Topside jack-up and load-out

Heavy lift and transportation specialist ALE has carried out the weighing, jacking and load-out of an offshore jacket and platform in Mexico.

The work started with the jack-up of the topside, which weighed over 13,000 tonnes. It was lifted 14 metres using ALE’s Mega Jack system.

The topside was then loaded-out using a rapid ballasting system with a capacity of 16,000 Cu.M/Hr. The ballasting system was designed and supplied by ALE’s specialist offshore services team.

Using strand jacks and kicker jacks, the offshore services team then pulled the topside a distance of 196.63 metres onto the client’s barge to complete the load-out.

According to ALE, health, safety and the environment were paramount considerations throughout the project and ALE said all operations were supervised centrally in real-time to ensure operational flow.

“This is a fantastic achievement for all of the ALE teams involved,” explained Simon Armstrong, project manager for ALE – Offshore Services. “Throughout this project, we have established a strong on-site partnership to meet our client’s technical needs. By finding a solution that could integrate our systems easily with the client’s needs, we delivered effective methodology, and the proven upscaling of the yard makes it a more attractive site for future operations.”