On 14th June, Damen Shipyards Group delivered a Fast Crew Supplier (FCS) 1605 to Allseas to support the Pioneering Spirit – the largest construction vessel in the world. The FCS 1605 will perform fast crew and personnel transfers to and from the vessel.
Damen signed the contract for the vessel, named Ricochet, on 15th March. The delivery was fast as a result of Damen’s practice of building its vessels in series for stock. When Allseas placed its order with Damen, the FCS 1605 was already built. In order to prepare it for delivery, Damen has fitted the vessel with the latest in lightweight fender technology.
Damen has also supplied Allseas with the cradles with which to lift the vessel aboard the Pioneering Spirit, ensuring that she is able to operate wherever the larger vessel is undertaking a project.
Ricochet will replace two older vessels that currently perform her role. She features waterjets that enable her to sail quickly – up to 30 knots – and to manoeuvre well at low speed.
The FCS 1605 will join a Damen Pushy Cat 804, named Nutshell, already aboard the Pioneering Spirit. This vessel performs a number of duties in support of the vessel, including line handling.
Marius Huige Allseas’ head of technical services, said, “We needed a vessel with sufficient seats that could move at high speeds and yet be fuel efficient. The lightweight aluminium design of the FCS 1605 takes care of this. What’s more, due to Damen having the vessel in stock, we were able to take delivery very quickly.”
Damen sales manager Benelux Joost van der Weiden said, “We are very pleased to deliver this vessel to Allseas to support the work of the iconic Pioneering Spirit. The FCS 1605 has proven to be a strong and successful design and I have every confidence that it will meet Allseas’ requirements perfectly. On behalf of Damen I wish Allseas all the best with Ricochet.”
Pioneering Spirit was designed in-house by Allseas for the installation and decommissioning of offshore structures. Capable of lifting platform topsides up to 48,000 tons and jackets up to 20,000 tons in a single piece, the twin-hulled vessel is 382 metres long and 124 metres wide.