Port authority bremenports GmbH & Co.KG is responsible for the hydrographic survey of the water depths in both Bremen and Bremerhaven, ensuring easy and safe navigation in the port areas. Whereas the determination of the minimum depth is relevant for the harbor master, the pilots and the maintenance dredging teams, the maximum depth is important for the ports’ maintenance department in order to identify local tidal scours and to ensure the stability of the terminals. Equipped with the multibeam Sonic 2024, bremenports’ new survey vessel Seeadler is able to survey both the water depth and the quay walls.
Thorsten Döscher, chief hydrographer at bremenports has composed a valuable article dealing with the challenges and opportunities of pier wall surveys in Bremen and Bremerhaven. The article was orginally published in the Hydrografische Nachrichten 113 (German) and is available here as individual PDF.