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The oil industry has always faced access and transportation problems in retrieving its product. To most drilling contractors, the worst of these problems is soft ground and tidal areas. For some years this obstacle has been overcome using conventional approaches such as dredging or laying board roads. However,during the 1970s and 1980s, applying air cushion technology, which reduced the load exerted on the ground, a new cost-effective system, was developed - Hoverbarges.
The system was extensively used by one company (Mackace Air Cushion Equipment company), which developed the expertise and knowledge to tackle projects ranging from lifting 460 tons in Alaska to lifting 750 tons in the Middle East. The requirement for this type of work declined in the late 80s with the recession but the original Mackace Air Cushion Equipment Company has formed a new organisation, HOVERDRIL, Inc. which now provides complete air cushion systems for the wetlands drilling, workover, and production sites.
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