Renewables

Offshore wind energy

02 | Offshore wind energy

Walney Offshore Wind Farm DONG Energy

Offshore wind energy | 03

Designing energys future

By listening and leading across
boundaries, bringing lessons learned
from established forms of energy
to emerging technologies, we are
helping the drive towards a low
carbon future.
We provide robust engineering
design and owners engineer services
in the renewable energy sector, as
well as technical advice on emerging
clean energy technologies.
Our cross-discipline experts and
specialists enable us to provide the
complete range of services in all aspects
of renewable energy technology. We
have some of the most technically
skilled individuals in the engineering
sector in areas such as fatigue
assessment, finite element analysis,
dynamic analysis, computational
fluid dynamics and hydrodynamics.
Merging experience and innovation
Our expertise in the offshore
environment dates back as far as the
1970s. Delivering engineering projects
in the challenging marine environments
of the North Sea and Gulf of Mexico

has provided us with a wealth of

knowledge that we transfer into cost
effective solutions for offshore wind.
By combining our original thinking with
these 40 years of offshore engineering
in oil and gas, we are transforming the
ability of offshore wind to compete with
established forms of power generation.
Lessons learned in foundation
technology, as well as installing and
maintaining assets at sea, guide
us in developing a standardised
design approach that reduces
the cost of offshore wind.
Our in-depth knowledge of offshore
engineering and hydrocarbons, as well
as power generation and distribution,
not only equips us well but drives a sense
of responsibility to play a key role in
developing the technical and commercial
viability of new energy technologies.

04 | Offshore wind energy

We provide the complete spectrum

of engineering, design, and asset
management services for the
offshore wind sector.
CONCEPT DESIGN & STUDIES
Dogger Bank Wind Farm, substation topside and jacket
feasibility study
East Anglia One Offshore Wind Farm, turbine jacket study
Gwynt y Mr, substation topside design
Hywind, transporation concept design
Islay Offshore Wind Farm, turbine substructure selection
Kincardine Offshore Wind Farm, concept and consent
planning
Rampion Wind Farm, met mast and turbine substructure
studies

CONCEPT & DETAILED DESIGN

Beatrice Wind Farm, turbine jackets
Burbo Bank Offshore Wind Farm, substation topside
and jacket
Dudgeon Offshore Wind Farm, turbine monopiles
Hornsea Project 1, substation topside and jacket
Lincs Wind Farm, substation topside and jacket
Race Bank Wind Farm, substation jacket
Thanet Wind Farm, substation jacket
Walney Wind Farm, substation topside and jacket
WindFloat, hull and moorings

DETAILED DESIGN
Blyth Offshore Demonstrator, met mast
Galloper Wind Farm, substation topside
Humber Gateway Offshore Wind Farm, substation jacket

ASSET MANAGEMENT
Offshore wind farm, grouted connection remediation
Offshore wind farm, substation jacket fatigue study
Offshore wind farm, weld defect assessments, fracture
mechanics and fatigue analysis

MONOPILE

JACKET/TRIPOD

WINDFLOAT SEMI
SUBMERSIBLE

FLOATING SPAR

MET MAST

OFFSHORE
SUBSTATION

ATKINS' OFFSHORE HUBS

United Kingdom: Aberdeen, Bristol, Epsom, Glasgow, London
Denmark: Esbjerg
PORTUGAL

Offshore wind energy | 05

NORWAY

DENMARK

IRELAND

UNITED
KINGDOM

NETHERLANDS

BELGIUM
GERMANY

FRANCE
SWITZERLAND

SPAIN

ITALY

06 | Offshore wind energy

Day one legacy

Our rich history as offshore engineers
meant we were well positioned to play a
leading role in the industrys development
from day one. This extensive experience
garnered in the offshore oil and gas
sector proved an invaluable foundation
for the growth of our offshore wind
team. Weve been at the forefront of the
growing offshore wind sector providing
concept to detailed design, construction
and installation support and asset and
integrity management.
We work closely with all the stakeholders
in the sector. Providing critical advice for
developers in advance of consent and
financial close and support to clients
through technical approval, certification
and construction phases.

We offer the following specialist services:

Offshore substation design
(substructure and topsides)
Wind turbine substructure and
geotechnical design
Electrical array and export
transmission design
Cable selection and installation
assessment
Onshore substation design and grid
connection studies
Wave and tidal energy converter
design
Geotechnical and geophysical survey
specification and data interpretation
Consents, planning and
environmental assessment
Health & safety planning and CDM
assessments
Project management and cost control
Offshore floating turbines

Renewable UK

OUR PROJECTS
Were working closely with a
number of key clients across all
stages of the project lifecycle, some
of our key projects include:
DONG Energy - offshore substation
portfolio
Were currently undertaking the
conceptual and detailed design of
eight offshore substation platforms
(including substructure and topsides)
for DONG Energy. These include:
Hornsea Project One - three
substations with helidecks and
refuelling systems
Race Bank wind farm - two
substations
Walney wind farm - two
substations
Burbo Bank wind farm - one
substation
By delivering a standardised design
that will enable a production line
approach to fabrication, we are
helping DONG Energy to reduce
the costs of offshore wind without
compromising safety and reliability.

