Reducing emissions and fuel consumption is on everyone’s mind as the fleet decarbonisation push continues. Towards the end of last year, Sarens assisted Louis Dreyfus on their path of emissions reduction. In La Rochelle, France, Sarens installed the first ever prototype of the fully automated kite, Airseas’ Seawing on the RoRo vessel, Ville de Bordeaux.

Seawing, developed by Airseas, is a 500 m² parafoil which flies at an altitude of 200 metres and harnesses wind power to provide traction and is estimated to reduce fuel consumption and emissions from cargo ships by up to 40 percent.

Following the installation onboard the vessel used to transport major aircraft components between France and the United States, the testing of the Seawing will last for a six months.

Sarens SL3800 completed the single-object lift and installation of the Seawing weighing 120 tons on the vessel in open water. The installation process was not without its difficulties as the heavy wind, and tides and waves during installation left Sarens with a four-hour window for the job.

Sarens further notes that since it is the first prototype of the Seawing being installed, the exact centre of gravity and symmetry was unclear, and the installation site had a limited ground bearing pressure of 7.5T/m2.

The SL3800 and two layers of wooden mats were deployed to manage the ground bearing pressure. By providing extra rigging equipment and performing a test lift, Sarens was able to level the Seawing within a tolerance of 10cm. During a perfect wind-window, the crawler crane smoothly and precisely lifted and positioned the load.