Prefabrication speeds TLP construction
Conoco Ltd. is building the world's first tension-leg platform (TLP) under a rigid timetable and rigorous welding and weight-control specifications. Composed of 32 prefabricated sections constructed at 10 different yards, the hull will be pieced together in Scotland's Nigg Bay and mated with the single-piece deck before towing to the Hutton field in the British sector of the North Sea. The tension-leg concept used to moor the platform calls for higher construction standards than required for conventional semisubmersible rigs. Furthermore, the tension-leg principle's requirement for excess buoyancy makes the design very sensitive to changes in deck weight. If the constructed deck is greater than the design weight, Conoco will have to limit operations on the platform. To prevent this, designers have carefully estimated the weight of each piece of steel plate used in the deck's fabrication. Tow-out of the completed structure is scheduled for summer 1983.
- OSTI ID:
- 5598159
- Journal Information:
- Offshore; (United States), Journal Name: Offshore; (United States) Vol. 41; ISSN OFSHA
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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