Requirements for a successful deepwater recovery

Black laser learning, a marine education website, is talking about us!

You will learn more about requirements for a successful deepwater recovery in this article:

"So what’s it take to recover three nine-ton engines from over 14,000 fsw (feet of sea water) in the deep ocean?

The first requirement is to obtain a vessel that has the capacity to stage one, if not two, remotely-controlled deep ocean robots. These robots are known as remotely operated vehicles or by the acronym ROV, and had to be capable of working three miles beneath the ocean’s surface. The ship must also include the capability to retrieve heavy loads. Even with today’s advances in ocean technology and shipbuilding, this combination of requirements is rare. Most vessels that support the oil and gas industry limit operations to approximately 10,000 fsw or slightly more than 3,000 meters. Special equipment is essential to work deeper and to be able to make a recovery of this magnitude.

In addition to the sub-surface capabilities, the final prerequisite for the ship was a sub-meter navigation system, providing absolute control of the ship’s position and heading critical to a deepwater salvage operation.

This high-tech navigation is known as dynamic positioning (DP), which utilizes GPS and a host of other sensors to maintain the ship’s position precisely over a target located two miles below her keel. Not only did the recovery vessel have to meet all the technical capabilities but additional requirements included office and conference room space along with the ability to feed and house over sixty personnel for 30 continuous days at sea.

One vessel which met all the aforementioned requirements was the M/V Seabed Worker based in Bergen, Norway. The ship had successfully performed numerous deep water salvage operations and was the best-equipped single vessel for the team’s requirements.

The Seabed Worker towers six stories over the ocean’s surface. The vessel is over 290 feet long, weighing in at almost 4,000 tons. She is a technological marvel from her seven-million-dollar ROVs to her bridge equipped like the Starship Enterprise.

The traditional ship’s wheel has been replaced with a joystick and dozens of computer screens. Every aspect of the ship is monitored and controlled by computer systems. A series of thrusters and her unique Voith Schneider propulsion system can maintain that position even when wind and currents are pushing her massive bulk eight knots sideways.

The Voith Schneider system is unique in that there are no propellers nor rudder, only vertical blades which rotate and change pitch. These rotating vertical blades provide thrust from any azimuth, eliminating the need for rudders, affording excellent maneuverability, especially when trying to maintain an exact position..."

Read full article: http://www.blacklaserlearning.com/adventure/the-right-stuff-for-a-deepwater-recovery/

More interesting articles about the Apollo F-1 engine recovery:

http://www.blacklaserlearning.com/adventure/operations-of-the-f-1-engine-recovery/

http://www.blacklaserlearning.com/adventure/the-apollo-f-1-engine-recovery/

http://www.blacklaserlearning.com/adventure/apollo-f-1-engine-returns-to-cape-canaveral/