An experimental approach to evaluate the structural performance of a jacket launch barge

The structural performance of a launch barge in load-out and launching of an offshore steel jacket is the crucial criterion of its designs. The overall bending of the hull girder subjected to the design load form the main theme of the study. In this paper, approach of physical modelling has been adopted to study the problem in the content of a case study which is oriented to establish, in general terms, the model design principles, the role of similitude and the simulation of the various loading cases. With considerable sophistication of the techniques of experimental stress analysis, large scale problems (of which the present study is an example in the area of offshore structures) can be efficiently tackled. It is seen that such experimental approach can efficiently serve as an adjunct to computational model, in addition to the visual qualities of this approach which is of much interest to the practising engineer. © 1985.