Crew Transfer Vessel (CTV) operators are driving for more transparency around vessel performance as the market seeks to ‘level the playing field’ in offshore wind support, according to Reygar.
Operators including Seacat Services, CWind, Tidal Transit, High Speed Transfers, and Maritime Craft Services have found that taking data monitoring into their own hands through the installation of the BareFLEET system is an opportunity for commercial development, rather than a hurdle, Reygar, the developer of the system, said.
“We’ve seen the wide-ranging benefits that the digitalisation of operations has had for turbine owners and operators. Rather than waiting for standards to be imposed, it’s time for vessel operators to be proactive in showing their commitment to performance and operational transparency,” said Ian Baylis , Managing Director of Seacat Services.
The drive for transparency has been a long time in the making, coming in response to rising demand from offshore wind project owners for CTV operational and performance data. This data, which includes motion, engine performance, weather conditions and fuel consumption, has a strong influence on procurement decisions as owners look to increase “time on turbine” for their technicians, as well as the overall safety and cost-efficiency of their projects, Reygar said.
To date, however, supplying this data has been seen as a ‘check-box’ requirement. Initiatives such as ‘p-plot’, supported by wind farm owners, have provided a strong model for increasing clarity by looking to formulate a standard to measure the relative operational performance of CTV’s in different sea states. However, this top-down approach to shared data has received a mixed reception from vessel operators, given the perceived commercial risk of opening their data to the market and the cost of gathering and processing the necessary operational data.
Leo Hambro , Commercial Director of Tidal Transit Ltd, said: “There are clear benefits to using data monitoring systems for both CTV operators and site owners. We hope to see the industry moving towards a point where operators work alongside offshore wind farm owners to share the responsibility and cost of data collection for fleets.”
By adopting advanced monitoring systems such as BareFLEET, operators are able to understand the performance of their vessels in different weather conditions and under different crews, Reygar said. Whilst in the short-term, taking the opportunity to drive commercial improvements through increased understanding of vessel performance will set businesses apart, in the long term the sharing of this data will ensure that a level playing field is brought about for the industry as a whole.
“BareFLEET provides a tool for continual improvement that we can tailor to the focuses of each offshore wind client. A customer of ours is particularly interested in the effect of weather conditions on crew transfers, and Reygar has adapted the platform to bring motion measurement front and centre for our daily reports,” Tom Nevin , Managing Director of High Speed Transfers said.
“By comparing this data with engine health and fuel consumption we are able to see where we can save by increasing fuel efficiency under specific conditions. The data also gives the master more confidence in the vessel. We can see how hard the engine was working in specific conditions, and this feeds into guidelines for how they can expect the vessels across our fleet to behave in future.”