Patent ID: 6554538
Filing Date: 2003-04-29
Classification: B63B,F16L

Abstract:
A pipeline laying ship comprising:a) a dynamically positioned hull that includes bow, stern and deck portions; b) a pair of reels supported upon the deck, each reel being independently rotatable, the reels being generally positioned port and starboard relative to one another; c) a pipe joint storage containing multiple joints of pipe; d) one or more pipeline welding stations on the deck and positioned to join said joints of pipe together to form an elongated pipeline that can be wound upon a selected reel of said pair of reels; e) a tower for guiding the elongated pipeline as it is unwound from a selected reel, the tower including at least a bend controller, a straightener and a tensioner; and f) wherein the welding stations and tower are movably mounted upon the hull between port and starboard positions that enable a pipeline to be welded and then wound upon either of the reels and to be unwound from either of the reels for launching to the seabed via the tower.