The floating docking platform is a multifunctional vessel developed by Safe Shipyard from Gdańsk. The advantages and possibilities of this project were discussed by a wide audience during the conference "New opportunities for marine hydrotechnical construction, offshore and shipbuilding industry".

Not always one has an opportunity to gather everyone involved in the investment process in one place, but the conference was one of this rare cases. Among the guests there were also potential investors, i.e. representatives of the Maritime Office, ports, as well as potential general contractors.

Stocznia Safe and the GospodarkaMorska.pl portal, the conference organizers, also invited representatives of shipping and forwarding companies, as well as representatives of smaller shipbuilding businesses, and financial institutions to discuss.

- Pontoon-dock, or Floating Docking Platform (PPD), is a unified technology for handling large-size structures. We are talking about ships and their elements, but also offshore structures, elements of drilling platforms or fully equipped finished modules for the construction of industry and energetic facilities - says Marek Siemaszko, president of Safe Shipyard.

The Floating Docking Platform has docking and transport functions in the water-land and land-water relationship. The floating object docking technology developed by Safe allows, in addition to taking the object from the water, its transport on modular transport trolleys (SPMT), to the wharf and even to the hall.

The PPD is also equipped with a specialized unloading ramp adapted to quays with a low load capacity of up to 2 tons per square meter. The side height of the pontoon (5 m) allows to pick up cargo from virtually every wharf in the country, regardless of the direction of the tides and the water level.

What determined the implementation of such an idea?

- At first, we started to think about our own needs. The reconstruction of our dock would cost several million zlotys, and it still would not fulfill its purpose. So we decided to build something new. And this is how the idea for the PPD was born - says president Siemaszko.

Safe applied to Wuprohyd for an analysis of the possibility of using a pontoon-dock for the implementation of hydrotechnical structures planned in the near future in Poland.

- We see great potential in the PPD, it can be used in many ways. This is a potential benefit for Polish or foreign contractors to use the product of the Polish shipyard, while implementing the idea of local content, reduce costs and shorten working time - analyzed Piotr Pawłowski, member of the Wuprohyd management board.

New technologies will facilitate hydrotechnical investments

The representative of Wuprohyd analyzed the plans for the construction or expansion of hydrotechnical infrastructure in the largest Polish ports, which are planned for the next few years, such as the construction of the Central Port in Gdańsk, the Outer Port in Gdynia and Świnoujście and the external bulk terminal in Świnoujście. The building of infrastructure for the construction and servicing of investments related to offshore wind energy: an installation port in Gdynia, an installation and service port in Ustka or a service port in Władysławowo were also taken into account.

- You should look for solutions accelerating the implementation of projects at the preparatory stage and at the execution stage, in which it is worth using, inter alia, technologies accelerating construction - summed up Piotr Pawłowski.

On the other hand, Zenon Górecki, president of the management board of Idek Sp. z o.o., introduced the conference participants to the design assumptions and technical solutions that meet the needs of the market.

In the context of the shipyard project, Safe emphasized that PPD differs from existing facilities in that it allows the facility to be taken from land, brought into the water, undocked, and if the facility cannot float by itself, it can be transported.

Pontoon-dock blazes the trail. "Nobody has done that yet"

- Pontoon-dock also has an advantage that so far no one could boast of, because no one can do it - said President Górecki. - The PPD can load a floating object that will enter this platform, it will be lifted up and transported to the land. From there it will go, for example, to the hall, where you can take care of painting, renovation and inspection.

He emphasized that the project brings an additional ecological effect. The platform will be clean, as it is used only for docking, undocking and transport. And usually painting or cleaning is done on the docks.

The representative of the Polski Rejestr Statków (Polish Ships Register, PRS), the director of the Ship Division Grzegorz Pettke, who assessed the PPD project, also took the floor.

- From the point of view of the versatility of the PPD concept, flexibility should be particularly emphasized, manifested not only in the wealth of variants of transport applications (free configuration of the cargo space), but also the creation of a wide field for the implementation of techniques for automatic control of device parameters - said Grzegorz Pettke.

Due to this fact, the concept has a chance of multi-directional development - it can have many versions for specialized applications, including for offshore wind energy, the Navy, as well as in hydrotechnical or offshore construction.

- Moreover, the development of this concept may provide the possibility of cooperation of many specializations - from shipbuilding to sophisticated computer techniques - added the director.

PRS participates in the Floating Docking Platform project, in the first stage considering and approving the classification documentation for the assignment of the symbol of class. The role of the classification society will also be supervision over the construction of the steel structure of the pontoon, the production of materials and equipment, supervision over the assembly of equipment and participation in tests.

- The result of these activities will be the issuance of appropriate documents and certificates for the platform's approval for safe use - announced Pettke.

Important guests of the conference were representatives of financial institutions. Iwona Kasperowicz, the director of the Pomeranian Region of Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego, emphasized that the aspiration of the bank and the Pomeranian region is the development of industry essential for the Pomeranian region.

- And such is certainly the shipbuilding industry, the development of ports and infrastructure - said director Kasperowicz.

On the other hand, Joanna Kwiatowska-Zawadzka from the Industrial Development Agency noted that the institution has been supporting projects for 30 years, including those in the shipbuilding industry.

- On the local market in Gdynia, we can offer entrepreneurs investment and trading instruments. When it comes to supporting this type of projects, we are distinguished by high flexibility of the offer and adaptation to the needs of a given entrepreneur. We have extensive experience in structuring the very method of financing and security - summed up the director of the Entrepreneur Service Center at Agencja Rozwoju Przemysłu S.A.

The conference was held at the Centrum Hotel in Gdańsk.

Let us add that for the implementation of the floating docking platform project, Safe Shipyard received funding from the National Center for Research and Development under the Intelligent Development Operational Program 2014-2020 Division 1.1.1. Industrial research and development work carried out by enterprises in the amount of 40 percent. eligible costs.

Project title: "Development and demonstration of a unified technology for the movement of particularly heavy, large-size floating and hydrotechnical (offshore) structures between land and floating docking or transport devices, using automated computing algorithms".

FLOATING DOCKING PLATFORM (PPD)

Basic technical data:

Main dimensions:

Total length (with fenders) Lc = 69.25 m,

Length between risers LPP = 69.00 m,

Structural width BK = 30.00 m,

Total width (with fenders) BC = 30.25 m,

Side height at the towers H = 13.00 m,

Height to the working deck H1 = 5.00 m,

Maximum draft for the dock function Tdmax = 11.00 m,

Maximum draft for dock function Tpmax = 4.70 m,

Maximum draft for the transport function Ttmax = 3.80 m,

Length of the towers LW = 18.00 m,

BW towers width = 4.00 m,

Tower height from the working deck HW = 8.00 m,

The width between the BR towers = 22.00 m,

The rebate distance of 500 mm.

Other data:

Maximum lifting capacity for the transport function Ptmax = 5000 t.

Maximum lifting capacity for the dock function Pdmax = 3000 t.

Displacement for a draft of 4.70 m DtmaxP = 9,568.00 t.

Displacement for a draft of 11.00 m DtmaxD = 11 310.00 t.

Permissible deck load (in SPMT platform lanes) q1max = 20t / m2.

Permissible deck load q2max = 10t / m2