New fixed jib configuration for the Mammoet SK6000 enables 3,000-tonne lifts at 220m

Fixed bottom turbines and their foundations are growing fast, so that projects can be built further from the coast where winds are stronger and greater yields can be achieved. As a result, jackets and monopiles are reaching both the height and weight capacity of the world’s largest cranes.

As the industry moves towards 20MW turbines, floating wind components continue to grow in size and weight. This increases the need for a modular approach, to speed up the construction process and allow developers to install more floating turbines in reduced weather windows.

With the launch of the SK6000, Mammoet is providing the next generation crane needed to install next generation turbines. Now, with its existing, patented, fixed jib configuration, lifts of 3,000 tonnes at 220m height become a reality.

This new fixed jib configuration allows lifts of 3,000 tonnes at 220m. This enables the crane to load out floating foundations using its main boom, and then immediately use its fixed jib to assemble the turbine tower. No reconfiguration will be necessary between scopes, further improving build efficiency.

Mammoet technical expert Jeremy Haylock, said: “We don’t look at the SK as ‘just’ a crane, but we look at it as a system as well. If you look at the SK of today compared to when it was first launched, it has evolved considerably. This isn’t a surprise because it was always the basis of our original design philosophy, and we wanted to develop a product that would be scalable and agile. Because the world is developing so quickly, and the changes around us are so vast, our aim was to deliver a product that would allow us to grow in real time with our customers.”

The SK6000 fixed jib is the latest evolution in a crane series that allows small adjustments to have a large effect on performance, avoiding the need to research, develop and fabricate an entirely new crane.

Haylock added: “As with every part of the SK, when we developed the fixed jib, we wanted to include room for growth. With the SK6000 jib we are employing that additional capacity through small adjustments to the original design. The fixed jib is fully forward and backward compatible through the SK series, meaning our customers can realize its potential, regardless of the application.”

Mammoet created the SK6000 based on the design of its existing SK190 and SK350 cranes to keep pace with the increasing size of FPSO and FLNG modules. Capable of lifting 6,000t, the crane can lower many floating foundation designs directly into the water and assemble wind turbines from a single position. With a maximum hook height of over 175m and a reach of 144m, it can install turbines at towering heights, even when towers lie at the centre of the floating foundation. Mammoet plans to incorporate the new jib design into its future offshore wind project proposals, for deployment to a suitable project at the first possible opportunity.