Offshore Accommodation Specialist Awards Major Contracts to Suppliers

23 March 2010

Ferguson Modular, a major supplier and manufacturer of offshore accommodation solutions for the global energy industry, has awarded additional contracts to suppliers for outfitting work on its new accommodation support vessel.

The company, a division of the Aberdeenshire-headquartered Ferguson Group, is investing £25million in its accommodation support vessel which will be available for hire once the work is completed in June this year.

The vessel is seen as a logical extension to the flexible accommodation solutions offered by Ferguson Modular, which also has a range of accommodation complexes and work space units available for rental.

Ferguson Group managing director Steven Ferguson today announced that equipment and services contracts worth a total of £4.5million had been awarded to ACE Winches based in Aberdeenshire for the supply of hydraulic winches and Thistle Generators Ltd of Bothwell, Glasgow for the provision of generators while Aberdeen-based CSL have been awarded the contract for project management for the accommodation support vessel throughout the detailed design and project execution phases.

Mr Ferguson said: “The high standards of manufacturing and reliability at these suppliers, combined with their cost-efficient approach meant it was possible to award all the work competitively in Scotland. It is important to us to continue to support Scottish companies while expanding aggressively internationally and the investments we are making in the future of our company will lead to new jobs being created in the north-east as well as Glasgow.’’

A £3.2million contract for outfitting the accommodation support vessel had previously been awarded to Ferguson Shipbuilders Ltd at Port Glasgow.

Dave Andrew, CSL commercial and operations manager said: “Having been involved from inception of the project CSL is delighted to continue with the engineering and project management for Ferguson’s new accommodation support vessel. CSL’s core experience and competency has been key to the projects success thus far and will remain so through to completion.”

ACE Winches’ CEO Alfie Cheyne stated “ As a local North East Company we are delighted to secure the £2.1M contract with Ferguson Modular to design and manufacture four 100Te Double Drum Mooring Winches and four 150Kw Hydraulic Power Units complete with remote control system. ACE Winches have nominated a dedicated project team which will ensure the bespoke manufacturing order is delivered on time and within budget.”

Ferguson Modular is currently finalising the £4.5million in-house manufacture of the 49 DNV 2.7-1 / EN 12079 certified modules which will comprise the accommodation complex on board the accommodation support vessel. The fully flexible complex will offer accommodation and facilities for between 120 and 240 POB (persons on board) depending upon client project requirements. It will be suitable for use in all major oil and gas provinces, as well as by the renewables sector.

The vessel offers a new accommodation solution for the industry as it is the first to offer the exact level of accommodation, office, galley, mess and recreation space needed to provide the ideal working environment for a specific project and additional accommodation and facilities can be added as required. Further critical elements such as mooring systems, walk to work systems, craneage, survival craft and helideck can be supplied if necessary.

Mr Ferguson added: “Our first accommodation support vessel is part of Ferguson Modular’s ongoing strategy to expand internationally and increase the range of quality accommodation solutions we can offer for rental to both new and existing clients. We have an excellent reputation within the industry for providing high-quality products that surpass safety standards and are delighted to be continuing our innovative approach with our new vessel.’’

The Ferguson Group employs more than 150 people worldwide through its divisions serving the offshore container rental and accommodation modules markets. The group, based at Inverurie, Aberdeenshire, has operations in all major global oil and gas locations to ensure the best service for its customers.

As well as consolidating existing strengths in the oil and gas sector, Ferguson Group is focused strongly on international growth and recent contract wins include Australia, Caspian, West Africa and the North Sea. The renewables sector is also a key growth market.