Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V. recently released a video showing the capabilities of trailing suction hopper dredgers.
Trailing suction hopper dredgers (TSHDs) can fill their own holds (hoppers) by sucking material from the seabed using a trailing suction head fitted to pipes that trail over the bed as the ship sails.
TSHDs are meant to operate independently of other equipment and are able to transport the dredged material over long distances.
The material can then be deposited through hatches in the bottom of the ship or by rainbowing. It can also be pumped ashore through a pipeline for land reclamation.
Boskalis has around 30 trailing suction hopper dredgers in its fleet, including two of the world’s largest, the Queen of the Netherlands and the Fairway.