Decision Support Tool for Offshore Wind Farm Vessel Routing under Uncertainty

Rafael Dawid, David McMillan and Matthew Revie
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Rafael Dawid: Department of Electronic & Electrical Engineering, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow G1 1XW, UK
David McMillan: Department of Electronic & Electrical Engineering, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow G1 1XW, UK
Matthew Revie: Department of Management Science, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow G1 1XW, UK

Energies, 2018, vol. 11, issue 9, 1-17

Abstract: This paper for the first time captures the impact of uncertain maintenance action times on vessel routing for realistic offshore wind farm problems. A novel methodology is presented to incorporate uncertainties, e.g., on the expected maintenance duration, into the decision-making process. Users specify the extent to which these unknown elements impact the suggested vessel routing strategy. If uncertainties are present, the tool outputs multiple vessel routing policies with varying likelihoods of success. To demonstrate the tool’s capabilities, two case studies were presented. Firstly, simulations based on synthetic data illustrate that in a scenario with uncertainties, the cost-optimal solution is not necessarily the best choice for operators. Including uncertainties when calculating the vessel routing policy led to a 14% increase in the number of wind turbines maintained at the end of the day. Secondly, the tool was applied to a real-life scenario based on an offshore wind farm in collaboration with a United Kingdom (UK) operator. The results showed that the assignment of vessels to turbines generated by the tool matched the policy chosen by wind farm operators. By producing a range of policies for consideration, this tool provided operators with a structured and transparent method to assess trade-offs and justify decisions.

Keywords: vessel routing; O&; M planning; offshore wind; VRP; optimisation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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