A
SPECIAL REPORT FROM DIIA (Defense Interaction Intelligence Agency) www.diia.info
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his organization was founded with the aim of providing
high quality plant and labour to the Royal Navy and, though its range has
expanded to include a wide variety of civil work, naval contracts still play an
important role. The company’s experience in facilities management stems from
their long standing relationship with the UK’s Ministry of Defence (MOD). As a
prime contractor for the Faslane Facility [photo]
(Nuclear Submarine Base), they are often called upon to complete a wide range
of marine work. Other areas of facilities management include maintenance of
aids to navigation for ports, harbours and local lighthouse authorities. Works
include on off repair of buoys/beacons to complete maintenance programs for all
of the customer’s assets.
Defense
GSS recently undertook a complex contract to
install sub-sea power and communication cables to the Valiant Jetty at HMNB
Faslane. Cables up to 120mm in diameter were pulled through a number of
confined spaces, involving tight turns, before being laid along the seabed and
onshore. Once debris from a previous jetty demolition had been cleared from the
seabed, a suitable bed layer was laid to accommodate the cable, and revetment
works and rock armour were installed in the tidal zone and onshore. The whole
contract required an unusual degree of precision and ingenuity, but was
completed on time and to the client’s satisfaction.
Other recent work includes repairs to
steelwork and pipe work at HMNB Clyde, involving removal of redundant pipe work
without disturbing remaining essential service pipes. A 20 metre section of
gantry and walkway was also removed and replaced, using several workboats and
specialised lifting equipment. Throughout the entire operation the jetty
remained in use.
Working around shipping movements was also a
feature of piling work at The Royal Naval Armaments Depot (RNAD)
at Coulport,
where unforeseen problems with rock strata forced GSS to come up with inventive
drilling and piling solutions to meet the original brief – all without
interfering with shipping movements at a busy naval base. As author of this
report and living in the small village of Ardentinny on Loch Long (opposite
Coulport), I can appreciate the difficulties of any contract that has to take
into consideration warship movements and NATO exercises. On any day, if I look
over my garden wall, warships are on the move. The photos below show the Royal
Navy’s new state of the art nuclear submarine ‘Astute’ leaving the loch and the much loved aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal quietly arriving at Coulport
(shortly before her decommission). Large tankers are always delivering fuel to
the depot on Loch Long and the supply ships of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA)
are regular visitors to the area.
Photo left: HMS Astute. Photo center: HMS Ark Royal. Photo above right:
RNAD Coulport
Reports from defense sources suggest GSS Marine
Services have a reputation for professionalism, reliability, cost effectiveness
and health & safety is a prime objective on any contract they undertake.
Photo right: RFA Mounts Bay arriving on the Clyde
The Maritime Alternative Energy Sector
GSS has gained a vast array of
experience in the offshore renewables sector – both wind farms and tidal energy
– while working in supporting roles and as a main contractor. Examples include
providing a support vessel for the jack-up and cable laying barges and for
diving operations at the Robin Rigg wind farm in the Solway Firth, and working
as the main contractor on installation of moorings to accommodate a tidal
energy device.
The company is able to offer services
that include:
- Cable
laying – including beach scouring
- Complete
installation of tidal and wave devices
- Diving
operations.
Their civil engineering background also
makes GSS the preferred partner for any port upgrades that may be required to
cope with the ramp-up in production during rounds 2-3.
GSS Marine Services has now worked on
many of the marine wind farm projects around the UK, including Burbo Bank,
Robin Rigg and Arklow, and also on the Rodsand 2 off Denmark, offering services
that include dive support and services, repair and maintenance, ground
investigations, vibro-coring, anchor handling etc.
Their flexible approach and vast
experience in the marine construction field have enabled them to provide varied
services as the installation of marine wind turbines and tidal devices
progresses. From assisting with the early initial surveys through the final
realisation and ultimately providing through-life maintenance services, GSS
Plant Ltd develops skills and acquires carefully specified plant to deal with
all challenges.
