RAD Torque will be exhibiting at the international construction machinery trade show, bauma 2022 in Munich, Germany. The company encourages attendees to stop by RAD Torque’s booth to test out its range of tools.

Below is a written excerpt of this episode of Wind Spotlight, but be sure to listen to the entire episode here or on your favorite podcast app.

RAD Torque systems will soon be launching an exciting new tool called the B-RAD Xtreme. Tell me about it and why it’s going to revolutionize the torque wrench industry.

Well, the B-RAD Xtreme is going to launch with the highest torque output models available anywhere in the world. We’re launching with a 5,000, 8,000 and 11,000 ft lb models, making us the biggest battery tool available in any market.

The B-RAD X also includes a bunch of safety features that are new to our battery tooling. There’s a secondary trigger to prevent accidental operation or prevent any pinch points that may occur. We also are launching the tool with a bunch of ergonomic accessories. But most importantly is performance.

RAD Torque Systems is well known for its innovative gearbox. What makes the RAD gearbox unique?

We have 25 years of experience designing and manufacturing these gearboxes across five distinct generations of design. All that experience, all that knowledge has really put us in a position to bring that together and be able to provide the strongest, smallest gearboxes possible. That’s really where we take our pride in our tools, is being able to provide something that’s ergonomic, safe to use and isn’t as cumbersome as most of the solutions on the market right now.

The E-RAD Blu torque wrench is a preferred tool in the wind industry as well. Tell me about the E-RAD Blu and why so many wind turbine manufacturers and maintenance contractors make it their go-to tool.

It’s definitely two-fold. In manufacturing, the features that seem to be successful from the E-RAD are the data collection, process control integration with open protocol and other software that uses that technology. And it’s a bit of a workhorse. It’s an AC-powered tool, so you can plug it in and use it two shifts a day, every day. On the maintenance side, up a tower, the E-RAD provides a lot of benefits over some of our competition because the tool system is fairly lightweight. It’s easier to pack up a tower in order to do flange maintenance or generator maintenance or whatever needs to be done. And that’s proven to be very successful for us.

This podcast is sponsored by RAD Torque Systems

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For grid-tied, developed communities (those with established roadways and highway systems), municipalities can have regulations for structure heights and may require a turbine be built a specified distance from residences. This was the case for state utility Ameren Illinois who constructed a microgrid on a property adjacent to The University of Illinois in Champaign, Illinois. The company installed a 167-ft., 100-kW turbine in the microgrid project, meeting Champaign’s mandate requiring the structure to not be built taller than 175 ft. or within 1,000 ft. of a residential customer.

Ameren Illinois installed a 100-kW wind turbine at its microgrid project on a piece of property neighboring the University of Illinois. Ameren Illinois

Ameren Illinois’s microgrid, or Technology Application Center, at the University of Illinois, was constructed to determine how different distributed energy resources would affect the electric distribution system. The microgrid is composed of a wind turbine, photovoltaic solar and a diesel generator, and integrated with Champaign’s electrical grid.

For wind to be a viable power source for a microgrid, an energy storage component is recommended.

“Wind doesn’t blow all the time — it’s intermittent. So, problems can develop because the wind changes speed and direction all the time,” said Rod Hilburn, manager of the Technology Application Center (TAC) with Ameren Illinois. “It’s not constant. You’re not burning coal and you don’t have hydro that’s keeping the turbine spinning at a nice constant pace. Those are some things that we’re trying to research. “

Installing a megawatts-large wind project as a microgrid would require a companion battery to store excess energy generation. The Ameren microgrid is considered a utility project, but its wind generation is far less than a multiple-turbine wind farm. Scaling storage to that size of energy generation can prove difficult but will be necessary if wind plans to be more viable in microgrid applications.

From an economic standpoint, the cost-benefit of a microgrid is on a case-by-case basis, but reliability can be a significant decider, Hilburn said.

“If you have customers who have processing inside their plants that require extreme levels of reliability…you end up having a mess that the costs of cleaning up may outweigh the premium cost you have in order to put the microgrid into place, he said.”

Ameren Illinois’s utility-scale microgrid was constructed to determine how different distributed energy resources would affect the electric distribution system. Ameren Illinois

Many existing microgrids are deployed in underdeveloped regions that don’t have access to an established electrical grid or road infrastructure. Diesel generators and smaller wind turbines have been a standard for these off-grid applications.

“Wind turbines have gotten larger, multi-megawatt-sized, and there’s actually a void in the market between the great big and the very small wind turbines,” said Matt Carter, president and CEO, Carter Wind Energy. “This is exactly where we see microgrids and the need for medium-sized turbines. That’s where the industry is. That’s why they overlook this microgrid market because they’re focused on large wind farms or what I call developed economies and developed infrastructure.”

A limiting factor for utility-scale wind projects trying to break into remote communities is accessibility. Hauling the components of a utility-scale turbine to an undeveloped region poses limitations in infrastructure critical to construction. The cement machinery required to pour a foundation and the cranes for installing turbines cannot always access these regions easily. And a megawatts-large wind farm could produce more energy than needed in that setting.

“Think about if you ever had any maintenance that you have to do on the wind turbine. You have to bring out another crane to do that work in the Lower 48 [states] or in developed regions where there’s roads and all this infrastructure,” Carter said.

Carter Wind Energy’s product solution for this accessibility issue is a self-erecting wind turbine that doesn’t require a crane for installation and uses a guide tower to reduce the cement required for a foundation. Diesel generators are popularly used in remote microgrid applications, and a case study by Northern Power claims wind power costs a third of diesel to operate. In addition, turbines occupy less space than an average power plant.

“It doesn’t matter what the cost is, many of these microgrids that are operating and using diesel — expensive diesel — they can’t use wind because there’s just not the equipment there to install it and maintain it,” Carter said.

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U.S. Wind showed its support for Maryland legislators for signing the Clean Energy Jobs Act into effect. The company is also gearing up for an estimated 268-MW offshore wind project expected to be completed by 2023.

“Offshore wind is one of the few clean, renewable energy sources that must provide in-state jobs and is key to generating clean air benefits for all Marylanders,” said Salvo Vitale, country manager of U.S. “The additional offshore wind goal called for in the Clean Energy Jobs Act will help reassert Maryland’s position as a leader in offshore wind energy generation while also delivering significant economic and job-creation benefits and clean energy independence within the state for generations to come.”

Unlike other energy sources, offshore wind is required by current Maryland law to produce an economic, environmental and health “net benefit” to the state and its ratepayers.

Vitale previously testified before the state Senate Finance Committee and House Economic Matters Committee urging passage of CEJA, citing the significant economic benefits that the legislation would make possible by incentivizing the development of 1,200 MW of additional offshore wind energy off the coast of Maryland.

The benefits of the legislation are significant for Maryland’s economy, resulting in the creation of an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 direct jobs; an additional $18 million to be deposited in the Offshore Wind Business Development Fund; approximately $5 billion in new capital expenditures; and thousands of tons more of carbon emissions reduced or avoided altogether.

Earlier this week, U.S. Wind announced that it has signed an agreement with EPIC Applied Technologies for the installation of its Meteorological Tower beginning this summer, marking a key milestone in the advancement of its Maryland offshore wind project which is expected to be operational within 2023.

U.S. Wind will install up to 32 wind turbines at a distance of approximately 17 miles off the coast of Ocean City that will eventually produce 268 MW of offshore wind energy. The U.S. Wind project will result in the creation of approximately 7,000 direct and indirect jobs and represent an in-state investment of nearly $1.5 billion.

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