UK wavemakers cross seas to China

The first two shipments of a huge order of HR Wallingford’s wave generation system have arrived in China, ready to equip an enormous new research basin.

They are part of a £12 million order for HR Wallingford to supply 239m of wavemakers and a wave absorption system to the Shanghai Ship and Shipping Research Institute (SSSRI). They will make their way to China in six shipments over the course of this year; the third shipment has already left the UK.

The systems, designed and manufactured by HR Wallingford in the UK, are to fit out a new seakeeping and manoeuvring basin, which measures 225m long, 45m wide, and 6m deep. HR Wallingford will install the wave-making machines along two sides of the tank to support SSSRI test ship designs. A carriage running above the basin will enable scientists to pull large scale models of boats with different hulls through the water.

Our wavemakers will be stored in a secure warehouse close to the site until the basin is ready for them to be installed next year. Although the coronavirus outbreak slightly interrupted SSSRI’s construction schedule for the new basin, work on the project is once again underway. As well as installing and validating the equipment, HR Wallingford will also train local operatives to use the system.

HR Wallingford is supplying 120 modules of its deep water hinged-type paddles: 478 paddle elements make up the wave maker system. These will enable the facility to provide realistic sea conditions, including long-crested, short-crested and directional waves from two perpendicular sides of the basin.  The power of wavemakers on both sides of the basin will be able to generate wave heights of up to 1m.

The basin is part of SSSRI’s investment in an entirely new state-of-the-art complex in Shanghai, which will also house a towing tank and a cavitation tunnel.

The wavemakers lined up in storage in China.

HR Wallingford is supplying 120 modules of its deep water hinged-type paddles: 478 paddle elements make up the wave maker system. These will enable the facility to provide realistic sea conditions, including long-crested, short-crested and directional waves from two perpendicular sides of the basin.  The power of wavemakers on both sides of the basin will be able to generate wave heights of up to 1m.

The basin is part of SSSRI’s investment in an entirely new state-of-the-art complex in Shanghai, which will also house a towing tank and a cavitation tunnel.

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