Mammoet installs first Red Sea modular villas

24 February 2023

Print Page

A Demag crawler crane on a modified barge delivers modular villas for Red Sea showcase resort

Netherlands-headquartered international heavy lift and transport specialist Mammoet has delivered the first batch of modularly constructed villas for the Sheybarah Island resort, Saudi Arabia.

The resort is being built by Saudi-based developer Red Sea Global; once complete it will comprise 73 overwater and beach villas and the resort aims to showcase sustainability.

Mammoet won the contract to transport and install the villa pods in May 2022. The first batch comprised four villas which needed to be shipped from the UAE to Saudi Arabia. For this Mammoet teamed up with logistics and marine solutions provider P&O Maritime Logistics.

For the installation itself Mammoet used its 650t capacity Demag CC3800 crawler crane positioned on its ALE 250modified barge. The shallow draft of the barge meant that there was minimal disturbance to the marine environment.

 At the construction jetty the crane loaded and placed the first orb on the barge deck and sailed to the installation area. Once at the location, the barge was positioned using a GPS system and the barge’s winches for precise alignment with the foundation.

The barge was then stabilised using a retrofitted 300t spud jacking system provided by Combifloat – Mammoet’s partner for floating and self-elevating marine equipment suitable for nearshore operations. Safe and efficient lifting, lowering and (re)positioning of the barge was achieved through a locally controlled jacking mechanism and a four-point mooring system, explains Mammoet.

For lifting the modular villa into position the CC3800’s Superlift system has been replaced by a system designed specifically for the project where the back mast of the CC3800 is ‘tied back’ to the barge. This gives the crane enough capacity to place the orb onto the foundation without requiring the additional mass of a Superlift tray, says Mammoet.

Robert van Tinteren, lead project engineer for Mammoet, comments, “Creative engineering at its best. It has been an exciting nine months building up to this point, but it never gets tedious to see the incredible things we at Mammoet can do when we put our minds to it!”