Attenuator offers sailboat storage

USA: To create a perimeter of protection behind its pile-supported fixed piers, the United States Naval Academy (USNA) in Annapolis, Maryland has added a new SF Marina wave attenuator. The floating concrete breakwater will not only shield manmade Santee basin from wave action from the Severn River and Chesapeake Bay but also add much-needed on-deck sailboat storage.

Lead contractor and engineer Tuckman-Barbee Construction designed the 200ft (61m) attenuator using 13 SF Marina SF400 concrete floating breakwater pontoons. These offer unprecedented stability, and are connected using a patented coupling system that allows them to absorb wave energy without damage.
Sub-contractors Crandell Marine Construction and Seaward Marine Construction installed the breakwater. A 49ft (15m) opening was created for access to the basin that provides ample room for vessel manoeuvrability. Integrated utility ducts provide power and water and contain sewage pump-out lines. Each pontoon is moored with two 24in (61cm) steel piles.
One of the breakwater sections is fitted with rows of stainless steel tracks, which attach to sloped timber docks for the USNA’s fleet of racing dinghies. An oversized ramp is used to roll the sailboats down the concrete dock from the fixed pier.