Part of the DBB Group of companies, DBB Jack-Up
is making waves in the industry with its long-found experience combined with innovative and effective range
of new vessels. How do they see their role evolving as the industry matures? We talked to Ole Jacob Nielsen,
Head of Sales & Marketing.
PES: Welcome to the magazine. Would you like to introduce the company and explain how you serve the wind market?
Ole Jacob Nielsen: DBB Jack-Up works in Operation & Maintenance within the offshore wind sector. One of our particular areas of focus is major component replacement that requires the use of crane jack-ups.
In actual fact, we bring about 25 years’ experience working in demanding operations at sea. But the work we do actually fulfils a bigger purpose, which is to help our customers reduce costs. So our strategy is about engaging with customers and working together with them to develop vessels and services that will increase the number of operational days offshore.
PES: Offshore turbines are growing by the year. How are you equipped to deal with the challenges presented by size and location?
OJN: We are acutely aware of how the market is changing. A new type of vessel will be required to service turbines that are getting bigger and moving further out to sea. This is why we are building new jack-up vessels at the moment. This will give us a versatile fleet of three very different jack-ups that will be able to handle a large variety of sites, sea beds and turbines.
We are also looking to cooperate with park owners and turbine manufacturers to develop jack-ups that will service even larger turbines in the future.
PES: We note that you’re operating the world’s first self-propelled, heavy-lift barge with a permanently-mounted, telescopic crane. How does this facilitate your work?
OJN: You are referring to the self-propelled jack-up WIND, which we have operated since 2007. Earlier this year, WIND performed its 330th successful replacement, and its career so far spans 15 offshore wind farms. WIND has proven to be a cost-efficient alternative for replacing major turbine components, and as we expand our fleet, we will take the experience gained from WIND’s work to future operations and maintenance work.
PES: How is work progressing on the 80 metre vessel that is being built at Nordic Yards?
OJN: Construction work on our new vessel WIND SERVER is progressing well. We are seeing excellent teamwork between Nordic Yards and newbuild teams, which means we are on track for delivery in August 2014. It is an exciting time for us, and WIND SERVER is already on the shortlists of a few projects.
