Engineering out a critical error from launch and recovery

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Launch and recovery is one of the most exposed moments in any maritime operation. When a daughtercraft is being launched while the mothership is still making way, there is very little room for error. If the painter hook is released before the lifting hook, the consequences can be immediate and severe. It is a known procedural hazard during launch at speed, and one that has long demanded a safer response. If you are still relying on procedure alone to prevent a known launch error, you are leaving avoidable risk in the operation. Henriksen’s Integrated Henriksen System (IHS) was developed to eliminate exactly that risk by ensuring that the lifting hook must open before the painter hook can release.

What is the Integrated Henriksen System (IHS)?
That principle of the IHS is simple, yet highly relevant. It’s a way of controlling the sequence of the launch itself through physical safeguards. The system is designed specifically for boat launches where a lifting hook is used together with a painter hook, while the mothership is still at speed. In those conditions, getting the release sequence wrong can turn a launch into a serious incident in seconds. With IHS, that specific failure path is engineered out of the operation entirely.

At H. Henriksen, that thinking reflects a much broader background. Founded in 1856, the company has for generations built a long standing position in maritime handling with the Henriksen HOOKS product line, and more recently also launch and recovery systems for unmanned assets such as AUVs and USVs. Henriksen HOOKS is widely recognised across the professional maritime market as the benchmark for safe lifting. That position has been built over decades through a broad product range, and the supporting systems required. Such as the well established recertification and service programmes that help keep critical equipment operational with minimal downtime. These are all things that take part of that wider safety offering.

The Integrated Henriksen System is available in both mechanical and electric versions, and can be configured across different hook arrangements and vessel types. The point is not only to supply a component, but to provide a safer launch and recovery solution tailored to the application at hand.

Recent projects utilising the Henriksen IHS
A recent example can be seen in Maritime Partner’s Sjøbjørn 38 programme for the Norwegian Coast Guard, where IHS has been selected as part of the launch and recovery arrangement. Maritime Partner recently announced the delivery of two further vessels in the five boat series developed for Coast Guard operations. For Henriksen, programmes like this matter because they show how experienced builders continue to place their trust in IHS in demanding service environments. They also reflect something we see repeatedly in the market: once yards have implemented IHS successfully, they often continue to design around it.

That is ultimately the case for integrated hook and painter control. In high consequence launch operations, safety cannot depend on timing or routine alone. Known risks must be addressed by the system design itself. That is what IHS was made to do, and why it continues to matter to boatbuilders and operators focused on making launch and recovery at sea safer.

Integrated Henriksen System Data Sheet

The Integrated Henriksen System is designed to enhance the safety during the launch of a rescue/work boat.
 
 
 
 

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