.

ABS issued approval in principle (AIP) to Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) for its HyfloWind Float, a hybrid floating offshore wind structure designed to enhance production efficiency and streamline deployment processes.The HyfloWind Float features a concrete-based steel composite design, diverging from traditional all-steel structures. This approach facilitates local fabrication in regions where steel manufacturing capabilities are limited, helping lower the costs associated with importing steel.

Germany-based protective coatings innovator Steelpaint GmbH is urging shipowners, shipyards, and port authorities with steel assets to prioritize surface preparation, advising that skimping on this critical step in the application process is leading to premature coating failures, costly repairs, and increased safety risks.The advisory follows a recent request to apply its single-component, moisture-cure Stelcatec to a steel structure that had not been properly prepared, with high…

Japan-based Toray Industries has secured type approval from the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) for the vacuum-assisted resin transfer molding (VaRTM) process for in-situ ship repairs, developed jointly with MODEC.The technique entails applying carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) to corroded areas with reduced thicknesses of floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) and floating storage and offloading (FSO) systems.ABS is one of the world’s leading classification societies, accounting for around half of FPSO and FSO certifications.

Van Oord’s Svanen vessel has received a major upgrade which increased its total height to 125 meters, making it one of the largest heavy-lift vessels in the world suitable for handling the next generation of monopile foundations for offshore wind.Svanen grew 25 meters taller with the installation of an A-framed gantry extension, weighing 1,200 tonnes, on top of the vessel.The extension had been constructed by Holland Shipyard. One of the largest cranes in the world was used for the installation at Mammoet Schiedam.Besides the gantry extension…

The wall climbing robot for steel structures - developed by Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Sumitomo Heavy Industries, and MOL Ship Management  to support ship inspection and maintenance - has completed a demonstration test and earned the Nippon Kaiji Kyokai (ClassNK) Innovation Endorsement.The Innovation Endorsement is ClassNK's third-party certification program. It certifies and supports initiatives that contribute to the sustainable evolution of maritime and offshore businesses.The robot…

Retrofit specialist GLO Marine and expert in propulsion systems VMS Group have teamed up to expand their collaboration into comprehensive retrofits and vessel modifications, with a primary focus on decarbonization initiatives.In a strategic move towards advancing sustainable maritime practices, the GLO Marine-VMS Group partnership will prioritize retrofit projects and vessel modifications that align with the latest green technologies.The partnership stems from a series of ‘seamlessly executed’ retrofit project installations…

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) announced over $653 million to fund 41 port improvement projects across the nation under the Port Infrastructure Development Program (PIDP).The investments—part of the largest dedicated funding for ports and waterways in history, nearly $17 billion through the President’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law—are intended to help grow capacity and increase efficiency at coastal seaports, Great Lakes ports and inland…

Italian companies Comau and Fincantieri presented today  the first result of their joint collaboration with Automatica: MR4Weld (Mobile Robot for Weld), a mobile robot, an innovative outdoor automation solution, designed to improve the quality, performance and well-being of operators during labor-intensive welding activities.The MR4Weld mobile robot is being tested and will be used in the Fincantieri shipyards to autonomously weld steel structures, with the possibility of increasing operations up to to 3 times compared to a manual process…

As the dust settles from Wednesday's California floating wind auction, and developers begin to discuss their plans, energy industry intelligence firm Intelatus says development of the floating wind manufacturing and installation supply chain must speed up.Developers are beginning to release details of their bids for yesterday’s California floating wind auction. The successful bidders for the two north California Humboldt sites, RWE and CIP, both bid the highest prices per square kilometer of lease area.

The ABS Requirements for Bonded and Composite Repairs of Steel Structures and Piping is the latest in a portfolio of technical requirements from the classification organization to support the marine and offshore industries.Particularly with offshore structures that remain at their operation sites for long periods of time, corrosive damage is frequently discovered yet difficult to repair using traditional methods that involve hot work welding and drydocking. Instead, adhesively bonded repairs can be used which can reduce operational downtime, minimize disruption onboard and reduce safety risks.The new ABS document adds clear details for…

Bureau Veritas delivered an Approval in Principle to COLD PAD, an industrial start-up, for its C-Claw technology, a heavy-duty fastener for steel structures that is non-intrusive (no hole and no hot work is required). It was designed as an alternative to welding and drilling for the maritime and offshore sectors. The technology offers a quick fastening solution for any structural outfitting, maintenance and modification operations, including works on cable trays, pipe supports, skids, handrails, or ladders.

