Page 53: of Marine Technology Magazine (October 2013)

www.seadiscovery.com Marine Technology Reporter 53GE Dynamic Positioning For Hornbeck?s New Subsea Construction Vessels While astounding technology advances in the maritime and subsea sectors are becoming more common place, the capabilities of modern vessels in the offshore O&G sector are still something to behold. For example, holding a 100-m subsea construction vessel in position as it low- ers with its 250-ton crane, heavy subsea modules to the seabed. GE?s Power Conversion helps to take the guess work out of complex dynamic positioning (DP) opera- tions with its advanced human-machine interface (HMI) and returns ship control to the mariner, so skilled DP operators can once again focus on the task of ship han-dling. When the system is operating in its new ?Energy Ef ciency? mode, it offers the owner/operator reduced fuel consumption with the associated reduction in engine emissions continuing with GE?s global mission for a greener environment. Hornbeck Offshore will employ Power Conversion?s latest generation DP technology for its four new multi- purpose supply vessels (MPSVs). In their role as MPSVs, they can operate as either a subsea construction vessel capable of performing complex subsea construction operations or as a resupply and support vessel to ultra deepwater drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, or anywhere else in the world as required by their charterers. ?The DP solution and its user interface is the heart of a ship?s positioning system. When we can continue to work with a company that knows us, has supplied us with sys- tems in the past and, with our input, can supply us with a next generation system we can rely on, it remarkably enhances our mission to provide value-added business solutions for our own customers,? said Carl G. Annessa, EVP and COO at Hornbeck Offshore. ?By using GE?s next generation solution, we gain ef ciency and  exibil- ity thanks to a commonality of systems, as well as access to a global team of experts.? GE will power, propel and position the new ships by delivering the integrated diesel-electric system includ- ing generators, propulsion and thruster drives, motors, switchboards, LV distribution, transformers, Class 2 DP, power management, alarm and monitoring, vessel control and an integrated bridge system comprising a compre- hensive navigation and communications suite including radars, ECDIS, GMDSS and a full suite of internal and external communications systems. GE is also equipping Hornbeck?s series of 10 platform supply vessels (PSVs), the  rst, HOS Red Dawn was delivered June 21 of this year and has been operating suc- cessfully ever since. Launched in May this year at the Offshore Technology Conference in Houston, Texas, Power Conversion?s latest generation of dynamic positioning rede nes DP with un- precedented  exibility for effective maritime operations. Its advanced HMI returns ship control to the mariner, so skilled DP operators can once again focus on the task of ship handling and be freed from the constraints of com-plex computer interface. MTR #8 (50-64).indd 53MTR #8 (50-64).indd 5310/15/2013 9:59:23 AM10/15/2013 9:59:23 AM