CAPE Holland extracted a wind turbine foundation monopile at the Maasvlakte area in Rotterdam last week, as part of a demonstration project for its CAPE Vibro Lifting Tool (VLT).
The 4m diameter pile was installed in May 2016 for the purpose of demonstration, which resulted in loosening and extracting the pile completely in 12 minutes.
Although a single CV-320 VLT-U was sufficient for both the installation and extraction of the 130t pile, multiple VLTs can be coupled to enable handling, upending, installation and extraction of piles weighing up to 1600t, according to CAPE Holland.
“The VLT is a lifting tool and a vibro hammer in one, making it a perfect tool to contribute to significant costs savings in the offshore wind industry for both the installation as the decommissioning at the end of live of a wind farm,” the company sad.