Will Rudd’s Gerard Carson and Stewart Mackay provide an overview of the firm’s Moray West project and explain how the work at Buckie is part of a much bigger renewable energy focus for the team
The leasing of Scotland’s seabed has resulted in high value agreements between the Crown Estate Scotland and various offshore wind developers. Crucial to building Scotland’s resilience and equipping the country for a more renewable energy future, the legacy of seabed leasing for offshore wind projects will be lasting.
In tandem with the progress being made on offshore wind developments off the north east coast miles out to sea, intensive operations are happening on dry land to build the much-needed infrastructure to support offshore farms.
Will Rudd is one firm leading the charge when it comes to delivering onshore infrastructure for offshore wind developments. The firm has a contract to support the Moray West development at Buckie, to be used exclusively by Ocean Winds. This will offer support for both Ocean Winds and their partners in a 50/50 joint venture between ENGIE and EDP Renewables.
Will Rudd is leading the design and delivery of three separate projects as part of the Moray West development at Buckie: the design of a new build office and warehouse facility which will act as the main link between the offshore farm and mainland, otherwise known as the Operations & Maintenance facility; upgrade to the existing pier across the road; and rehoming of the harbour master and his staff within the existing fish market building, post-upgrade and refurbishment works.
Gerard Carson, team lead at Will Rudd, Glasgow, said, “Moray West is a significant project for us, one that will play a crucial role in a much wider infrastructure development to support Ocean Winds’ fixed development in the outer Moray Firth. Situated 14 miles off the coast, the site will cover an area of 225km2 where wind turbines will have capacity to power the equivalent of around 1.3 million homes. It’s a massive development and one which needs significant support from onshore infrastructure.”
As the country moves away from reliance on fossil fuels, projects like Moray West will continue to be of growing importance.
Will Rudd’s renewables portfolio is expanding and already includes energy from waste facilitates, solar farms, and even mini hydroelectric energy.
Experience in delivering complex multi-faceted construction projects in other sectors is serving the firm well as it takes on more work in the sector, and Gerard Carson believes this is because the team involved is able to utilise: technical expertise in structural and civil engineering design; lean design with focus on reducing embodied carbon associated with the structure; conservation expertise and sensitive repurposing of existing structures; willingness to take on additional works traditionally thought of specialist contractor designated items; and a strong commercial focus on the design.
At Moray West, he added, “We are creating an onshore support facility for an offshore wind farm, characterised by similar levels of complexity that we see in other projects.”
These include: new build structures, with strong architectural flourishes, along with associated civil engineering; marine engineering – redevelopment of the pier at Buckie Harbour, breathing new life into the structure following significant decline in use; and adaptive reuse of local existing buildings to decant the existing harbour master’s office.
Stewart Mackay, project engineer for Will Rudd and the Moray West projects described the project elements. “The new build Operations & Maintenance facility has two main areas designed to monitor and maintain the offshore farm, comprising a three-storey structure with an internal floor area of approximately 550m2 per level and a warehouse to the rear giving 245m2 of storage space.
“We worked alongside the project architects to meet their requirements that enable a fully glazed front elevation. The building looks onto the North Sea to take the brunt of the north east’s harsh coastal weather. Both façade and overall framing design had to factor in weathering and wind effects, critical to the design and positioning of bracing lines to ensure an unobstructed view from the glazed frontage, reflecting the architect’s vision.
“Working closely with various subcontractors on the contractor design portions, we helped in the coordination for both design and install methodology for the curtain walling, both standard and bespoke cladding interfaces, one of which is a bespoke aluminium picture frame detail that borders the upper levels.”
In addition to the new build Operation & Maintenance facility and harbour master’s offices, Will Rudd is also involved in upgrade works to the existing pier for vessels sailing to and from Ocean Wind’s site.
Stewart Mackay added, “The pier has been under mixed-use, with minimal maintenance work for some time which meant that the condition required upgrading ahead of future use.
“Our works have included the design of 2No. crane bases which will lift equipment and supplies from pier to boat. Great care was required whilst reviewing the design and installation of these cranes given the machinery scale and condition of the existing pier walls.
“The design looks to build inboard of the existing pier walls to avoid undermining the baseline integrity and reduce the scope of the works that would be required if these walls were to be removed. A pre-works dilapidation survey identified some local repairs deemed necessary to increase the design life.”
Elsewhere on and around the pier, works are ongoing and include: new pontoons and floating gangways which will allow people to get from pier to water level on both sides; inclusion of above ground fuel tanks; and heavy laydown areas for equipment and self-contained amenity spaces.
These works will allow users to serve smaller vessels going back and forth carrying personnel and maintenance kits between shore and farm.
Michael-John O’Shaughnessy, Will Rudd MD Glasgow & Dublin, stated, “Moray West is an exciting milestone in supporting Scotland’s renewable energy strategy, which will provide homes with affordable, low-carbon electricity, mitigating our need to rely on harmful fossil fuel energy sources and so reducing our production of greenhouse gas emissions.”
Pete Geddes, Moray West project director, Ocean Winds, added, “As well as getting the offshore elements of the project installed efficiently and safely, getting the onshore elements of the project right is also a priority for us. The contribution of Will Rudd to efficient design, of what will be highly visible legacy elements of the project onshore, has been considerable. We’re delighted that this Scottish firm has helped shape this Scottish project.”
