Damen introduces Multi Cat water injection dredge

Damen Multi Cat water injection dredge

MARCH 16, 2018 — Damen Shipyards Group has recently unveiled a water injection dredge (WID) created by adding a plug & play system to a Damen Multi Cat.

Though WID capabilities are typically found only on dedicated platforms, Damen realized that the Multi Cat’s forward propulsion and maneuverability made it a suitable platform for this type of dredging.

“Damen invented the Multi Cat as the ideal dredge support vessel – what I like to think of as floating work bench – for cutter suction dredges (CSD). This is a logical step forward for a platform that has dredging in its DNA,” said Damen Product Director Dredging Olivier Marcus.

The Multi Cat is typically used to assist CSDs on dredging projects, carrying out tasks such as anchor shifting and cutter teeth replacement. Damen saw that, with the addition of dredging components, the Multi Cat could take on dredging functionality in a way that demonstrates “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.” I

“This is one plus one equals three,” said Marcus.

The Multi Cat WID dredge will be used to inject silt with high volume, but low pressure water, creating a density flow, and by utilizing the current and/ or gradient the silt will then be removed from ports and waterways including rivers and channels.

This very straightforward approach puts a containerized plug and play WID system on board a Multi Cat. Two 40 ft boxes are needed for a 500 mm system and three for a 600mm system.

The system can be applied to an existing vessel..

“After foundations are installed, the modular WID system can be attached or removed without drydocking,” says Marcus. “What’s more, as the system can also be applied to a modular Multi Cat, the WID can be easily transported anywhere in the world – even inaccessible, out of the way locations.”

The Multi Cat WID Dredge will be fitted with a Damen Dredge Pump – a wear resistant piece of equipment that is built to just keep going in the toughest of working environments. Its mechanical seal guaranteeing minimal maintenance requirements.

“We have previously customized tugs, fitting them with water injection capabilities in order to carry out port maintenance capabilities. This type of dredging represents an effective solution that, for just a small investment, delivers really significant additional benefits to a platform already well-suited to a diverse range of tasks,” Marcus concludes.