3 Mad Weeks in March
Sam Bourne - Technical Operations Manager
2024 started with the final assembly of the FastRig Test Rig base arrangement at the Caley Ocean Systems shed in Renfrew, Glasgow. The site used to be owned by Babcock and produced much of the UK's power infrastructure in the 70’s and 80’s. The sheds have seen a lot of history. But….. they are cold, particularly in the winter in west of Scotland!
By the time February rolled around, we were well into the commissioning and factory testing phase and brining the system to life. It is an exciting moment to see the first movements of the mechanical systems on the factory floor.
In the shed next door, Malin Marine Equipment was completing the last parts of assembly of the 20-metre 2-element solid wing sail in one of the largest single fabrication spaces in the West of Scotland at G2.
Once the detailed factory acceptance testing had been successfully completed, it was time to make the break from the shed and head to the test site.
The allotted day of February 28 dawned wet, cold, and windy—a typical late February Glasgow day.
The lights of the shed burned brightly in the dull dawn light.
The base assembly was lifted by the twin overhead gantry cranes, weighed, and transferred to the waiting low loader to be secured for transport.
By 0900, the load was rolling out of the yard, heading for Hunterston!
Meanwhile, down at former Marine Fabrication Yard Hunterston Parc, a 90-tonne mobile crane from Global Crane Services was being set up along with supporting technicians to carry out the installation.
The stiff breeze was moderating, the rain was clearing, the crane driver was happy, the truck driver was happy, and we were ready to lift. The chains were hooked up, and the base assembly was slowly and carefully lifted and slewed over the concrete foundation. A hold was called with the base suspended about 250mm off the bolts to check alignment. Then, slowly, it inched down on the hook to engage with the foundation bolts. There is nowhere to hide now.
The moment when it perfectly slipped over every bolt was very satisfying and a huge testament to the skilled work of many engineers and technicians. The sense of relief was enormous!
After levelling and securing, the initial installation and commissioning of the hydro-mechanical systems and control systems took place over the next few days. Swiftly followed by an expert team of concrete technicians from Concrete Repairs Ltd to pour the final levelling compound under the structure on a usually warm and dry weekend in early March.
The next big day in the diary was March 6.
The day before, we had loaded the flaps, nose sections, and other components onto trailers for transport to Hunterston. Then carefully lifted, weighed, and loaded the Wing onto a specialist 30-metre extending trailer with West of Scotland Heavy Haulage. The long vehicle permits restricted the load and the escort vehicle from moving until early evening, and at 1800, the convoy rolled out of Westway in Renfrew.
A slow and wet drive around the M8, M77, and A78 to Hunterston was on the menu for the evening, with arrival at Hunterston planned for 2100. We rolled through the gates bang on time at Hunterston, and the truck laid up for the night.
The following morning dawned bright and calm. Whoever was saying their prayers must have done overtime! In the bright March sunshine, the Wing rolled onto the site at 0830.
Simultaneously, two mobile cranes from Global Crane Services were setting up for the tandem lift. The trailer was reversed into position, the crane positions were checked and confirmed, and the chains and strops were connected up.
Then the light breeze completely shut down…… This was now simply perfect lifting conditions!
Slowly but surely, Tommy the Lift Master directed the cranes to take weight and lift the wing from the trailer. Then boom down to position the wing merely inches from the face of the slewing bearing. With technicians from Malin carefully guiding it into place, the wing was delicately slid into engagement with the slewing bearing and the first bolts inserted. We were home! The sixty 30mm high tensile bolts to secure the wing to the slewing bearing were inserted and tensioned.
At the other end of the wing, the head support was being fixed in position with a final pour of levelling compound. With the support properly positioned, we unloaded and removed the cranes to leave the wing fully connected to the base arrangement.
A massive day.
And a lot of relieved and happy faces as we sat in the afternoon sunshine for a team photo. We called ourselves ‘The Wingmen’.
The next few days were a tightly coordinated frenzy of activity between a team from Reekie Machining tensioning the base foundation bolts, Caley techs connecting all the internal wing electrical and hydraulic systems, and Malin techs fitting the nose fairings and the trailing edge flap elements.
The real moment of truth was approaching. The first lift…..
Once final checks had been made on all systems and load-sensing systems, we were ready to lift. The action of lifting from the horizontal would put the wing spar, hydraulic systems, and supporting structure under the maximum load. Enough brave biscuits had been consumed and washed down with a restorative brew, it was time.
Slowly, almost imperceptibly, the wing lifted a few inches from the head stand and held. Technicians were eagerly listening out for any creaks or groans from the structure and watching the data streams from the monitoring systems like hawks. It was entirely nominal. Almost boring! We then inched the wing up to 10 degrees and ran another series of checks before lowering it to the stand again. With no contrary indications, we proceeded to lift to 45 degrees, 80 degrees, and then up to 90 degrees, engaging the locking mechanism for the first time.
We had done it! Another really significant day, another huge sense of relief amongst the team.
3 mad weeks in March.
Huge thanks to all the specialist contractors who were involved. A real pleasure to work with each and every one of you.