Vroon announced last Friday that the newest addition to the Company’s fleet, VOS Start, was Christened on July 20th, 2017. In a ceremony held at Damen Shiprepair in Amsterdam, the vessel was named by Mrs Tracie Moyes from MHI Vestas Offshore.

VOS Start named in a ceremony at Damen Shiprepair, Amsterdam
Photos of VOS Start naming ceremony courtesy of Johannes Dalhuijsen Beeldproductie

VOS Start, Vroon’s first subsea-support walk-to-work vessel has been purpose built to support offshore operations in today’s Renewable industry and walk-to-work projects in the Oil & Gas industry. The vessel is equipped with a Bargemaster next-generation, motion-compensated gangway system and an active heave-compensated crane.

Offshore wind parks consist of as many as 100 individual wind turbines, connected by infield cables to transformer stations. The construction and commissioning of an offshore wind park require many visits to each individual turbine. Such operations demand a vessel like VOS Start: offering accommodation for the client teams, office space for engineering and project managers, a warehouse to store materials and tools and an on-board workshop to prepare for day-to-day tasks. Most important is an access system that guarantees safe transfer for the teams and their material to and from the wind turbines.

Photos of VOS Start naming ceremony courtesy of Johannes Dalhuijsen Beeldproductie

In addition to the many logistic and technical requirements, excellent WI-FI connection is also essential. To ensure optimum client and crew comfort outside working hours, VOS Start is equipped with a cinema and a gym. Clients may spend a minimum of 14 days on board, meaning that multimedia and hotel standards onshore have become the norm for offshore operations.

Caption: VOS Start - Image courtesy of Joop Marechal

VOS Start will be delivered to MHI Vestas Offshore Wind in August, at the start of her first charter. She will provide offshore logistics support, accommodation and walk-to-work services during construction of the Walney Extension Offshore Wind Farm in the Irish Sea.

A sister vessel, VOS Stone, will be delivered to Vroon by Fujian Southeast Shipbuilding in China this week.

Source: Vroon