Vikoma demonstrates deployment of Hi Sprint Boom at UK Spill 2008
Vikoma’s Hi SprintTM boom took centre stage at the UK Spill 2008 conference held at Oil Spill Response Ltd’s (OSRL) Southampton base last week.
Vikoma International Ltd deployed five 50 meter sections of its renowned neoprene Hi SprintTM boom in Southampton Water on Thursday 3rd July. The Hi SprintTM, so named because of its high integrity and speedy deployment, was deployed from OSRL’s EARL 2 catamaran, laying 250 meters of boom in approximately 10 minutes.
The Hi SprintTM boom was then recovered using Vikoma’s specifically designed deflator attachment which literally sucks the air out of the boom as it is rolled back onto the reel. The deflator connects to the standard air pump used to deploy the boom and practically halves the time it would normally take to recover the boom, making it ideal for training situations see link: http://www.vikoma.com/product/2.aspx?page_id=2
The on water demonstration was watched by over 90 delegates from around the UK as well as visitors from Croatia and Sweden. In addition to Vikoma’s Hi SprintTM demonstration, other manufacturers staged demos of products such as dispersants and boom vanes, while the Maritime Coastguard Agency’s (MCA) aerial surveillance plane flew overhead, showing how spills can be monitored.
Vikoma also invited a reporter from BBC Radio who broadcast a short feature on Sir Robin Knox Johnson’s h2o show.
The morning session comprised a tour of the OSRL base and exhibits of various pieces of spill response equipment including Vikoma’s KomaraTM 20 skimmer system. The KomaraTM 20 is a disc skimmer capable of recovering oil at a rate of 23m3/hr, with incredible efficiency, rated by Lloyds Register and proven to deliver a 98% oil to water pick ratio, which means that further separation is rarely required and recovered oil can go straight for re-processing.
For more information on Vikoma’s range of oil containment booms and skimmers please visit www.vikoma.com or call on +44 (0)1983 200573
