Heerema installs top section of new Noise Mitigation System

by | Dec 20, 2023 | Emissions, News, Offshore wind

Heerema NMS-T-10000

The top section of the Template-Noise Mitigation System (NMS-T) for installing monopiles was lifted on at Heerema Fabrication Group’s location in Vlissingen. The NMS-T-10000 will be able to mitigate approximately 15 dB of waterborne noise.

The enormous piece of equipment was constructed at Heerema Marine Contractors and developed in close cooperation with IQIP. The NMS-T-10000 will be the largest noise mitigation system in the world. Once completed, it will be as high and wide as the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. It measures 50 meters high, has a template base of 45 meters wide, a total weight of little under 2500 tonnes, and is capable of handling monopiles with a diameter up to 10.0 metres.

In addition, the system offers 15 dB driving noise reduction, levelling up to 3 degrees bottom slope and has capabilities to be used in up to 42 metres in water depth, making it is an essential tool for future installations of offshore wind.

Also read: Shipbuilder Royal IHC sells IQIP to HAL

Double-wall steel screen

The NMS-T-10000 is derived from its successful NMS–8000 and NMS–8800 predecessors, which are recognised as the best-in-class underwater noise mitigation technology. The basic concept of IQIP’s noise mitigation systems is to create barriers between different media and materials.

The NMS-T-10000 is, simply put, a double-wall steel screen featuring an air-filled annulus between the inner and outer screens and a multi-level and multi-size bubble injection system. This efficient solution mitigates up to 98-100 per cent of the waterborne noise.

The NMS-T-10000 is, simply put, a double-wall steel screen featuring an air-filled annulus between the inner and outer screens and a multi-level and multi-size bubble injection system.
The NMS-T-10000 is, simply put, a double-wall steel screen featuring an air-filled annulus between the inner and outer screens and a multi-level and multi-size bubble injection system.

The next steps are to commission and test all T-NMS systems to be ready for the first project, which will be foundations for the EnBW He Dreiht offshore wind farm. The wind farm is located around 90 kilometers northwest of the island of Borkum and 110 kilometers west of Helgoland. The 64 turbines planned, with an installed output of 960 MW, are to bbe connected to the grid by the end of 2025.

Pictures by Heerema Marine Contractors.

Also read: Huisman to upgrade Heerema Aegir’s Offshore Mast Crane