Summary
The motivation for this workshop was that existing design codes are nearly silent of the design of suction caissons, and yet there are a number of designs that will be developed around the world in the near future. While there are active research efforts to better understand the design issues, these projects will not be completed and integrated into design codes for several years at least. Therefore, there is a need to achieve more industry consistency in design methodology and criteria in the interim.
The focus for the workshop was a simplified “straw man” design of suction caissons for both a catenary mooring system and a semi-taut mooring system. The designs were provided to prospective participants approximately two weeks before the workshop was held. Participants were asked to review the design assumptions and calculations and identify issues for discussion.