Case study:
Robin Rigg wind farm: The Multicat
Maggie was tasked to assist the Cable Laying Barge UR101 at the Robin Rigg wind
farm in the Solway Firth.
She was contracted as a support vessel and
her primary task was anchor handling. In addition she provided towage services,
berthing assistance and general supply services. Her generous deck loading
capacity made her a useful provider to the operating barges.
Her skipper displayed his skill and
judgement when the cable laying barge UR101 parted three of her five anchors in
gale force conditions in up to five meters of swell.
Case study:
EMEC, Orkney: The newly delivered Fiona
F Eurocarrier, accompanied by a team of five divers, travelled up to Orkney,
where 10 composite gravity anchors, weighing up to over 100 tonnes, were
installed for the European Marine Energy Centre’s offshore test facilities for
wave and tidal power technologies.
Working through March, 2011, the GSS
team assembled, transported and lowered the anchors in position, in some cases
working around a tidal flow of 4 knots.
Photo above: The newest addition
to the GSS fleet, the Fiona F is also its largest and most robust vessel. It
has forward and aft cranes capable of lifting up to 25 and 26 tonnes, and
winches rated up to 80 tonnes. The 26.48m vessel can carry up to 12 passengers,
with cabin capacity for seven, and is capable of 10 knots with a bollard pull
of 33 tonnes.
Marine Construction
GSS has a distinct advantage when it
comes to civil engineering within the marine construction sector, for two main
reasons. They have a civil engineering team with wealth of knowledge and
experience – and have their own floating plant available.
Capabilities include:
- Dredging
- Pile
driving operations
- Quayside
repairs
- Pier
construction
- Flood
protection works
- Coastal
protection works
- Rock
armour construction and repair
- Fender
supply, repair and installation
Utilising their own assets allows the
company to price competitively and, when the project is underway, remain in
complete control with very little reliance on subcontractors.
GSS is not limited to the size of the
works and will consider any job from smaller repairs to large construction
projects. They specialise in works within the tidal zones, strong currents and
remote locations. They also have the ability to transfer their skills-base and
knowledge to other areas including inland waterways.
Pontoons (photo left) are
floating work platforms used in a wide range of marine civil engineering work.
Varying in size depending on the requirements of each project, pontoons are
used in construction work, storage, delivery of equipment to wind farms or
other construction sites, as crane platforms and as barges.
GSS also operate a number
of Unifloat pontoons – road transportable sectional pontoons in multiples of 5m
and 2.5m which can be assembled in larger pontoons any shape or size to suit
different loads or restrictions in working space. They can be used on inland
water as well as marine contracts.
GSS’s various pontoons, from
30x11m to 18x25m are towed into position by other vessels but are fully BV
classified. They come with spud legs or mooring systems and can be used
anywhere around the world.
Photo center: The SMS
Shoalbuster is a sturdy and robust tug suited to all types of marine work
including towing, mooring, anchor handling and dredge support. Tug boats are the
traditional workhorses of the sea and the Shoalbuster 2609 is 26 metres in
length, and boasts 2200 BHP, with a bollard pull of over 31 tonnes.It’s capable
of over 11 knots and has unlimited range, with accommodation for six crew. It
was built in 2009 by the Damen Shipyard in Holland.
GSS operate a wide range of commercial
marine craft:
Shoalbuster
An anchor-handling tug.
Eurocarriers
Robust and versatile workboats with generous
deck area and high deck-load capacity, ready for all types of marine
construction from harbour work to wind farm operations.
MRVs
Multi-Role Vessels are strong and
versatile workhorses, designed to provide a stable work platform capable of
considerable precision.
Multicats
Smaller, but equally versatile
workboats with a proven record for consistency and reliability in a variety of
roles.
RiBs
A range of road-transportable and
versatile rigid inflatable boats for general use.
Pontoons
Versatile work platforms for transport,
crane platforms, storage and all types of support in both inland and marine
waters.
