Patent ID: 8992124
Filing Date: 2015-03-31
Classification: B63B,F16L

Abstract:
1. A vessel for laying pipe sections and an accessory into the sea, forming an offshore pipeline having a weight, the accessory having dimensions larger than a pipeline section, the vessel comprising: a hull onto which a pipeline launch tower is mounted, the pipeline launch tower comprising pipe laying equipment defining a firing line in which the pipe sections provided with the accessory are launched into the sea to form the offshore pipeline, the pipe laying equipment including a lowering device adapted to lower the offshore pipeline; a hang off module provided at a lower end of the pipeline launch tower, the hang off module being adapted to support the weight of the offshore pipeline, the hang off module being movable between a hang off operational position in the firing line and a hang off non-active position remote from the firing line; an accessory handling system for positioning an accessory above the offshore pipeline suspended from the hang off module, wherein the accessory is to be connected to the offshore pipeline; a stinger supported at an upper end thereof by a stinger support assembly, the stinger in a stinger operational position thereof being adapted to guide the offshore pipeline generally below the hang off module in the firing line into the sea; and the stinger support assembly provided below the hang off module, comprising a stinger support ring which is supported by the hull and which is rotatable with respect to the hull and to the pipeline launch tower over at least 90° , wherein a rotation drive is provided to rotate the stinger support ring around a vertical axis, to allow for displacement of the stinger with respect to the pipeline launch tower between the stinger operational position and a remote stinger non-active position which is remote from the firing line to allow the lowering of the accessory in the firing line by the lowering device.