Dudgeon Offshore Wind Farm turbine substructure

We have completed the concept
design and are currently
undertaking the detailed design
of 67 individual monopiles and
67 individual transition pieces.
Through innovation and technical
excellence we are expanding the
capabilities of the proven monopile
foundation to create a next generation
design. With diameters greater than
7m, the monopiles will be installed
at locations with water depths up
to 25m the deepest application
of this foundation type to date.
Beatrice Offshore Wind Farm turbine substructure
We are designing the turbine jacket
foundations (including geotechnical
engineering) for the challenging
conditions at this site, where water
depths range from 30m - 55m. Since
our involvement began in 2011 we have
completed the pre-FEED and FEED design
stages and are now progressing with
detailed design.

UK offshore wind farm - offshore

transformer module (OTM)
Siemens new OTM is designed to replace
conventional offshore substations and
reduce the costs of offshore wind energy.
We are carrying out the conceptual and
detailed design of two OTMs, including
the substructure and OTM deck.
WindFloat
WindFloat is an innovative floating
support structure for offshore wind
turbines from Principal Power. A fullycommissioned 2MW prototype was
wet-towed and installed off the coast
of Portugal. We completed the FEED
and detailed design of the hull and
moorings and are now involved with
the design of 8MW follow-on projects
to be installed in Oregon & Portugal.
Galloper Array Offshore Wind Farm
We carried out the detailed design of
the topside of the offshore substation,
including the helideck. In addition
we provided technical support
through the construction, installation
and commissioning phases.

Offshore wind energy | 07

Managing the asset life

Throughout our operating sectors
we have asset management teams
delivering strategic services to ensure
the longevity and efficiency of our
partners assets. The flow of knowledge
throughout our business fosters a
culture of holistic best practice, where
fundamental asset concerns are
managed within the framework of a
thorough strategy.
We place the asset lifecycle at the
very core of low cost efficient design
principles and maintain a transparent
collaborative approach to delivering
a managed service at all stages
of the lifecycle, right through to
decommissioning.

Our teams in offshore renewables

can provide a full range of asset
management services. Notably, our
recent experience includes:
Structural integrity management and
failure mode analysis
Development of inspection and
maintenance campaigns
Design of remedial solutions for
grouted connection failure in
monopiles
Geotechnical investigations of scour
and exposure of buried cables

ASSET MANAGEMENT PROJECTS

Asset management strategies
At two offshore wind farms, together
comprising a total of 150+ offshore
turbines, axial slippage in the grouted
joints between transition pieces and
monopiles (MPs) was observed. This
resulted in the internal secondary
steelwork welded to the TPs, coming
into contact with the MPs, resulting
in high stress concentrations around
welds critical to the integrity of the
primary structures. We were contacted
to develop and maintain asset
management strategies for all turbines
at both of these wind farms.
We assessed historical inspection
data and carried out stress analysis
and fracture mechanics calculations
to predict safe-lives of known and
postulated defects. Our conclusions
were translated into an asset
management strategy with a clear set of
guidelines for inspection. This enabled
our client to apply the engineering
judgement within the strategy without
requiring a detailed knowledge of
fracture mechanics. We continue to use

the latest inspection data to validate and

update the clients asset management
strategy.
Fatigue life studies and management
The jacket foundations for an offshore
substation were fabricated with details
that were not accounted for in the
original design analysis. Post-installation,
the asset owner contacted us to carry
out a study to ascertain the true fatigue
life of the as-manufactured jacket
structure.
We are currently developing detailed
structural models using a range of finite
element analysis packages to determine
the fatigue life of the structure.
In the event that the fatigue life is
lower than the intended design life
of the structure, we are developing
a medium to long term condition
monitoring strategy. This will enable
the substation to be operated with
adequate risk management in place,
while a permanent remediation solution
is designed and implemented.

Grouted joint remediation

At a number of wind farms the failure
of grouted connections between the
monopile and the transition piece has
caused the wind turbine tower structure
to slip downwards. In order to arrest this
slippage we have, in parallel with our
asset management strategies, designed
remediation solutions to provide
alternative axial load paths for the
primary structures.
Our solutions prescribed the installation
of new steel brackets and elastomeric
bearings between the transition piece
and monopile. The bearings provide
a flexible axial load path from the
transition piece to the monopile which
bypasses the failed grouted connection,
allowing for continued operation of the
wind turbines and substations to their
intended design lives.

We are the engineers designing, caring for and

extending the life of energy infrastructure that
will keep homes warm and industry moving.

For further information contact:

Email: offshorewind@atkinsglobal.com
www.atkinsglobal.com/renewables

Cover image DONG Energy

We have the expertise, the intellect and the

drive that can push boundaries to improve lives,
to protect our planet and to ensure prosperity
through secure and affordable energy.