The launch event was scheduled with the season, to guarantee the correct water depth needed for performing the launch successfully.
The shipyard will now make the final arrangements for the upcoming journey of the Crane Barge 7532 to the Chinese yard of Huisman, in Fujian Province.
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Heavy construction equipment manufacturer Huisman is currently constructing the crane for the vessel.
Before its installation on the barge, the crane will undergo land testing. This will be followed by the final testing of the crane in combination with the Crane Barge systems.
After successful testing, the barge will be able to lift around 625t at 25m.
Once completed, the Crane Barge will be delivered to the client on a semi-submersible vessel. It is scheduled for delivery at the end of this year.
Damen sales manager Olivier van Papenrecht said: “I’m very proud to see the barge successfully launched. That this has happened now, so close to the original schedule, despite the impact the pandemic had on production, is a real achievement.
“This represents the commitment shown to the project by the client, by the production team in Yichang and by the project team in the Netherlands.”
In February, Damen Shipyard signed an alliance agreement with US-based Sea Machines Robotics to further examine the implementation of on-board collision avoidance functionality for Damen vessels.
The strategic alliance will accelerate the adoption of navigating technology to increase autonomy levels on Damen-built vessels.
