Maritime Infrastructure Projects in China Use Current Profiling Tools Sea Technology magazine

Maritime Infrastructure Projects in China Use Current Profiling Tools

Posted on 02/05/2019 by Sea Technology magazine Leave a comment

Visualization of data showing current velocity and direction.

Content from Nortek

China’s recent wave of infrastructure renewal has included a large portfolio, such as ports and other developments, and current profiling is an essential part of these large-scale infrastructure developments. Fast, accurate, cost-effective current profiling has been vital in the successful implementation of major maritime projects because it ensures that structures are built to the correct specifications.

A company specializing in underwater acoustic tools, Nortek has been able to play a role in this side of China’s economic revolution through its collaboration with China Communications Construction Company (CCCC).

CCCC’s hydrological surveyors have been using Nortek instruments on a number of projects over the last 12 years, including the Signature1000 and Signature500 acoustic Doppler current profilers (ADCPs) to provide hydrological data that informs construction of ports and offshore developments.

The ADCP as it is mounted for current surveying in Qingdao harbor.

Deploying the instruments as part of Nortek’s Signature VM package enables the company to obtain measurements in a range of diverse scenarios including cross-section, multi-point, velocity profile measurements and fixed-point measurements for offshore platforms, ports, bridges and other structures in or near the sea, as well as establishing navigation parameters at specific locations at sea.

The ADCPs and the linked software provide accurate profiles in conjunction with an advanced navigation GNSS compass mounted on the vessel, which provides navigation and heading data that is based on GPS. The hydrological conditions and operating requirements at the sites have benefitted from the ability to work both at fixed points and while navigating, and to record measurements both online or as a self-contained unit.

Nortek China crew explaining the Signature VM software to Wang Yan of CCCC.

The main task of the hydrology survey team is to observe and analyze waves, tides and flows in different sea areas, to issue related reports and to provide basic data for the design and model checking of major offshore projects. Its work focuses include long-term and short-term observations of waves, fixed-point currents, nautical flows, sediment concentrations and tides.

The Nortek tools have been used by CCCC in a range of projects including current measurements for a new port in the vicinity of Caofeidian District, in Hebei, China. —Nortek

Nortek staff in China mobilizing the Signature VM package, watched by Wang Yan, senior manager of hydrology at CCCC.

Exported data (in .kml format) showing the tracks sailed in Google Earth. The crew carried out so-called “lines” of current surveying inside and outside of the harbor to identify the differences in current velocity and direction in these two locations.