Geotechnical Site Investigation for Bay State Wind Offshore Wind Farm Cable Route
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Orsted was granted a commercial renewable energy lease within a 760-square-kilometer area to build and operate the Bay State Wind offshore wind farm 24km off the south coast of Massachusetts. The project includes constructing and installing 180 wind turbines and two export cable corridors to shore. Orsted engaged Benthic to conduct the shallow geotechnical site investigation through a 97 km cable route to Somerset, Massachusetts. The corridor lies within the Sakonnet River channel and the continental platform. This site investigation was needed to characterize the seabed sediment profile and to determine preliminary geotechnical parameters based on in situ conditions. Benthic requested Geosyntec’s assistance in this project to provide a technical crew to assist the offshore geotechnical campaign by providing quality control (QC) and oversight of the geotechnical survey for this investigation.

Geosyntec's Scope of Services

The geotechnical survey included conducting over 100 piezocone penetration tests (CPTu) and collecting more than 100 vibrocore samples reaching almost 20 feet below mud line in water depths of up to 150 feet. Geosyntec provided professional personnel with proven geotechnical engineering experience to maintain quality control of in situ tests, sediment sampling, laboratory tests, and logging. Geosyntec setup and maintained a geotechnical offshore laboratory to describe, handle, store, and prepare soft marine sediment as per ASTM International standards as well as to conduct tests, such as moisture content, bulk unit weight, thermal conductivity, pocket penetrometer, torvane, and mini vane. Our responsibility also included the preparation of daily reports with updates of events occurred during each shift. This report included a list of achieved goals, pending tasks, operational plans, newly found and mitigated hazards, relevant project announcements, and other relevant information. Geosyntec personnel also monitored the health and safety offshore protocols of the deck crew to confirm they complied with the highest standards. We also prepared a technical report describing the geotechnical findings and operational documentation of protocols, procedures, and responsibilities during the site investigation.

Notable Accomplishments

Qualified geotechnical professionals provided solid technical and practical support, including in-situ and laboratory testing methods, which allowed our client to meet the high-quality standard of deliverables required by the offshore wind farm operator, Orsted. Geosyntec was able to contribute to the successful geotechnical survey with effective communications and personal skills required to manage subcontractor’s crew and operations without recordable health and safety incidents.