Offshore Wind Innovators Reveals 2017 Innovation Award Finalists

The jury of the Offshore Wind Innovation Award 2017 has announced ECE Offshore, Next Ocean and Jules Dock as three finalists for the most appealing innovation in offshore wind.

According to Offshore Wind Innovators, the jury, consisting of Bert Stuij (RVO Sustainable & Climate subsidy programs), Ernst van Zuijlen (GROW) and Bart Blokhuis (PDENH), reviewed the applications on innovativeness, social and economic impact and entrepreneurship.

ECE Offshore presented the OASYS – Offshore Acoustic Systems, which is a vessel-fixed cable monitoring system that offers real-time detection of cable geometry and cable integrity. The touchdown location can be compared with planner route position listing, the company said.

Next Ocean applied to the award with its Wave Predictor, which, according to the company, predicts when and where high waves occur, enabling offshore operators to choose an optimal time window free of high waves for the most critical phase of their operation rather than wait for better conditions or hope for the best.

Jules Dock is the third finalist with its Lightweight Composite Towers, which provide a lightweight solution for large and heavy structures to the offshore wind industry. In a 10MW tower, 240 tons of steel is no longer needed, the company said.

The three finalists will present their innovations during the Netherlands Offshore Wind Q-meeting of Siemens and Van Oord in Rotterdam on 6 December, when both the jury award and the public award will be announced.

In recognition of their nomination, the finalists will have the opportunity to speak at the Offshore Seminar on 15 February, while the winner will also be awarded a one-day workshop and mentorship from an industrial partner that meets their needs.

The Offshore Wind Innovators is an initiative of InnovatieLink, TKI Wind op Zee and NWEA.