VESSEL REVIEW | IB Pontoon Crane – Turkish-designed multi-purpose floating crane capable of global operations

A new non-self-propelled floating crane designed by Kuasar Marin Engineering of Turkey was recently delivered to a client in West Africa.

The Türk Loydu-classed, 62- by 22-metre (200- by 72-foot) IB Pontoon Crane was designed by Kuasar Marin along with a floating dock as part of a turnkey project on behalf of the same client.

“The entire process—including design, procurement, production, subcontractor management, and quality control—was managed by our company,” Bahadir Baskan, Founder and Partner at Kuasar Marin, told Baird Maritime. “This ensured that the vessels met high standards not only technically, but also in terms of project management and coordination.

"In summary, these two platforms are remarkable projects due to their technical features, flexible operational capabilities, and turnkey production process, making them both unique and rare in their field."

Baskan said that although the client specified that both projects would primarily operate in West Africa, these platforms are designed to be capable of serving worldwide.

The vessel was developed to address the need for floating cranes capable of undertaking heavy duty maritime operations across vast regions such as Africa.

“Existing equipment often either lacks the required capacity or comes at prohibitively high costs for local operators,” Baskan remarked. “This situation leads to significant delays, high operational expenses, and dependency on external support for activities such as wreck removal, dredging, offshore equipment installation, ship loading/unloading, and docking.”

The floating crane boasts a lifting capacity of 200 tons and an explosion proof design, making it safe for use in offshore oil and gas fields.

“This feature allows it to be employed not only for operations in West Africa but also in critical and sensitive projects anywhere in the world,” said Baskan. “The crane’s onboard load transfer systems and hull structure are optimised to safely withstand extreme conditions such as high moments and sudden load drops, requiring a far more advanced engineering solution compared to a standard commercial vessel.”

Enhanced safety features ideal for offshore energy support

The crane features an explosion-proof offshore lifting system, which will allow it to operate safely in environments requiring flameproofing and strict safety classifications, such as oil and gas fields, LNG terminals, and sensitive offshore facilities. It also has the technical capability to perform a wide range of tasks including wreck removal, port dredging, heavy equipment installation, quay reinforcement, and ship loading/unloading.

“These capabilities make it suitable for operations not only in Africa but across the Middle East, Southeast Asia, European ports, and the Caribbean,” said Baskan.

In terms of daily operations, typical activities for the floating crane include planning lifting operations, conducting safety checks, positioning equipment on-site, transferring sunken or heavy loads, supporting port projects, and performing emergency intervention operations when necessary.

“For the floating crane, the most critical determining factor was the crane capacity that could be procured,” Baskan told Baird Maritime. “At that time, Liebherr had a 200-ton crane available in stock, which accelerated the decision-making process, and the equipment was procured quickly.”

The crane’s design has been optimised to operate safely even under dynamic conditions, handling heavy and unbalanced loads reliably. Baskan said it also offers a wide range of motion and high operational flexibility.

The crane's lifting range, rotation, and hydraulic control systems allow the operator to adapt quickly and safely to different load types and operational environments. Thanks to the crane’s control system, load sensors and monitoring functions, risks are minimised, ensuring operational safety even during sudden load changes or unexpected situations.

Designed around available crane capabilities

“In designing the barge on which the crane would operate, not only the loads from the 200-ton lifting capacity but also the additional container handling function requested by the client were considered. Therefore, the hull structure, the load transfer paths, and the deck layout were specifically designed to withstand the crane’s operational loads.”

One of the greatest challenges Kuasar Marin faced during the design phase was the high degree of engineering precision required, particularly for the floating crane.

“Compared to a standard commercial vessel design, the project involved far more complex load conditions, dynamic effects, and safety requirements,” said Baskan. “First, we had to develop a hull and crane integration system capable of safely handling the extreme moments generated when transferring a 200-ton load from side to side. During such a load transfer, both the vessel’s stability and structural strength are critically affected.”

Additionally, Kuasar Marin analysed potential stability weaknesses and dynamic response behaviours that could occur in the event of a wire rope failure or sudden load release, and the necessary precautions were incorporated into the design.

“In the areas where the crane transfers its structural loads onto the vessel, much higher local stresses occur, so we implemented special reinforcement arrangements and load transfer paths at these points. As a result, the hull structure required a much stronger, high-strength, and rigid construction than a conventional barge.

"All of these factors made the design process highly iterative and required close integration across multiple engineering disciplines."

In Baskan’s view, the greatest challenge during the construction was the fact that Kuasar Marin was primarily a design firm and therefore did not possess its own shipyard facilities.

"At the start of the project, there were two options: either complete the design and use a shipyard entirely as a subcontractor, or rent a specific section of a shipyard and manage the design and procurement processes in-house while overseeing production and outfitting activities through subcontracted teams."

Overcoming external supply-related challenges

Due to the bids received from large shipyards being significantly above Kuasar Marin's contract budget, the company opted to rent a portion of an existing yard.

Baskan said this decision became more challenging than expected due to successive global and local economic fluctuations, as Kuasar Marin had signed the project contracts during a period when the economic effects of the Covid-19 pandemic were still being felt.

“Shortly afterwards, the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine War caused dramatic increases in the prices of many critical raw materials, particularly steel. Steel prices rose approximately 2.5 to three times compared to the period when we submitted our bid. This increase not only raised costs but also significantly extended lead times.”

Baskan explained that the global economic slowdown, rising logistics costs, and supply chain disruptions directly impacted the project. In Turkey, inflation reached levels of around 120 per cent during the same period, while exchange rates remained nearly stable, making cost management even more difficult. This imbalance placed considerable pressure, particularly on subcontracted labor, local material procurement, and operational expenses.

“Taken together, it can be said that the greatest challenges of our projects were not technical or engineering-related but largely stemmed from economic and operational conditions,” he told Baird Maritime. “Nevertheless, we successfully completed the entire process through effective planning, strong coordination, and flexible management approaches.”