Canada recently became the 7th country in the world to surpass 10,000 MW of installed wind energy capacity, enough to power over three million homes annually. In this WindTalk edition, Canadian Wind Energy Association (CanWEA) President Robert Hornung discusses the country’s wind-power successes and challenges, and what he predicts for the future wind industry in…
Prolonging turbine life with predictive software
Stephen Steen is the head of Industrial Internet Solutions at Sentient Science, a third-party solution provider for wind-farm owners, operators, and OEMs. The company recently developed a prognostics-based computational solution for wind farms, which lets turbine owners predict failures 90% earlier than by diagnostic approaches alone. In this Wind Talk podcast, Steen speaks to us…
New ideas in blade repairs with Abaris Training
Repair instructor, Lou Dorworth, of Abaris Training recently wrote an article on new techniques for repairing wind turbine blades (which will be featured in our June issue). In this Wind Talk podcast, he explains the types of blade damage commonly found, conventional methods for repairs, and new ideas for returning damaged blades into like-new.
How appealing is wind energy in the U.S.?
Welcome to another edition of Wind Talk, a Windpower Engineering and Development podcast series that gives you the opportunity to hear from industry newsmakers in their own words. In this podcast, Troy Miller, Business Development and Marketing Manager in the Power Quality Products Division at S&C Electric Company, discusses the United States’ demand for wind…
Muir Data Systems discusses its new software for ISPs
Muir Data Systems (MDS) recently released its Sequoia CMMS, a software product designed for Independent Service Providers (ISPs) performing blade maintenance work. In this Wind Talk podcast, James Parle, CEO of MDS will discuss the software, and its benefits to ISPs and the wind-energy industry.
Why a virtual SCADA server makes sense
A wind park typically uses several OEM servers, one working as a real-time SCADA server, another as a database server, and often a third as a remote-access server, all of which take up substantial space and require a lot of manpower to keep running at peak performance. If one goes down, the wind farm owner…
Invenergy exec discusses why you should attend AWEA’s Wind Energy Finance & Investment Seminar
The AWEA Wind Energy Finance & Investment Seminar is right around the corner and Jim Murphy of Invenergy LLC is the program chair. The seminar, held next week in New York, will focus on banking and financial issues as they pertain to investing in wind-energy projects. In this podcast, Jim will discuss a few seminar…
Wind Talk: A look inside AWEA Offshore WINDPOWER 2014
Welcome to another edition of WindTalk, our podcast series that gives you the opportunity to hear from the industry’s news-makers in their own words. Today I’m joined by Paul Gallagher, COO of Fishermen’s Energy. Paul is a chairman for the upcoming AWEA Offshore WINDPOWER event in Atlantic City, New Jersey and is here to give…
How benchmarking your company benefits clients
Not long ago, the wind-turbine service company UpWind Solutions asked the consulting firm DNV GL to benchmark it on nine key areas. The areas include O&M general service, availability, parts procurement & inventory, safety & quality, turbine experience, supplemental offerings, engineering & technical, organizational, and financial service. You many ask: Why these? So did we.…
Romax Technology’s Dr. John Coultate talks scaling wind, Romax consultancy, and end of warranty inspection
In this episode of Wind Talk we speak with Dr. John Coultate, head of monitoring and O&M consultancy at Romax Technology. Romax offers turn-key solutions for drivetrain design; engineering and strategic consultancy; solutions for drivetrain health management and drivetrain simulation software. John talks about the challenges of scaling wind energy. He also discusses some of the lessons that…
After hitting a major milestone, Siemens sets sights on growing investments
Siemens Energy recently announced it reached 10 GW of installed wind capacity in the Americas. This achievement highlights the company’s continued success and its commitment to the wind-energy industry. Kirk Edelman, CEO of Siemens Financial Services’ Project and Structured Finance – Energy business, joins us to discuss hitting this major milestone, investment trends, and the…
Finding an ROI when up-rating or de-rating a wind turbine
O&M crews work hard making sure wind turbines hit the 20-year mark as profitable machines. As they close in on that birthday, it may be necessary to curb their power outputs, although some cases allow boosting it a bit. But how do the changes affect reliability and what its return on investment? Stephen Steen at…
The changing face of O&M: A podcast with GE’s General Manager of Wind Services Andy Holt
The work of wind technicians is changing as wind turbines change. Most techs are finding that newer turbines call for less torquing and fewer oil changes but more control tuning. In this podcast, GE’s General Manager of Wind Services discusses trends in operations and maintenance practices, the skills the company looks for in wind technicians,…
Offshore wind is the way to go: an interview with PMSS’ Taylor Roark
Investment in offshore wind is picking up in the U.S., but it still has a long way to go. In this episode of Wind Talk we spoke with Taylor Roark, senior consultant – project assurance with PMSS, about the incipient U.S. offshore wind industry and the challenges that still lie ahead. Roark also discusses the…
A conversation with AWEA’s Peter Kelley on recent EPA proposed rules and Clean Air Benefits, an AWEA white paper
You might think the U.S. wind industry could not be busier. Even without the PTC, construction is booming, for this year at least. The recently proposed EPA rules may provide some of the stimulus previously delivered by the tax credit. Although that remains to be seen, what is visible it that the air is getting…
A better way to change wind turbine gearbox oil
There was a time when changing the oil in a wind turbine gearbox called for assembling, believe it or not, a bucket brigade. The back-breaking work could take more than a day. Don’t ask if any was spilled. But thanks to an inquisitive inventor, the job is now completed more cleanly in less than half…
Wind Talk: Seatower prepares for first demonstration of offshore turbine foundations
After six years, Seatower is primed and ready to shake up the offshore wind market with the first demonstration of its Cranefree Gravity foundation at the Fécamp offshore wind farm project in the English Channel. In this episode of Wind Talk, Petter Karal, CEO of Seatower, discusses the lessons offshore wind has learned from offshore…
U.S. renewable M&A sees a warming trend, and that’s good
Consulting firm Deloitte and its Deloitte Center for Energy Solutions recently issue a report titled: U.S. Renewable M&A Sees a Warming Trend. It suggests that deal making is heating up amid rapid growth in distributed solar generation and strong wind development. For more insight into the report findings, we spoke with its author Marlene Motyka.…
A podcast: Predictive turbine maintenance from SCADA data
Spain based, predictive-maintenance company NEM Solutions, says its technology can glean a lot of good maintenance information from the mountains of SCADA data produced by each wind turbine. The company began by monitoring similar information from railroad equipment and recognized the application to wind turbines. In this WindTalk podcast, we interview Gorka Parada and Nagore…
Wind Talk: Vaisala exec discusses the company’s acquisitions and WINDPOWER 2014
Vaisala’s recent acquisitions with 3TIER and Second Wind let customers make profitable decisions when it comes to weather and reducing risks for renewable-energy projects. Together, the companies are able to offer products and services for every phase of the project lifecycle, with a combination of measurement equipment, assessment and forecasting services. In this podcast, Richard…