Maritime Expertise
GSS is an expanding company, playing an
active role in marine construction and marine support services around the coast
of Britain and mainland Europe, rapidly making a name as marine consultants and
marine contractors.
Recent activity has also seen GSS
expanding into Africa, with contracts underway in Sierra Leone and Nigeria.
Projects supported by GSS include coastal
work, bridge and marine work, piers and jetties, pipe and cable laying, welding
and diving support and marine piling. And although MOD contracts comprise a
substantial part of the workload, the company now undertakes major civil
contracts in both Britain and Europe. This includes a move into the renewable
energy industry, particularly in construction support and repair and
maintenance of offshore wind farms.
Its varied fleet of vessels gives GSS the capacity
and versatility to offer a wide range of services, and the expertise and can-do
attitude amongst its personnel allows it to successfully tackle challenging
contracts and come up with innovative solutions to complex problems.
Managing director, Jamie McGarry commented,
“GSS is expanding with bigger boats and increased capabilities. We have
diversified successfully into various markets and have undergone significant
growth in recent years, more than doubling our workforce. With this growth as
marine consultants as well as marine contractors, the company has been moving
more and more into long-term, large-scale contracts, while still retaining the
capacity to handle smaller one-off jobs.”
He went on to say, “Internationally,
GSS is currently supporting dredging and construction operations in Sierra
Leone, and oilfield work in Nigeria, and the company will be involved in a
number of other overseas projects in coming years.”
Closer to home, the opening of an
office in Holland has proved productive for GSS, with an increasing role in the
Dutch and Danish market and penetration of the rapidly expanding market in
offshore renewables in the Baltic. Whatever the scale or location of the
contract, all GSS’s projects are underwritten by the continual drive for
quality which has proved such a big attraction for clients.
Suffice to say, GSS Marine Services are
able to provide you with reliable solutions for your maritime projects and
what’s more – clients would seem to agree:
Navigation Light Contract
1) GSS
Marine Services is contracted to conduct routine monthly checks on all
navigation lights in the Clyde Dockyard Ports and Campbeltown for the MOD. GSS
also conducts maintenance on the lights where required as directed by this
office. This is a round-the-clock commitment and a commitment which is fully
met in all weather conditions. The standard of service is second to none and
the company engineer, Mr Robin Flannigan, is always willing to offer sound
advice on new proposed installations.
2) The
service offered by GSS has been beyond reproach since inception and thoroughly
professional, and has led to the highest instance of compliance with the
Northern Lighthouse Board in 2010. This is not by accident but by the
‘personal’ service GSS provides. I commend them most highly and would not
hesitate to refer them to others.
Tony
Ford Lieutenant Commander Royal Navy MCGI
Queens
Harbour Master Clyde
July
2010
GSS Marine
Services has been QinetiQ of Loch Goil’s main maritime and support contractor
for more than 10 years. Over this time they have completed many varied
projects. One of these was a contract where we had to enlarge a splash area for
deploying mooring buoys. This involved the considerable movement and
repositioning of bottom material (mostly large stone and gravel), making good
the associated exposed walls and protecting the whole area with ‘gabion’
baskets. Throughout this task tides, tide heights and the effect of the weather
had to be carefully considered, not only from a practical point of view but
with safety in mind.
As Tom Stewart, Site Manager, QinetiQ
confirmed,
"The whole job was completed on time, on budget and
without injury. I have no hesitation in recommending this company for this type
of task."
WEBSITE:
http://www.gssplant.co.uk/
Head office
GSS,
Rhu Marina,
Rhu,
Argyll & Bute
G84 8LH
Tel: +44 (0) 1436
821277
Fax: +44 (0) 1436 821288
Email: info@gssplant.co.uk
Welsh office
Tony Drake,
GSS
Tel: 07825 302891
South Coast
office
Billy Hamilton,
GSS
Tel: 07818 519208
Europe
Paul Lunter,
Aalsmeer,
Holland
Tel: +31 (0) 651 853
242
Email: lunters@kpnplanet.nl