A well-established company that is highly visible in the offshore arena, Vroon Offshore Services B.V. offers what is quite possibly an unbeatable ‘Walk to Work’ solution – coupled with a well-regarded focus on safety. We’re delighted to welcome the company’s Managing Director, Niek Spiljard, to the magazine.
PES: Welcome to PES. Would you like to explain a little about the company and the services you offer the wind industry?
Niek Spiljard: Vroon started in offshore in 1964, acquired Telco Marine in 1993 and then Seaworx BV in 2004. A year later, Vroon Offshore Services was set up as an office and a brand and subsequently entered the DPII subsea support market. We acquired Viking Offshore Services Aberdeen in May 2007 and then entered the Italian market with acquisition of 2 AHTS (established ownership in July 2007). Since then, we have gone on to acquire SALM Srl Ancona (2007) and Nomis Ltd Aberdeen & Nomis Pte Ltd Singapore (January 2008).
Apart from offering vessels in support of survey, dive, ROV operations and UXO clearance, the company has been involved in grouting operations and ‘matrassing’. This was firstly done on four point mooring and later on DP1 and DP2. The VOS Sympathy has been deployed with an Ampelmann system on and off since 2010.
The most recent service addition has been the installation, re-fuelling and maintenance of generators, providing power to the turbines, before they came on-line. During this project VOS supplied the vessel, qualified riggers, jib extension for the existing crane to reach up to 22 metres, including fuel-pump and hoses. The vessel VOS Sweet was installed with a prototype Walk to Work system, which was a passive compensating unit and a boat-landing.
PES: When did Vroon decide to diversify into wind? Has the move reaped rewards?
NS: MPI Resolution, acquired in 2006, was the first jack-up vessel dedicated to the wind industry. The vessel has been building turbines from the early hours of offshore wind in 2005. The support vessels from Vroon Offshore Services have been employed at many projects from as early as 2005, in that year the VOS Baltic conducted survey work in the Greater Gabbard field.
