L-3 SAM Electronics to Supply Turnkey Equipment for Vidar Heavy-Lift Jack-Up Vessel

L-3 SAM Electronics announced today that it has successfully completed the supply and installation of extensive drive equipment, as well as automation, navigation and positioning systems, on board the Heavy-Lift Jack-Up Vessel (HLJV) Vidar, which is operated by HOCHTIEF Infrastructure GmbH for construction and service support of offshore wind farms. The Vidar is the latest in a series of recently completed offshore turnkey projects undertaken by L-3 SAM Electronics on behalf of leading operators in the world’s offshore industry.

“Along with thruster manufacturer SCHOTTEL, L-3 SAM Electronics participated in the tripartite consortium headed by Caterpillar Marine/Caterpillar Motoren, which provides 6x MaK 8 M 32 C CCR engines – each rated at 4,000 kW. This consortium already successfully collaborated on drive technology for the earlier Innovation jack-up vessel,” said Reinhard Swoboda, senior vice president at L-3 SAM Electronics. “We are extremely proud to complete this major undertaking, which demonstrates our growing involvement with alternative offshore energy markets.”

Facilities supplied and installed by L-3 SAM Electronics, in addition to all cable engineering work, comprise eco-friendly diesel-electric propulsion systems with four 2,600 kW azimuth thrusters and three 2,500 kW bow thrusters, each driven by asynchronous motors and speed-controlled, low-voltage PWM converters, and powered by propulsion transformers via 6,6 kV switchboards. Six 4,810 kVA diesel generators were installed for onboard power generation.

Bridge equipment consists of a NACOS Platinum vessel control system, including integrated navigation, automation and control assemblies, as well as a Class 2 dynamic positioning facility from L-3 Dynamic Positioning & Control Systems, which provides precise vessel location information. Supplementary support facilities include a full range of internal communications systems, including the Public Address (PA) system, automatic telephone system, talk-back system, central aerial system and cold provision store alarm system, as well as a comprehensive range of GMDSS equipment.

Built by CRIST shipyard in Gdansk, Poland, and equipped with a 1200-ton crane, the 140-metre-long Vidar is capable of installing latest-generation wind turbines of all dimensions at depths down to 50 metres. It is currently being used to place 60-metre blades at the €1.3 billion, 400 MW North Sea wind farm, Global Tech 1.

Headquartered in Hamburg, Germany, L-3 SAM Electronics GmbH operates as a part of L-3 Marine Systems International and is a subsidiary of L-3 Communications Corporation. L-3 SAM Electronics is a turnkey supplier of complete electrical systems, as well as integrated navigation, automation, communications, energy distribution and propulsion systems for all types of ships and offshore wind farms. To learn more about L-3 SAM Electronics, please visit the company’s website at www.sam-electronics.de.

Headquartered in New York City, L-3 employs approximately 48,000 people worldwide and is a prime contractor in aerospace systems and national security solutions. L-3 is also a leading provider of a broad range of communication and electronic systems and products used on military and commercial platforms. The company reported 2013 sales of $12.6 billion. To learn more about L-3, please visit the company’s website at www.L-3com.com.