Deepwater pile driving system receives innovation award

A deepwater foundation pile driving system known for record-setting installations is also garnering industry awards. Menck’s MUP (Menck Underwater Power Pack) deepwater pile driving system has received the first Ben C. Gerwick award for outstanding achievement in maritime construction.

According to Germany-based Menck, a company that has been providing pile driving systems, foundations, and anchor and mooring points to the offshore industry for more than 35 years, deepwater-driven pile solutions are the most reliable and easiest to use of all anchor points. They allow for easier positioning than drag anchors, are less sensitive to varying soil conditions than suction piles or plate anchors, and provide solid foundations for nearly any type of subsea architecture. Menck has installed deepwater piles for use as riser foundations, pipeline termination piles, and anchor points.

The MUP system incorporates the company’s MHU hydraulic pile-driving hammer with a special power pack attached directly to the hammer and a custom-built umbilical system. By designing the power pack to deliver electric power at the hammer, the company was able to reduce the size and weight of the umbilical cable connecting the hammer to the surface. The company states that this design innovation allows for more efficient energy transfer to the hammer, easier handling of the umbilical, and an overall reduction in environmental risk.

Menck states that the MUP system has been designed to perform foundation pile driving in ever-greater water depths. The system has been used to drive piles as deep as 1929 m (6,329 ft), and it is currently designed to go as deep as 2500 m (8,500 ft). The company plans to have the equipment ready to work beyond 3000 m (10,000 ft) in the coming months.

The Ben C. Gerwick award, named after the esteemed civil engineer and pioneer in maritime construction, is an annual award recognizing innovation in design and construction of marine works. Heerema Marine Contractors nominated Menck for the award, which was presented at an award banquet benefiting the Deep Foundations Institute Educational Trust Scholarship Program at the University of California, Berkeley, earlier this year.