Maritime Developments marks RDS success with Aker delivery

Maritime Developments has successfully delivered its fourth reel drive system (RDS) since the product’s launch last year to a major industry international.

The 500-tonne RDS for Aker Solutions was tested and received by the client at the company’s Peterhead facilities last week and is currently being prepared for shipment to Mobile, Alabama.

Phillip Shepherd, senior engineer for maintenance and facilities at Aker Solutions, said:

“This is a very smooth, very well automated and very sophisticated piece of machinery. We are very impressed.

“Working with Maritime Developments has been fantastic - everything is very well organised, they were very well prepared for our visit and communication has been excellent throughout the whole process.”

Matt Webster, Aker Solutions’ principal technician, has also recognised the factory acceptance test (FAT), carried out by Maritime Developments on site, as a “very well laid out, step by step process.”

The latest RDS was preceded by the delivery of three 400-tonne systems in December 2013, January and July to a number of major global oil and gas businesses.

Mike Gaskin, commercial director at Maritime Developments, said: “This fourth delivery proves we have a solid place in the market and people can trust us. We continue to deliver equipment for emerging and established subsea contractors.”

The Maritime Developments’ reel drive system is road transportable and can be reassembled on the quayside. It features automatic fail-safe clamps as well as an automated raising and lowering system which negates working at height.

The system, available in 400-tonne and 500-tonne specifications, monitors torque on the reel ensuring that it is operated within its design limits.

The four systems delivered so far include Maritime Developments’, which has already been used on three North Sea multi-reel installation projects.

The company is looking to add another reel drive to its equipment fleet within the next few months to address the growing industry demand for the solution.

Patrick Lambie, senior project manager at Maritime Developments, said:

“We’ve received extremely positive client feedback about the reliability and functionality of our systems. Our RDS has gone from what had been a concept to be designed and manufactured four times in under ten months.

“We have now built up this expertise and will continually look to build on it. The more of our equipment that is out in the market, the more it can only help to raise awareness of the quality and reliability of our products.

“Every time we build a piece of equipment we look at what we can do better: what can we learn from the work done so far to improve on quality and functionality, reduce costs, and make it more straightforward to manufacture.”