ARTICLES
Wind speeds change at various heights, making hoisting projects on wind farms particularly challenging. All the more reason to hire experienced operators.
In past months we have learned about the maintenance process, rigging techniques, and the different crane types relative to the wind industry. This month we are going to take a look into how the wind speeds change at various heights. The wind speed changes can help reduce wear and tear on the wind components in […]
Chris Martin
In addition to the latest technologies, maintenance professionals can use their physical senses to detect gearbox problems, as this first in a two-part series makes clear.
Armed with some experience and a bit of awareness, there are several ways in which a technician can diagnose wind turbine gearbox problems while uptower. Using the physical senses, it becomes relatively straightforward to listen for noises coming from the gearbox, to observe surface damage on the gearing, and to observe the color and smell […]
Merritt Brown
Uncertainty in the soil properties can have significant effects on the reliability of offshore wind turbine support structures with monopile foundations.
While offshore wind turbine technology has evolved from its onshore predecessor, engineering experience in the offshore oil and gas industry has also contributed to the design and analysis methods utilized in offshore wind. In particular, the method utilized in the design of the support structure for an offshore wind turbine (OWT) has its roots in […]
Matthew A. Lackner, Ph.D.
Reporting straight from the jobsite, the author relates lessons learned during his career that help keep projects on track.
Problems, issues, delays, deadlines… things that make your project not to go as planned. This is what I am writing about in this installment of my column, since I am on a project site dealing with all of the approve. The last four days working a load-out of wind towers as the project manager have […]
Michael Graska
NEWS
Astraeus Wind Energy’s MAG MEGAFLEX machining system has passed its initial supplier qualification by completing “Operation 20” metal cutting processes in record time on a Clipper Windpower C96 turbine hub, one of the industry’s largest. The unique system simultaneously machines all three blade faces, which enabled it to complete the qualification hub in less than […]
May 7, 2012
Mike Barker has joined Wind Systems magazine as regional sales manager, responsible for covering states including North and South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Kentucky, and Indiana. A native of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Barker began his career at Randall Publishing Company in 1988. On moving to Birmingham he joined Vulcan Publications in 1996, […]
May 7, 2012
Floating foundations for the offshore wind industry are increasingly gaining attention and interest within the industry, as well as among government and permitting institutions and also investors. This interest is driven by the conditions found in the U.S. and Japan where the vast majority of offshore wind resources is found in water depths of more […]
May 7, 2012
Leosphere and NRG Systems recently introduced FCR™ (Flow Complexity Recognition), an add-on solution for the WINDCUBE® v2 Lidar Remote Sensor. Supported by WINDCUBE’s vertical fifth beam, FCR enables the Lidar to provide precise, bankable data in all terrain types, including complex terrain, with no post-processing or post-correction.“In complex terrain, all mechanical and remote sensors are […]
May 7, 2012
Dow Epoxy, a business unit of The Dow Chemical Company, has introduced the new DOW COMPAXX™ 900 foam core system, which is designed to enable the fabrication of wind blades exceeding 40 meters in length. Dow continues to offer the COMPAXX 700 foam core system for use in wind blades of less than 40 meters. […]
May 7, 2012
LM Wind Power’s 73.5-meter blades became the first 70+ meter blades to be installed when Alstom inaugurated the largest offshore wind turbine in the world on March 19 at Carnet in the Loire-Atlantique region of France. The impressive composite structures have been developed specifically for Alstom’s Haliade 150-6MW wind turbine in a close collaboration between […]
May 7, 2012
As a follow-on to last year’s announcement by Parker Hannifin of a “rack-ready” two-phase evaporative cooling system for wind turbine systems, the company has developed a stand-alone configuration of the system as a drop-in replacement to easily retrofit existing wind turbine cooling systems (traditionally air- or water-based). Parker’s stand-alone cooling system is fully scalable and […]
May 7, 2012
GL Garrad Hassan has appointed Christoph Thiel as its new head of business development and sales. He will be responsible for managing global sales and business development for GL Garrad Hassan worldwide, working from the head office in Hamburg. He started in his new position on March 1, 2012. “I am really looking forward to […]
May 7, 2012
