Description:

Seaserpent is a tubular buoyancy system designed for handling cables in shallow water; usually shore endings or river crossings. Supplied in sections of 50m, 100m, or 200m that can be coupled to make up any desired length, SeaSerpent sections are supplied in ‘lay flat’ form, tightly wound on a drum. This is mounted just above the cable where it exists the cable engine and by attaching it to the cable as it passes below the drum and introducing air from the free end, floating cable can be deployed in any length. Once the required length is afloat and a pressure differential applied to one end, the cable can be laid on the seabed under complete control from the surface. if necessary the laying operation can be slowed, stopped or even reversed by simple control of internal air pressure. For one off applications, SeaSerpent sections are supplied on timber drums or flaked into crates that are adequate for one or two deployments. If the units are to be used repeatedly, then steel drums are recommended to fit a Deployment / Recovery Unit (DRU). These can be fabricated by customers to drawings (available from Seaflex Ltd.) or can be supplied by us on a hire or sale basis.

Using SeaSerpent:

Storage:

The controlled way to install cables in shallow water:

Instead of using multiple floats to support a submarine cable during installation in shallow water, the SeaSerpent is a continuous inflatable tube attached to the cable at 1m spacing. While its support and control of the cable is excellent, perhaps its most advantageous characteristic is the operational flexibility it allows the installer. Supplied in ‘lay flat’ form on a transport, deployment, recovery (TDR) drum the tube is inflated as it unwinds and is attached to the cable just before the launch point. This allows r apid and near continuous deployment. When the correct length of cable i s afloat and positioned accurate ly on its line, the air is vented from one end of the t ube allowing the cable to sink progressively into the desired position. This sinking process is under complete control and may be slowed, stopped or reverse d at will. The form stiffness developed by the SeaSerpent decreases kinking tendencies and eliminates sagging between floats and the requirement to keep constant tension on the cable. This characteristic, coupled with the un-rivalled control of the sinking process, allows installers much greater flexibility in procedures. It is for instance possible to park the cable on t he bottom during adverse tidal periods and re-float it when required, or tow sections of cable to installation sites several kilometres from the launch point. The Sea Serpent e liminates losses o f individual buoyancy units and saves a huge amount of space and man power at the launch point. With only 1.5m2 of deck space required for 1km of buoyancy, the SeaSerpent offers significant savings in transport, storage and replacement costs as wel l as the operational advantages of speed and control. Seaflex can manufacture SeaSerpent for individual buoyancy requirements although most cable weights are applicable to Seaflex’s Standard Range. The table shows Standard Range SeaSerpent specifications. SeaSerpent and ancillary transport, deployment and recovery systems are available for hire or purchase. Since 1996 Seaflex Limited have been certified to ISO9001 by Lloyds Register Quality Assurance for - ‘The manufacture, repair and hire of heavy duty flexible