MakaiLay Suite Adds Features for Power Cable Installers
– May, 2015

Figure 1: The new Heave Analysis tool for shallow water power cable lays accounts for vessel heave and
ocean conditions (currents, water depth, seabed slope) to help installers understand impacts on the
safety of the cable (bend radius and bottom tension). The tool is now available with MakaiLay Power
(at-sea installation), and MakaiPlan Pro Power (in-office simulation/training).
Makai Ocean Engineering, Inc. continues to address issues experienced by the subsea power cable industry by significantly enhancing the world’s leading submarine cable lay software, MakaiLay, and its desktop simulation sister product, MakaiPlan Pro. Specifically, three key features are being integrated into the Power Cable modules for each of these products that are built specifically for power cable installers:
Makai has developed a new cable model that includes cable bending stiffness, which is now being used in two new tools: the Shape Calculator and the Heave Analysis tool.
The core product, MakaiLay, accurately models the cable shape, bottom tension and touchdown location as it is installed on the seafloor. With a complete picture of cable conditions, operators can accurately control bottom tension and touchdown location, significantly reducing the time, cost, and risk of a lay. For power cable jobs in areas of transition from shallow to mid and deep-water, steep seabed slopes, and strong currents, it can become especially difficult to control the cable’s tension and bend radius at the seafloor, risking the safety of the cable. In these situations, MakaiLay’s cable control and navigation instructions become critical. The MakaiLay suite includes a route planning tool (MakaiPlan) and a simulating/training tool (MakaiPlan Pro), in addition to the real-time, at-sea tool for controlling cable deployment (MakaiLay). Power cable modules with a growing number of power-cable-specific features are available with each product.
“These new power cable features reflect Makai’s commitment to making the MakaiLay suite the most comprehensive tool for power cable installations,” said Dr. Venkata Jasti, Makai’s engineer leading this development. “We are excited to see power cable installers adopting this tool. MakaiLay has been the industry standard for telecom lays for over 15 years, being used to successfully install well over 500,000 kilometers of cable – when it comes to proven subsea cable laying tools, why reinvent the wheel?”
Click here to watch a brief video showing the software in action.
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About Makai Ocean Engineering, Inc.
Makai Ocean Engineering, Inc. is an innovative ocean technology firm based in Hawaii, USA since 1973. Makai’s expertise includes submarine cable software and services, marine pipelines, Seawater Air Conditioning (SWAC), Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC), underwater vehicles, and marine engineering and R&D. For the last 15 years, Makai has produced the world’s most popular submarine cable installation, planning, and simulation software. Makai is ISO 9001:2008 certified.
For more information, contact:
Duke Hartman
Marketing Director, Makai Ocean Engineering
PO Box 1206 Kailua, Oahu, HI 96734
+1 (808) 259-8871
Duke.Hartman@makai.com