Wave penetration at Atlantic harbours

In many Atlantic harbours large ocean swell can cause problems. Svašek Hydraulics advises her clients in finding the best location in the harbour for the transhipment of heavy cargos, like the unloading of container terminal cranes in Cotonou, where vessel movements must be kept to a minimum while the unloading process takes place. Svašek Hydraulics also advises on the planning of critical operations with the use of actual swell forecasts.

As each and every harbour has specific needs on the insight of the wave conditions, Svašek Hydraulics has a wide range of tools to be used separately or in conjunction with each other:

• Ocean wave modelling for accurate ocean swell hindcast time series to be used for example for downtime analysis (WAVEWATCH III).
  
• Ocean wave modelling for accurate ocean swell forecasts for operational purposes (WAVEWATCH III).
  
• Spectral forecasts focused on site specific problematic long wave period.
  
• Transformation of ocean wave spectra to near shore (SWAN).
  
• Detailed modelling of harbour resonance frequencies (HARES).
  
• Spectral analysis on high frequency pressure sensor measurements (in house available pressure sensors which can easily be deployed).

In the right panel a YouTube movie shows a time lapse of the unloading process of a container terminal crane in Cotonou.