Coastline Surveys Ltd will launch their newly commissioned seabed CPT unit ‘C-Pen20’ at Oceanology International 2010 in London. The new concept in CPT operations has been designed specifically to meet the requirements for seabed soil investigation for subsea cable networks in connection with offshore renewable energy projects.
Using a standard 5cm² piezocone the system has proven capability to penetrate up to 3m below the seabed providing real-time in situ measurement of soil properties and stratigraphy. C-Pen20 has been designed to operate in conjunction with our range of high-powered vibrocoring systems from our dedicated 24m multirole survey vessel ‘MV Flat Holm’.
Developed in conjunction with GeoMarine Ltd, C-Pen20 uses a unique hydraulic drive mechanism providing up to 20kN of total thrust. Data collected by the cone is transmitted directly to an onboard computer where it is processed and interpreted by a specialist engineer. This rapid onboard interpretation helps route engineers to optimise the selection of data points resulting in optimal installation route design with considerable cost savings.
C-Pen20 is also an ideal tool for pipeline and telecoms route surveys to inform trenchability assessments and in port and harbour soil investigations for pre-dredge studies.