October 25th, 2018
Laying cables or pipes at sea is inherently challenging. Oceanic topography, sea conditions and even local sea life pose risks, so ensuring that cable or pipe laying equipment is of the utmost quality is of great importance. JBS Engineering (part of the JBS Group Ltd), a leading supplier of services to the marine and offshore sector, has ensured this quality for its customers by utilising the plate rolling expertise of Barnshaws’ Hamilton branch in Scotland, to fabricate a main chute with side plates for an offshore vessel.
A chute on an offshore vessel will channel cables or small pipes from the reel into the water. In this application, the goal is to ensure the chute is smooth and will present no opportunities for the cable to snag, which places greater emphasis on ensuring the quality of the overall fabrication. JBS Engineering has built a reputation providing durable solutions to blue chip manufacturers in the offshore and lifeboat industry for decades, so when it came to select a fabricator for the chute, the market-leading plate rolling capabilities of Barnshaws’ Hamilton branch was the deciding factor.
John Chalmers, Sales Engineer at Barnshaws’ Hamilton branch, explained the process: “Utilising around five tonnes of high-quality steel plate, we employed our specialist plate rolling techniques to roll the main chute and its associated side plates. The rolling process ensured that the thick steel could be curved accurately with minimal welds, providing increased durability in the application. We were able to manufacture and deliver the fabrications to JBS Engineering within a week.”
Chalmers concludes: “We have worked closely with JBS Engineering on a variety of projects in the past, so we share good communication channels. Our close proximity to their operations in Scotland and our focus on short lead-times is definitely another contributing factor to our business relationship. Marine is one of the most challenging sectors in engineering, so to be supplying this industry is a real boost for us.”
