IHCantabria launches FLOCOP DSS, an intelligent tool to support offshore wind farm deployment
The innovative digital tool FLOCOP Decision Support System (DSS) offers an intelligent solution, based on high-resolution climate data, that will reduce costs, increase safety and improve the efficiency of marine operations, thus promoting the deployment of renewable energies in the marine environment.
The Environmental Hydraulics Institute of the Universidad de Cantabria (IHCantabria) has developed FLOCOP DSS, a web tool to facilitate the deployment of floating offshore wind energy and boost its industrial development.
The rapid growth of the offshore wind energy sector in Europe and internationally, highlights the technical and economic challenges facing the large-scale development of floating offshore wind energy. In response to these issues, IHCantabria has designed the digital tool FLOCOP Decision Support System (DSS) that will support developers, operators and government agencies throughout the different phases of floating offshore wind deployment.
FLOCOP DSS, demonstrates how the integration of advanced digital tools and advanced climate data from Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service (CMEMS), enables the optimization of Operation and Maintenance (O&M) strategies and reduces risks in the planning of offshore operations, thus facilitating the efficient deployment of offshore wind energy, and in turn contributing to achieving the objectives of energy transition and digitization of the offshore sector.
FLOCOP DSS is a web tool organized in two complementary modules. The first one offers a strategic analysis based on five reference cases representing the main areas of offshore wind deployment in Spain, and shows how the methodology developed by IHCantabria allows to quantify the impact of operations and maintenance (O&M) on the energy production of an offshore wind farm. The second module allows to consult in real time the predictions provided by Copernicus Data Service and to calculate operational windows of up to 7 days for different types of intervention and defined working times, at any location in the world.
This tool has been created for the purpose of:
- To provide an intelligent O&M platform for the deployment of floating offshore wind farms, based on the Copernicus environment.
- To provide open access to a tool that supports short- and long-term operational decision making through advanced forecasting and operational predictive intelligence.
- Integrate advanced digital tools and hindcast and forecast wind, wave and current data from the Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service (CMEMS) to optimize Operation and Maintenance (O&M) strategies, improve safety and accessibility, and reduce operating costs.
- Facilitate the efficient deployment of floating wind, contributing to the energy transition objectives by driving a more data-driven, efficient and sustainable management of offshore wind farms.
The development of the FLOCOP DSS has been led by the Renewable Energies and Offshore Engineering Group of IHCantabria, with the participation of the Information Technologies Group, integrating a multidisciplinary team of technologists and researchers including Lucía Meneses (principal investigator of the project), Álvaro Rodríguez-Luis, Sheila Abad, Bárbara Herrero and Carlos Calderón, among others. This innovative initiative combines capabilities in advanced numerical modeling for the study of the behavior of floating bodies at sea; development of information systems and digital platforms to support decision-making; in-depth knowledge of offshore wind development in Spain and internationally; and technology transfer to companies and researchers in the marine-energy sector.
The platform can be explored through the following link: https://flocopapp.ihcantabria.com/#/home
More information at: https://flocop.ihcantabria.com/
This work is part of the FLOCOP project, under Framework Partnership Agreement for Copernicus User Uptake. Action: 2021-3-21, funded by the European Commission (Directorate-General for Defence Industry and Space).
