The Turkmenbashi International Seaport, located on the eastern shores of the Caspian Sea, is the main passenger harbor and cargo port and the largest seaport in Turkmenistan. The $2 billion construction of a new port infrastructure was awarded to the Turkish contractor GAP İnşaat by the State Service of Maritime and River Transportation of Turkmenistan. As part of the contract GAP İnşaat was required to appoint a third party Test Inspection and Certification (TIC)company.
TIC is standard practice when executing large international infrastructure projects as it ensures all relevant parties that the construction meets technical requirements, and that the installation and systems can be safely operated throughout the life-cycle of the installation by personnel and the public alike.
As an independent third party conformity assessment body, RINA was appointed by GAP İnşaat to provide design verification, site supervision and procurement inspections, in order also to assure that equipment, machine, and material will have a relatively long continuous useful life, longer durability without requiring an inordinate degree of maintenance and consequently guarantee cost saving during the exercise.
Design verification will be completed by May 2017, following the review of around 20,000 technical drawings to ensure that all standards and codes are being met in full. RINA’s international project management team, totalling more than 10 engineers, has provided solid support in meeting the client’s expectations both prior to starting and during the current works.
The RINA site team has been providing a 360° service in order to support GAP İnşaat and the State Service of Maritime and River Transportation of Turkmenistan, with the completion of all deliverables in compliance with the approved drawings and documents. This provides a guarantee to all parties that the level of construction quality meets the specifications as defined by the contract and/or the relevant Standards and Codes.
Site inspection activities cover all construction phases (pre-fabrication, construction, erection, sampling and testing, pre-commissioning and commissioning) and all disciplines. A dedicated team of expats and locals is deployed to cover the main disciplines of civil, mechanical and electrical engineering.
Reporting and certification are RINA’s principal deliverables. The documentary evidence that the equipment and critical systems are safe and compliant is important in its own right, as this information also triggers payment to the contractor.
As a result of RINA’s worldwide offices, procurement inspections have been performed with all the contractor suppliers. RINA inspectors from Turkey to Italy, and North Europe to Russia are also involved in carrying out Third Party checks and assessments prior to shipment.
From the design verification stages to final construction, RINA has been embedded at the core of this remarkable project. RINA’s goal is the same as that of the State Service of Maritime and River Transportation of Turkmenistan. Large infrastructure projects such as the Turkmenbashi new port demand the highest construction quality and rigorous standards, delivered within predefined project timescales.
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