| Flexiport is designed to turn any coastal or
river anchorage into a working deepwater port by mooring custom designed and built
pontoons in sufficient depth of water to enable ships to lie alongside and connecting the
quayside formed by the pontoons to the road system ashore by a prefabricated bridge or
causeway. A standard offshore oil rig support pontoon provides a quayside
working area of 90 x 27 metres, and sufficient pontoons are linked together by a
proprietary design to provide the cargo working area and length of alongside berthing as
defined at the planning stage. Much larger pontoons can be incorporated, if
required, increasing the working areas, berth length and storage capacity. The
quayside pontoons can provide any facility to be found in a normal conventional port, such
as craneage, storage, harbour control offices, secure areas, etc. The installation can
also be made fully self-sufficient for electricity and water, and incorporate
accommodation, workshops and helipads, and other services as required. In its suitable
application Flexiport offers several key advantages over conventional port construction.
Reduction of port construction time by up to 60%
Reduction of cost of construction by up to 60%
Minimal disruption of the local environment
Reduction or even eradication of dredging
Ease of maintenance for extended operational life
The pontoons are prefabricated and otherwise prepared for their role in any suitable
shipyard, moved to site, normally by ocean-going tugs, and installed there using
techniques proven and practised in the extreme conditions of the United Kingdom's offshore
oil industry. The related principles of pre-fabrication, movement of massive
structures and installation on site making no demand on local facilities are common
practice in the offshore oil industry and combine to ensure that a Flexiport is
operational far more quickly and at far less cost than a conventional port construction
providing an equivalent capability.
Flexiport has a further advantage over conventional ports, in that no major vertical loads
(such as those generated by massive concrete structures) are transmitted into the seabed,
making Flexiport ideal in areas where seabed sub-soil conditions are poor. The
Flexiport structure can also be designed to be permanent or mobile allowing for reduction
or extension of the terminal's working capacity or even relocation of the whole terminal
at short notice.
In all Flexiport designs, a detailed study is made of the weather, topographical and
climatic features of the site, and the Flexiport structure can be constructed so as to be
capable of withstanding the worst possible case 50-year weather conditions.
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