MIIN Member - Subsea Micropiles and Deep Reach Technology aim to reduce Geotech Survey costs for the Offshore Wind Industry

Ongoing research supported by the U.S. Dept. of Energy explores approaches to measure soil properties during installation of micropiled foundations.

Supported by a U.S. Dept. of Energy research grant and led by Houston-based Deep Reach Technology, the first phase of a project which may ultimately reduce the need for expensive borehole surveys has been completed.

Figure 1 – Drilling vessels are typically employed to retrieve borehole samples as part of a geotechnical survey.

The need for detailed soil investigation and testing can add significant cost and delays to offshore wind development, often requiring the use of drilling vessels to retrieve multiple borehole samples at each site.  This is a critical step in project development to inform the design of anchors and foundations.  The project has identified a variety of tools and sensors to measure soil properties during the drilling and installation of micropiled anchors.  This may ultimately allow anchor design parameters (e.g. length and number of piles) of anchors to be modified in real-time to suit soil conditions as found, potentially reducing the need for a detailed geotechnical survey.  Phase 2 of the project to include empirical testing is planned to begin later this year.

Micropiling has grown to become a dominant foundation and anchoring solution for onshore infrastructure since the 1950s, as a proven low-noise and low-impact approach to soil interventions.  Recent advances in underwater robotics now opens the door for low-cost micropiling to be used in the vast market for offshore piling and anchoring.

Derek Robertson, CEO of Subsea Micropiles Ltd., said:

“Our vision is to close the gap between survey and construction and achieve substantial cost savings for offshore wind projects. We are pleased with the project results and see great opportunities to deliver value to our clients with a new approach to engineered anchor solutions.”

Dr. John Halkyard, Founder and Chairman of Deep Reach Technology also commented:

"The prototype demonstration represents a key development milestone towards a full solution ready for commercial projects by 2023"

About your business:

Subsea Micropiles Ltd. is adapting terrestrial micropiling technology to the offshore construction sector for high performance seabed foundations and anchors, supporting a wide range of applications to include increasingly larger offshore wind turbines.

Deep Reach Technology provides expert ocean engineering services to the offshore wind industry. Their associates have over 100 years of experience in with floating platforms and risers, seafloor geotechnics, subsea robotics, subsea equipment design, construction and operations.