The Danish provider of mobile robotic welding and adaptive multi-pass welding technologies, Inrotech has partnered withGullco International, a manufacturer of automated welding and cutting carriages, modular automation, and custom automation solutions.The two companies will use their partnership to strengthen their customer offerings and market position. With this partnership, both companies combine their knowledge together and offer smart, easy-to-use automation solutions equipped with intelligent software and scanning technology for the growing need for welding automation technology…

XLCC, the new high-voltage direct current (HVDC), renewable energy focused business in the U.K., said it has completed the concept design for a new cable laying vessel for planned delivery in the first half of 2025.The newbuild is slated to support the Morocco – UK Power Project, XLCC's first client project, through the delivery of four 3,800km subsea HVDC cables from a wind and solar generation site in Morocco to the U.K.Alan Mathers, XLCC director, said, “Our vessel will be, on delivery, the most sophisticated, capable and green cable layer in the world.

Danish offshore energy industry services firms Bladt Industries and Semco Maritime have been awarded a contract to deliver substations for Dominion Energy's Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project in the U.S.The contract comprises three 880 MW offshore substations, which will be established in 2021-2025 and commissioned in 2026."The three substations will constitute the backbone of the electrical infrastructure for the 2.6 GW Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project. The contract is Bladt Industries’ and Semco Maritime’s third offshore substation project in the U.S.

The U.S. Navy has many assets other than its seaborn vessels to care for, and recently it adopted new standards to protect those that are fuel-related. Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) contracted with Master Painter Institute (MPI) services to establish product standards for interior carbon-steel fuel pipes, interior welded fuel tanks, exterior steel systems and waterfront steel structures. These new standards, known as the MPI 500 Series Standards, are for use in numerous aspects of work involving specialized Department of Defense (DoD) petroleum…

BAE Systems received a $83.5 million contract from the U.S. Navy to modernize the guided-missile destroyers USS Carney (DDG 64) and USS Winston S Churchill (DDG 81). The modernization work will be performed sequentially by the company’s shipyard in Jacksonville, Fla. The contract include options that, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value to $211.6 million.The USS Carney will be first in the shipyard, arriving in September 2020. The 23-year-old ship just returned from a six year operational period in Rota…

Damen Shiprepair Harbor & Voyage (DSHV) has signed a joint partnership cooperation with Verolme Special Equipment for the provision of services to exhaust gas cleaning systems (EGCS), widely known as marine scrubbers. The agreement arose from a mutual understanding that both parties’ clients were seeking wider availability of services for on board scrubber installations – either in port or underway. The partnership will create a leading global service provider of EGCS, supporting cleaner…

Finland's Aalto University and the compatriot  shipbuilding company Meyer Turku have signed an agreement that will strengthen and develop multidisciplinary research and education collaboration as well as give a boost to expert cooperation."We want Finland to be the leading country in maritime technology and science development in the world. At the same time, we are constantly looking to attract new talent to work for us and so need to be present at Aalto campus and in the academic lives of the students. The agreement is a very natural extension to the already good cooperation with Aalto University," Meyer Turku CEO Jan Meyer said. "The combination of different fields and close multidisciplinary collaboration of Aalto University are an excellent foundation for innovation…

Royal IHC (IHC), a Netherlands-based player in design and construction activities for the specialist maritime sector, and compatriot Breman Machinery, a company that makes components for the builders of machinery, have signed an agreement to cooperate on building complex and steel structures with high tolerances and high precision as part of the tender to replace the Royal Netherlands Navy’s Walrus-class submarines.IHC is competing in the tender as a partner of the highly experienced Naval Group. If the group goes a stage further in the process – which will be announced in a so-called ‘B-letter’ – it will be able to draw on Breman’s extensive expertise and experience.IHC and Breman have been working together for decades on various shipbuilding projects…

Mexican crane and heavy haulage contractor ESEASA used its Liebherr LR 13000 crawler crane for the first time to load oil platforms onto barges at the port city of Tampico.Tampico is on the Gulf of Mexico and is a major industrial center with its own port. A large number of industrial companies have made their homes on the banks of the Rio Pánuco, to enable them to ship their freight down the river to the sea.ESEASA also has a company site directly on the banks of the waterway. The company is currently manufacturing seven oil platforms there for state oil group PEMEX. These were hoisted onto barges in component form by the LR 13000 before being transported to the south of the Gulf of Mexico.The loads for hoisting were gigantic.

The Finnish shipbuilder Rauma Marine Constructions (RMC) won the contract from the Finnish Ministry of Defence for the construction of four new Pohjanmaa-class naval vessels, for the total cost of EUR 1.3 billion.The design phase will resume with immediate effect and construction of the first vessel will start at the shipyard in 2022. The Finnish Government approved the procurement, valued at approximately EUR 700 million, yesterday, September 19, 2019.Rauma Marine Constructions Oy and the Finnish Defence Forces will formally sign the agreement for the construction of the multipurpose corvettes on September 26, 2019. CEO Jyrki Heinimaa is pleased that Rauma’s long traditions of building Finnish naval ships will continue.