Wilton Ships Out First Hornsea One Transition Pieces (VIDEO)

Teesside-based Wilton Engineering has loaded out the first four transition pieces built for Ørsted’s 1.2GW Hornsea Project One offshore wind farm. 

The 340-tonne transition pieces are part of a project for German company Steelwind to provide 21 structures for Hornsea One.

Completed at Wilton Engineering’s fabrication facilities and painted within its coatings facility on the banks of the River Tees in North East England, the structures were loaded vertically onto a barge to be transported to the offshore wind farm located off the Yorkshire coast.

The cylindrical shell of the transition pieces was fabricated by Steelwind in Germany before they were transported to Wilton’s 54-acre site on Teesside. Wilton’s scope of works is to manufacture, install and fit all secondary steelwork and associated electrical installations.

This included internal and external platforms, concrete platforms, ladders, boat landings. Wilton also installed electrics and navigational aids prior to managing the load out to the wind farm location.

Shot blasting and painting was carried out on site by Wilton’s sister company Universal Coatings, utilising its new 2,256 square metre Preparation & Coatings facility.

“We’re very proud to see the first group of transition pieces leave our Port Clarence facility for Hornsea Project One, built to world class standards of quality. It is testament to the capabilities and expertise of our workforce, along with our North East supply chain, that we were not only able to secure this export project, but are delivering it completely compliant to the specifications required by Steelwind and Ørsted,” Bill Scott, Chief Executive of Wilton Engineering, said.

As part of the transition piece project, Wilton has engaged a predominately North East supply chain, including a number of new suppliers to the renewable market such as Lionweld Kennedy and Marine Fabricators. Across the project, Wilton is ensuring that more than 95% of its project delivery contained UK content, the company said.

“The North East has a strong, collaborative and integrated supply chain that maximises on its infrastructure, such as the ports and rivers, and its location on the UK’s East Coast, to be able to effectively service offshore wind farm developments such as Hornsea Project One,” Scott said.

“Now the Government has confirmed the biennial schedule of Contract for Difference auctions, which will bring stability to the sector and help with the planning of investment programmes, the region is well-placed to support the ongoing deployment of offshore wind as an essential part of the UK energy mix.”

Hornsea Project One will comprise 174 7MW Siemens wind turbines installed on monopile foundations across an area of 407 square kilometres some 120 kilometres off the Yorkshire coast. The wind farm is scheduled for commissioning in 2020.

Photos and video: Wilton Engineering