Detailed Assembly Underway 

Now that the Hull and PowerPod are joined together, final assembly of the Azura is in full swing.  Patrick Branje installed the load bank and ballast valves yesterday, and the NREL team completed installation of the Modular Offshore Instrumentation System (MOIS). The MOIS measures motions and loads, as well as waves, currents and water properties. Using a feed from the Azura SCADA systems, the MOIS is able to record power, float position and hydrostatic pressure at two points along the hull. Data from load cells on the seaward mooring lines will be recorded as well.

Today, we’re preparing for dry testing to validate the integrated operation of the Azura, MOIS, and Ocean Sentinel instrumentation buoy. The Ocean Sentinel will provide power for the instrumentation systems, and an isolated battery pressure vessel will be installed on the Azura to provide backup power. These preparations will continue over the next few days, and we expect to perform dry tests later this week. During the dry tests, the Azura will be connected to the Ocean Sentinel via the umbilical cable, and the device float will be actuated by a crane to simulate the effect of a wave.