Upgrading eleven cranes of the Pioneering Spirit
During this period there were always at least two software engineers from EPMC Europe Crane Solutions on board
EPMC Europe Crane Solutions started a major long-term project (nine months) on board the Pioneering Spirit, the world’s largest heavy lift construction vessel which is 382 meters long and 124 metres wide. The work involved supervision of the commissioning/Lloyd’s certification of the eleven cranes on board in partnership with the crane manufacturer ZPMC, as well as updates/modifications of the PLC software.
Software updates
During this period there were always at least two software engineers from EPMC Europe Crane Solutions on board. Once the ZPMC cranes were placed on the ship, Allseas Engineering drew up lists with remaining points and improvement points. The software engineers from EPMC managed, studied and analysed these lists before deciding on the necessary updates and modifications, in close consultation with the electricians and crane operators on board to ensure the best possible results. This led to significant improvements in the safety, performance and user-friendliness of the cranes. The cranes are Lloyds certified and a “Software Change Request” (SCRs) was written for each software modification to ensure that the cranes continue to comply with the requirements. Following various software modifications, all safety features were retested and approved by Lloyds.
Mechanical improvements
In addition to software modifications and improvements, EPMC Europe Crane Solutions also checked the mechanical parts and installations to ensure that they comply with the current standards. Any construction faults were promptly rectified. For example, we inspected the slewing movements of the pipe transfer cranes and studied the stability, maximum starting torque and braking torque on the Gantry travelling motion. For the pipe transfer cranes, we came up with an excellent solution to increase the speed of the lifting motion within the existing capacities that significantly shortens the cycle. We provided and implemented solutions for other issues resulting in significant improvements in the performance and user comfort of the various cranes on board the Pioneering Spirit.
Supervision
Since not all the ZPMC cranes were fully constructed during the manufacturing process in Korea, EPMC Europe Crane Solutions was asked by Allseas Engineering to supervise this process in the Port of Rotterdam. A tight planning schedule was essential since the work visas of the ZPMC people would expire within three months. EPMC Europe Crane Solutions kept a tight rein to ensure that all the necessary work was completed by the deadline and so that all cranes could be approved by Lloyds within the given time window. All in all, a very successful project on board of the world’s largest crane ship!