Cutter suction dredgers

The Efficient Dredging concept on cutter suction dredgers optimises:

  • the cutting and swing process
  • the anchoring and spud changing process
  • the suction and pumping process and the total mixture transport chain, including boosters
  • the accuracy of the location and the dredging profile
  • the utilisation and distribution of available power
  • the relations between these processes
  • crew training with IHC Systems simulators

A wide range of hardware and software products are available for this purpose, starting with robust pressure and production measurements, as well as position measurements for the spud carrier and the ladder, for example. Moving up a level, monitoring systems present the position of the cutter in its local grid and provide automatic controllers for profile dredging and pumps. Dredge track presentation systems supply information about the location where the dredger is working and can be used to prove that the job has been done right.


Control systems at the basic level provide manual or semi-automatic control for the hydraulically or electrically operated equipment such as winches, sluice valves, spuds and so on.


However, these systems can be expanded and combined with the functionality of the monitoring systems to produce fully integrated presentation, control and automation systems. This is the third application level for Efficient Dredging. It serves the total swinging, cutting and mixture transport process, including control of available boosters, engine room monitoring and automation, and power management. Additional functionality, such as navigation control and autopilots, is available for self-propelling cutter suction dredgers.


Although the bucket line dredger is becoming rare in dredge operations, automation for these vessels is quite similar to cutter suction dredgers and IHC Systems can also provide it.

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