IHC IQIP was awarded the Maritime Innovation Award 2016 at the Maritime Awards Gala last night for its Integrated Monopile Installer.
According to the jury, the Integrated Monopile Installer is an innovative product equipped with different innovative solutions in anticipation of regulations to come. Initially designed as a new offshore piling method to reduce noise and vibrations, the system now reduces environmental impact while also increasing productivity when installing wind turbines. Total cost of wind turbine installation is reduced, thereby lowering wind energy’s price per kW.
The Awards Gala's presenter Jort Kelder was quick to get down to business and asked the winners how many they expect to sell. 'About ten,' was the reply to which Kelder expressed his amazement that this was enough to create such a complex piece of equipment, sell so few and still make money of it. Maritime Innovation Award jury president Hans Huisman was quick to point out that maritime industry is famous for its "one-offs", which do not stand in the way of making a profit.
Other Nominees
In total, there were three nominees for the Maritime Innovation Award. The other two were Tideman Boats with its Fast HDPE workboats and Van Oord with its Strategic Partnership Van Oord Fleet.
Maritime Awards Gala
The Maritime Innovation Award was presented at the Maritime Awards Gala, which took place 31 October at Studio 21 in Hilversum, the Netherlands. Well over 800 representatives of Dutch maritime industry attended the black tie event, which was officially opened by Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte.
