AUMA supports offshore platforms

Approximately 150 AUMA SQ part-turn actuators with intelligent AC actuator controls ensure reliable valve automation on the BorWin gamma converter platform in the North Sea, for example. AUMA will also supply actuators for the DolWin kappa platform that is currently under construction. Both offshore platforms are owned by TenneT, one of the leading transmission system operators in Europe.

A converter platform turns the three-phase alternating current produced by offshore wind turbines into direct current for efficient transport to the mainland. The valve actuators are mainly required for cooling systems that remove heat from the converter electronics. As all the equipment must operate in an isolated marine environment, often 100km or more from the coast, AUMA actuators are suitable for such a challenging task; their robust design and durable components ensure that they can operate unattended for long periods and with minimal maintenance.

Offshore customers benefit from AUMA’s full service portfolio, and an AUMA service technician recently travelled by helicopter to the BorWin gamma platform to retrofit additional interfaces. AUMA service technicians are available worldwide. In addition to being experts in AUMA technology, they have completed all safety training that qualifies them to work offshore.

“AUMA actuators are installed on a large number of offshore platforms around the world, in the context of both oil and gas production and offshore wind farms, as in this example,” says Andreas Horn, team leader Service at AUMA. “For our customers, the reliability of our products is one key reason to choose AUMA actuators. Another is the fact that we can ensure that they get the same fast and competent service offshore as onshore.”