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|---|---|
 US | |
| Name | VB-10,000 |
| Operator | Versabar (Versamarine) |
| Builder | Gulf Marine Fabricators |
| Yard number | 139 |
| Completed | 2010 |
| In service | 2010–present |
| Homeport | New Orleans |
| Identification | USCG ID 1225018 (MMSI 367490050) |
| Status | In service |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Floating barge crane |
| Tonnage | 10116 |
| Length | 277.4 feet (85 m) |
| Beam | 314 feet (96 m) |
| Draught | 20 feet (6 m) |
| Propulsion | none |
The VB-10,000 is a heavy-lift twin-gantry catamaran consisting of two truss space frames atop two barges. The design was derived from Versabar's earlier VB-4000 (aka Bottom Feeder), which was developed to clear debris from toppled oil drilling platforms in the Gulf of Mexico. Instead of sending divers to section the wreckage into pieces, the heavy-lift capability facilitates salvaging the platform as a single piece.
The truss sections are decoupled from the motion of the barges by using specially-designed hinges. Once the wreck has been lifted clear of the water, there is 160 feet (49 m) of clearance between the two barge hulls for a third independent cargo barge. VB-10,000 is capable of lifting 7,500 short tons (6,800 t) in a single lift, nearly doubling the 4,000-short-ton (3,600 t) capacity of its predecessor.
Each barge is approximately 300 feet (91 m) long by 72 feet (22 m) in beam, and each barge carries four 1,000 horsepower (750 kW) thrusters to allow for station keeping without anchors and mooring lines. Since its deployment, Versabar has added "claws" to allow for retrieval without sending divers to attach rigging to sunken debris.
References
- Paganie, David (August 2007). "Versabar invention lifts submerged topsides in one piece". Offshore. 67 (8). Retrieved 14 July 2016.
- "Coastal Lift Specialist Doubles Size of Its Marine Workhorse". Engineering News-Record. 22 June 2011. Retrieved 14 July 2016.(subscription required)
External links
- "VB 10,000". Versabar. 2013. Retrieved 14 July 2016.
- "New heavy lift vessel deploys in Gulf". Offshore. 71 (1). January 2011. Retrieved 14 July 2016.
- Trelleborg, AB (3 January 2013). "Versabar's Claw Gets a Grip on Marine Salvage". Product Design and Development. Retrieved 14 July 2016.
- "The Articulating Joint". Versabuoy. 2011. Retrieved 14 July 2016.
- Buchanan, Susan (21 August 2012). "Push Is On To Declutter Gulf of Idle Iron". Maritime Reporter. Retrieved 14 July 2016.
- "Versabar—'Bottom Feeder'" (PDF). Construction Innovation Forum. 2008. Retrieved 14 July 2016.
- Schott, Cassie (March 2012). "The Claw: Innovation In Offshore Salvage Operations". Ocean News & Technology. 18 (2): 30–32. Retrieved 14 July 2016.
- Schilling, David Russell (10 February 2015). "Oil Rig Remover: Stable in Hurricane Seas, 4,000 Ton Lift Capacity". industry tap into news. Retrieved 14 July 2016.
- McCulley, Russell (1 January 2012). "Jaws of steel". Offshore Engineer. Retrieved 14 July 2016.
- Hays, Kristen (8 August 2007). "Bottom Feeder recovers undersea wreckage from Gulf". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 14 July 2016.
- "US' Versabar develops larger lifting unit for global market". Decomworld. 29 April 2015. Retrieved 14 July 2016.