VESSEL REVIEW | Compact island maintenance dredger from Dredge Yard

The Netherlands’ Dredge Yard has delivered a multipurpose cutter suction dredger to a real estate developer in the United Arab Emirates for the reshaping and maintenance of existing islands.

The dredger will be used for connecting some of the islands and deepening the sea entrance between the islands. Due to current and erosion, the coast of the islands changes with the years. For this reason, it is necessary to perform periodical maintenance to keep the shape of the islands and maintain a pleasant beach.

In some areas the beach is flooded by new soft types of sand that makes it difficult for visitors to enjoy the clear waters of the Emirates. In other places it is necessary to maintain the water depth for yachts and workboats to visit the area. Dredging is the only way to maintain artificial and natural shaped islands and beaches.

The dredger is equipped with a heavy-duty cutter head and underwater dredge pump for high performance and for pumping a high-density mixture of sand. The high dredging performance will speed up the dredging process to limit the time involved in maintenance.

The vessel can be operated by only one person. The entire dredger and all its equipment can be controlled from the control cabin.

The dredger can pump sand up to 1,500 metres and dredge up to six metres deep. One of the advantages of the vessel is its ability to work in small and shallow areas that are difficult for bigger dredgers to enter, as its draught is only 70cm.

The dredge pump is located under the water line to achieve a higher mixture density and higher flow capacity. By placing the dredge pump underwater, the pump vacuum limit will not be limiting to the production of the pump especially at depths greater than six metres. The submersible pump is made possible since the dredge pump is mounted on a heavy duty bearing assembly and is driven by a hydraulic motor.

This multipurpose cutter suction dredger was delivered completely assembled and launched into the water by mobile crane. For easy dredge mobilisation, transport in the water, transport on the land by flat-bed truck, and for storage, the dredger has two tilting spud systems. Both spuds can be manually tilted and secured to the deck.

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